The Ogun State government on Sunday debunked reports that former Senior Special Assistant, SSA, to Governor Dapo Abiodun in Housing, Bidemi Rufai, brought investors to Ogun State and that he was on a monthly salary of $2,000 and got paid $50,000 every time he brings an investor to the state.
The state government said that Rufai did not bring any business concern to the state during his short stint as an SSA to Governor Abiodun.
Recall that an online news medium, People’s Gazette, had reported that Governor Abiodun was paying Rufai $50,000 each time he introduced people to him, along with a monthly salary of $2,000.
But a statement signed by the Chief Press Secretary, CPS, to Governor Abiodun, Kunle Somorin, on Sunday, claimed that Rufai, who was appointed by the governor as his SSA on Housing, never had any close relationship with the governor, prior to his appointment.
Somorin said that Rufai, like other aides of the governor, was recommended from his ward for the appointment, and not because of any special favour he offered to the governor during his gubernatorial campaigns in 2019.
The statement further faulted and denied the claims by the online medium that Rufai was being paid $2,000 monthly salary, which according to it is “outrageous and baseless.”
Somorin averred that salaries and wages of political office holders are fixed by the National Salaries, Income and Wages Commission, adding that no member of the government is permitted to any other allowances not known to law.
The CPS added that records in the state never showed that Rufai, while serving in the state, brought a single investor or facilitated any investment from the United States of America, wondering how the former political aide would then be paid $50,000 for a deal that never took place.
He added, “Bidemi Rufai was appointed as a Senior Special Assistant, SSA, to the governor on Housing, and was nominated for appointment barely three months before he was arrested.
“He had not resumed formerly and had no official office to transact business. He wasn’t part of the Ogun State Economic Management Team and have got no input into the state government activities. His appointment was based on his activities in his ward. He didn’t sit in the state Executive Council meetings and couldn’t have had inputs in policies of the state government.
“The governor had no deal with Rufai on any transaction. He brought not a single one. They can check with the US embassy.”
Somorin noted further that Governor Abiodun, being a law abiding person and respecter of the rule of law, immediately suspended Rufai after his arrest for fraud in the United States and later terminated his appointment, even before his conviction for the crime by the US court.
Noting that the current political season in the country is an auspicious time for unscrupulous politicians to attack or sponsor attacks against their opponents, hence, the timing of the concocted story, Somorin said that the political enemies of the governor, who are perhaps not happy with his rising profile, particularly in terms of the huge foreign investment drive and infrastructural development in Ogun State, might want to play up the issue of Rufai to tarnish his image.
He therefore called on the people of the state to disregard the report as a mere “attention seeking” gambit, adding that Governor Abiodun would rather not be perturbed by the report, but remains focused on his mission to position Ogun State as number one investors’ preferred destination in the country.
He added that Prince Abiodun would not be distracted by the antics of political traducers in and outside Ogun State, submitting that the governor will continue to be just, fair, accountable and equitable in the distribution of amenities across the state.
He also warned journalists, especially of the online genre, to beware of their eminent roles in the society and guide against succumbing to bread and butter journalism.
