Yusuph Olaniyonu, the Special
Adviser on Media and Publicity to the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, has said
his principal voluntarily stopped his pension as governor of Kwara state in
2015.
He made this disclosure in order
to clear the air about reports which claimed that it was the agitations by
certain groups that prompted Senate President to end the payment of his
pension.
In a statement issued on
Wednesday afternoon, Olaniyonu clarified that as far back as August 20th, 2015,
Saraki wrote to the Kwara State Government to stop the payment of his pensions.
He said: “As a responsive and
responsible government official, the Senate President has always toed the moral
and legal high-ground in all his actions. This is why since he left office as Kwara
State Governor in 2011 — even before his directive that his pension payment be
stopped on the 20th of August, 2015 — this pension was always used as a
scholarship and education endowment fund from which first-class graduates and
law school students have benefitted.
“The money has also been utilized for the
purchase of JAMB and GCE forms for secondary school leavers seeking to further
their education.
“Additionally, the decision to
stop his pension was done entirely of his own volition two years ago. in fact,
Dr. Saraki had at an interactive session with journalists in Ilorin early 2016,
he mentioned the action he had taken on the pension.
“This is why the recent
insinuations in the media attributing the Senate President’s actions to a July
14th, 2017 statement by some group, is another futile attempt to claim credit
where there is none to be claimed.
“Moving forward, it is necessary
that the Media is guided by the fact that irrespective of the payment of his
pension or not, the Senate President will continue to work on empowering his
constituents and the people in Kwara State, as he has always done, with or
without any pension payment.
“At this point, it is important
that the Media endeavors to be specific in their reporting and not ascribe
needless justifications or commentaries to otherwise independent actions”
Olaniyonu stated.
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