Fashola Opened Up On the N78m Website Upgrade
The former governor of Lagos State has opened up on the alleged N78m personal website, www.tundefashola.com, he was accused of running with Lagos state funds. In recent weeks, the former governor had come under attack across Nigeria right from the moment the issue of the personal website allegedly owned by the governor was made public by the Lagos State Public Procurement Agency. The Agency revealed that Fashola awarded a project worth N78.3M to Info Access Plus Limited for the purpose of upgrading and updating the website. You would recall that the company in question had denied ever receiving such huge amount from the former Lagos State Governor; they claimed they were only paid N12m for the website upgrading and updating.
According to former governor Fashola, the money was actually paid to the website company for the purpose earlier mentioned. He made this revelation via a letter personally signed by him and made available to newsmen on the Thursday, 14th of August, 2015. According to the content of the letter, Fashola insisted that there was strict adherence to due process in the award of the contract to the company. He also claimed that the government agency that was saddled with the responsible for such task approved the said award before it was finalized with the company. He however expressed his disappointment over the publication not showing the break down and he felt this was exactly what caused the confusion and misunderstanding expressed by the members of the public and government agencies.
In his words: “As far as the website contract is concerned, yes there was a contract. It went through procurement and was approved by the government agency authorized to do so. One of the services was approved by the government agency authorized to do so. One of the services was an upgrade quoted for N12.5m but was awarded for N12m.
“There were other services that were new like a handover countdown clock, mobile Apps for Google, IOS and iPad, for Microsoft and for Research in Motion (blackberry), which the existing website did not have, as well as the annual maintenance cost for managing the website.
“It was for all these services that the contract was issued for N78m, which the Lagos State Procurement Agency gave no objection based on the advice of the Ministry of Science and Technology, who are the government’s adviser on ICT matters.
“In publishing this contract award, which was the government tradition under my watch, the procurement agency’s website summoned it as an ’upgrade’ only without detailing the other services and this has been distorted by the agents of hate as their suspected smoking gun. It is regrettable that a summary of the contact has been deliberately distorted to misinform the public”
Conclusively, the former Lagos State governor noted that he was able to work more effectively thanks to the inspiration provided by the website’s contents. He claimed that some individuals, whom he left unnamed, were only making efforts to drag his good name in the mud. He also declaimed the rumor going the round that he had other children outside wedlock.
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