Wale Oluwo Denies Indicting Akinwunmi Ambode, Says ‘I Stand By Our Collective Decision’

The immediate past Commissioner for Energy in Lagos State, Olawale Oluwo has refuted the newspaper report that he alongside a former commissioner in the state indicted immediate past Governor of the State, Akinwunmi Ambode in the purchase of the controversial 840 BRT Buses.


He said the report credited to him was false and misrepresentation of the proceedings.

He said he actually attended on October 15, 2019 the proceedings at the Lagos State House of Assembly Committee and no where did he indicted the former Governor, saying ‘I am a loyal team player and strong believer in the principle of collective responsibility’

Below is his rejoinder to the newspaper report.


October 16, 2019

The Managing Director
Independent Communications Network Limited
(Publishers of PM News)
27, Acme Road, Agidingbi
Ikeja
Lagos.

Dear Sir,

PM NEWS REPORTAGE OF PROCEEDINGS AT THE LAGOS STATE HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY COMMITTEES

I refer to the PM News
 report of October 15, 2019, regarding the proceedings of the Lagos State House of Assembly Committees probing the purchase of 820 buses by the Akinwunmi Ambode administration. The news report, headlined “AMBODE SHUNS LAGOS ASSEMBLY AGAIN, EX-AIDES INDICT HIM”, contains a particularly offensive phrase that reads “Former Commissioners for Agriculture and Energy, Toyin Suarau and Wale Oluwo said many of the projects, including the Oshodi Interchange and others were never captured in the state budget”. That report is completely false and indeed a misrepresentation of the proceedings. For the record, I wish to state the facts as follows:

I attended the second session of the Committee proceedings on October 15, 2019 and cannot remember seeing a reporter of PM News inside the Committee room;
The Ex-Commissioner for Agriculture, Mr. Toyin Suarau, and I were called into the Committee room at the same time. So, the questions asked both of us were in the open;
Suarau was asked questions on the Lagos State Rice Mill project in Imota while I was asked questions on the LED-UK street lights installations (a UK Exim Bank funded project).
I answered the committee’s questions to the best of the information available to me and at no time was anyone of us asked questions on Oshodi Interchange or any other projects outside the two mentioned above;
It is therefore very disturbing how a reporter of PM News, purportedly designated to cover the State House of assembly Committee proceedings, came about the report that “Suarau and Oluwo said many of the projects including the Oshodi Interchange and others were never captured in the state budget”….this is rather strange;
I have read the reports of all the other news media on the same event and found out that this false and offensive reportage is limited to ONLY PM News. For the avoidance of doubt, I reiterate that I DID NOT AND COULD NEVER HAVE INDICTED FORMER GOVERNOR AKINWUNMI AMBODE!!! I am a committed democrat, a loyal team player and a strong believer in the principle of collective responsibility.

It will serve the course of truth and professional journalism if this misconduct is investigated by the management of Independent Communications Network Limited (Publishers of PM News) and promptly corrected. By so doing, PM News would have succeeded in convincing the general public that it is unbiased and capable of staying above the fray in this high-wire political events unfolding in Lagos State.

Yours faithfully,

OLAWALE OLUWO
(Immediate past Commissioner for Energy & Mineral Resources, Lagos State).