Ondo State Deputy Governor, Mr Lucky Aiyedatiwa, has urged all the 18 local government Chairmen in the state to intensify efforts to improve their internally-generated revenue (IGR).
Aiyedatiwa gave the advice during a visit by Conference of Heads of Local Government Administration in the state, led by its Chairperson, Mrs Adenike Ogunsola, to his office on Wednesday in Akure.
He said that this had become necessary in order to enhance infrastructure development in the council areas.
The deputy governor said that the dwindling monthly allocations had sent a signal that all tiers of government, particularly the local government, must look inward on how to improve revenue generation.
He urged the council chairmen to look into the various opportunities in their respective council areas of generating more IGR.
“You need to turn around the fortunes of your local governments by being more creative,” he said.
Aiyedatiwa commended Gov. Oluwarotimi Akeredolu for being a sound financial and human resource manager, who had succeeded in ensuring that local government councils got their dues on monthly basis.
He promised that the present administration would sustain the financial discipline and cost-effective culture in its quest to deliver value-added governance to the people of the state.
Speaking earlier, the chairperson of the forum commended the state government for appointing one of their members, Mr Oluwasegun Omojuwa as Deputy Chief of Staff to the Governor.
She appreciated the governor for having a democratically- elected local government chairmen and councilors in place in all the local government councils in the state.
Ogunsola applauded the governor for the success recorded so far in the government’s financial management reform initiative.
She commended the governor for regular payment of civil servants’ salaries, within the limit of available resources, occasioned by global economic challenges, including the COVID-19 pandemic. (NAN)
