Members and supporters of the Accord Party in Osun State have accused the party’s leaders of withholding a ₦50m mobilisation fund allegedly allocated to the party for the recent PBAT Door-to-Door Movement programme.
The aggrieved members said several support groups and individuals who participated in mobilising people for the programme had yet to receive payment for their efforts.
The fund was reportedly part of a ₦100m budget set aside to mobilise supporters of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Accord Party for the inauguration programme, with each party allocated ₦50m.
An organiser of the event, who spoke on condition of anonymity, disclosed that the amount was shared equally between the two parties to mobilise their respective supporters.
However, an aide to Osun State Governor Ademola Adeleke said a support group he mobilised for the programme had not received any payment despite participating in the exercise.
“Our support group was asked to mobilise members, but they haven’t received a kobo,” the aide said.
A member of the National Association of Nigerian Students in the South-West also complained that the students’ constituency had not received its expected payment despite mobilising members for the event.
The student leader accused the Accord leadership of withholding the money and expressed dissatisfaction with the handling of the mobilisation arrangement.
“Till now, Accord leaders are yet to pay us, nor explain the reason for the delay,” he said.
The complaints have raised questions among some participants over the distribution of the funds reportedly earmarked for mobilisation.
However, the Osun State Coordinator of the PBAT Door-to-Door Movement, Timothy Olanrewaju, maintained that the mobilisation funds had been disbursed.
He advised those complaining about non-payment to hold their party leaders responsible, insisting that the money had been released to them.
“Those people protesting should hold their leaders responsible. The fund was released to them. I, as the central coordinator, was not even given any slot. My own mobilisation was also part of the APC slots,” Olanrewaju said.
He also explained that the mobilisation arrangement provided for ₦80,000 per bus and ₦10,000 for each passenger in an 18-seater bus.
According to him, the 5,000 participants expected from the Accord Party did not turn up in the anticipated numbers, despite additional mobilisation efforts.
Meanwhile, the Accord Party Chairman in Osun State, Pastor Victor Akande, said he was unaware of the alleged non-payment, explaining that the money did not pass through him.
Akande said he was not a member of the committee responsible for the funds and added that no party member had formally submitted a complaint to him.
“I am not aware of the funds. I wasn’t part of the committee. Also, if money was released, I believe those who mobilised ought to have received their money by now,” he said.
The conflicting accounts have left questions over who received the ₦50m allocated to the Accord Party, how it was distributed and why some groups involved in the mobilisation claim they remain unpaid.
While the movement’s coordinator insists that the funds were released, some participants maintain that they have not received their expected payments.
