Yahaya Bello Freezes All State Govt Accounts

Barely a few days after berating his aides over what he described as poor misrepresentation of his administration, Governor Yahaya Bello of Kogi State has directed the freezing of all state and local government accounts with immediate effect.

In a statement on Thursday, the Commissioner for Finance, Asiru Idris, said no imprest or any form of payment should be made to anyone from Government Account henceforth.

According to the statement, all “standing orders and investment instructions are hereby cancelled forthwith”.

“All Kogi State and Local Government Accounts are hereby frozen with effect from today, Thursday 22nd November 2003.”

Bello, who is at the end of his eight-year double tenure, is expected to hand over power to the Governor-Elect, Usman Ododo, in January 2024.

Ododo, an ex-Auditor General of Local Government in Kogi under Bello, and the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate had won the November 11, 2023 Kogi State Governorship Election.