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From Oluseye Ojo, Ibadan
The Oyo State Government said on Monday that it has said it would be suing online news site Sahara Reporters over an article entitled: ‘School Notebooks: N998 million Oyo Government Project Exposes Contract Inflation, Jobs Awarded To Companies 2 Months After Registration’.
The government stated that in the article, Sahara Reporters alleged that each copy of the 60-leave notebook cost the state N2,100 to print.
Commissioner for Information, Culture and Tourism in the state, Dr Wasiu Olatubosun, in a statement, made available to reporters in Ibadan, said that each copy of the customised 60-leave actually cost N150 per copy, while the customised 80-leave exercise book also cost N180 per copy, against the N2,100 in the report publicised by Sahara Reporters.
Governor Seyi Makinde had threatened at the weekend to resign as governor if a proper investigation is conducted on the allegation, and it is found out that the cost of printing each of the customised exercise books is more than N300, following the claim that the market survey conducted by the masterminds of the publication said a copy of such exercise book was being sold between N250 and N300 in Ibadan.
Olatubosun said in the statement: ‘We are appalled at this submission which betrays a lack of journalistic or investigative rigour. We are baffled that any news media would arrive at conclusions regarding contract awards without reaching out to any agency of the Oyo State Government for comments or clarifications.
‘For the avoidance of doubt, for the 2020/2021 academic session, the Oyo State Government awarded contracts for the supply of exercise books for a total sum of N446,370,480. The award was to 8 different contractors in 14 lots to supply customised 60 and 80 leaves exercise books. The 14 lots consisted of six lots of 212,505 customised 60 leaves exercise books, and six lots of 178,663 customised 80 leaves exercise books.
‘There were additional two lots of 200,004 customised 60 leaves exercise books, and 178,668 customised 80 leaves exercise books. This gives a total of 2,725,680 customised exercise books at the rate of N150/60 leaves customised exercise books and N180/80 leaves customised exercise books.
‘You may recall that for the 2020/2021 academic session, the Oyo State Government distributed over 2.7 million exercise books in secondary schools across the state. Each secondary school student got 6 exercise books each.
‘Had these reporters followed the ethics of their profession to seek comments from the Oyo State Government through the multiple feedback channels we have online and offline, the matter would have been clarified. Instead, they resorted to malice and bad faith to malign the Oyo State Government and smear its reputation. Therefore, we have resolved to sue these media outfits for the malicious publications.
‘The general public is urged to disregard this disinformation propagated by Sahara Reporters and its cohorts. The Oyo State Government will continue to display fidelity, accountability, integrity, transparency and honesty in all its activities. Anyone who has any questions regarding any contract awards in Oyo State is free to approach relevant agencies for clarification.’
