Osun govt’s palliative vote buying in disguise — APC alleges

Osun State chapter of the All Progressives Congress, APC, has accused the state government of using the disbursement of N20,000 palliatives to workers and other beneficiaries as a strategy to influence voters ahead of the August 15 governorship election.

In a statement issued in Osogbo on Wednesday, the APC Campaign Council described the payments as an alleged vote-buying scheme, insisting that the exercise was politically motivated rather than a genuine welfare initiative. 

The party called on relevant authorities to scrutinise the disbursement.

The statement, signed by the Head of the APC Campaign Council’s Media and Publicity Committee, Oluremi Omowaiye, alleged that thousands of workers and other residents received N20,000 directly into their bank accounts only days before the governorship poll.

According to Omowaiye, “the timing of the payments raised concerns over the intention behind the exercise. The government is attempting to sway public support with public funds in the build-up to the election.”

He alleged that National Youth Service Corps, NYSC, members serving in Osun, who ordinarily receive N5,000 monthly support from the state government, also received N20,000 during the latest disbursement.

The APC also accused the administration of failing to address outstanding financial obligations to workers, including contributory pension remittances and cooperative deductions, while proceeding with the palliative payments.

Omowaiye said, “The Osun government paid a sum of N20,000 each directly to workers’ and residents’ bank accounts. These are the same workers whose contributory pension and cooperative deductions have remained unpaid for the last two years.”

The opposition party further alleged that the state government had proposed N6bn in the 2025 budget to offset gratuity arrears but had not fulfilled that commitment, arguing that pensioners remained unpaid despite the allocation.

Describing the latest payments as unlawful, the APC stated, “The government is resorting to direct vote-buying through public funds. Most shocking is that these payments are allegedly being routed through official state government accounts.”

Before the APC’s reaction, the Osun State Government had announced the release of another round of N20,000 palliatives to civil servants, describing the measure as part of efforts to cushion the impact of prevailing economic challenges on public workers.

In a statement issued by the spokesperson to Governor Ademola Adeleke, Olawale Rasheed, the government said the payment reflected its commitment to workers’ welfare and formed part of broader initiatives aimed at improving their living conditions. 

Rasheed said, “We have once again disbursed palliatives to augment salaries as part of our commitment to civil servants, who remain the backbone of our administration.”

The state government also maintained that it began periodic palliative payments before implementing the new minimum wage and contrasted its labour policies with those of the previous administration.