Rights Group Demands Probe Into Alleged ₦23.7 Billion Burutu LGA Funds Looting

By Osaro Michael, Benin

A leading rights group under the auspices of the Conference for the ACTUALIZATION Human Rights, aka Confab, has called for a full investigation into allegations that ₦23.7 billion in Burutu Local Government Area funds was looted under the Executive Chairman, Hon. Julius Takeme.

In a statement issued by its Director General, Omes Ogedegbe Esq., the group said the matter must be put in proper perspective by first obtaining official records from the Office of the Accountant-General showing all statutory allocations and receipts to Burutu LGA within the period in question. According to Ogedegbe, that will help establish what accrued, what was spent, and what remains unaccounted for.

“Allegations of looting of public funds must be taken seriously. Public resources belong to the people, and those entrusted with managing them have a duty to account for every naira,” the statement read. Ogedegbe warned that politicians must not be allowed to “plunder resources meant for the development of our communities and mortgage the future of our children.”

He added that “there is nothing in the entire Burutu Local Government Area that, on its face, appears to justify an expenditure of ₦23.7 billion,” stressing that the group will follow the facts and demand transparency and accountability “and see this matter to the end.”