Hundreds of former councillors who served across the 20 local government areas of Ogun State between 2016 and 2019 on Thursday stormed the Governor’s Office in Abeokuta to protest the non-payment of their severance and furniture allowances seven years after leaving office.
The ex-councillors, who served during the administration of former governor Ibikunle Amosun, accused the state government of neglect and abandonment despite their years of service.
Key Highlights:
- About 349 former councillors in Ogun State protested at the Governor’s Office in Abeokuta over unpaid severance and furniture allowances.
- They said they served between 2016 and 2019 under former governor Ibikunle Amosun but have not been paid for seven years.
- Protesters claimed worsening hardship, saying over 50 colleagues have died due to lack of money for healthcare and basic needs.
- They appealed to Governor Dapo Abiodun to approve immediate payment of their entitlements.
- The state government said it would investigate why the councillors were excluded from payments made to others who served in the same period.
The protesters, numbering about 349, carried placards with inscriptions such as, “No more promises, enough of deception, we want payment now,” “Seven years of suffering is enough, pay us now,” and “Gov Dapo Abiodun, please help pay our severance.”
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The former lawmakers lamented worsening economic hardship and alleged that more than 50 of their colleagues had died due to inability to afford medical treatment and basic survival needs.
One of the protesters, Hon. Ajoke Isola, a former councillor representing Igbogila Ward in Yewa North Local Government, said the group had endured years of financial suffering following the government’s failure to pay their statutory entitlements.
“We served with all diligence and dedication, but we are sad that seven years after leaving government, we have yet to get our severance allowance paid,” she said.
“While in office, the government owed us two months’ salaries that are yet to be paid. The statutory furniture allowance likewise.
“The non-payment of these statutory allowances has really exposed a lot of us to avoidable financial crises that have claimed the lives of many of us.”
According to her, many former councillors developed health complications but lacked the financial means to seek proper medical care.
“We are about 349, but about 50 of us have gone. Some were very sick, and because they do not have the finances to cope, they succumbed to such illnesses,” she added.
Another former councillor, Kayode Olumide from Abeokuta South Local Government, appealed to Governor Dapo Abiodun to intervene and approve payment of the allowances.
He said the protesters were compelled to demonstrate after hearing reports that severance packages for councillors who served between 2021 and 2024 were already being processed.
“We are all APC members, and we are serving the party with dedication. We just plead with the government to show us mercy,” he said.
Also speaking, Olufemi Biobaku, a former councillor from Abeokuta North Local Government, denied allegations that the protest was politically sponsored.
“We are not sponsored by any politician. We are rather here begging the governor to please help us with the payment,” he said.
Reacting to the protest, the Special Adviser to Governor Dapo Abiodun on Information and Strategy, Kayode Akinmade, stated that the protesting councillors did not serve under the current administration.
According to him, the government would investigate the matter to determine why the former councillors were allegedly excluded from payments made to other officials who served during the same period.
“The right thing for them to do is to engage the government and not be protesting because if the chairmen, the commissioners, and others who worked with the same government within the same period were paid, what then happened to them?” Akinmade said.
“I will, however, get in contact with the appropriate authorities to know what happened. Maybe there are things that we don’t know. Definitely, if their demands are genuine, the government will look into their demands.”
