It is no longer business as usual in Kwara state as the state government recently took pragmatic steps towards stemming the spate of corruption and maladministration in the local government administrations in the state as well as the state owned tertiary institutions.

Following the inability of most of the 16 local government areas in the state to meet their financial obligations to their workers, the state government had set in motion mechanisms which include bio-metric screening to ascertain the councils' workforce and also scrutinised the councils' accounts.

In the same vein, visitation panels were set up by the government to look into the operations of the state owned three colleges of Education in Ilorin, Oro and Lafiagi.

The report of the committees that scrutinised the accounts of both the councils' and the tertiary institutions was damning as it was discovered that 10 of the 16 councils were involved in financial recklessness through unauthorised borrowings, while the college of education, Ilorin was also enmeshed in an alleged N152 million debt profile.

In a surprise move, though a welcome development, the state governor, Alh. AbdulFatah Ahmed had written a letter to the state House of Assembly, requesting it to beam its searchlight into the finances of the local government councils in the state.

Ahmed's bold move, indeed came to many as a surprise because before now, the rumour in the town had been that the state government was "cornering" the councils' funds.

It would be recalled that following threats by the local government workers to shutdown the councils, Governor Ahmed had to come to the assistance of the councils' chairmen in clearing the backlog of arrears of salaries they owed their workers.

Governor Ahmed had reported the financial recklessness of the councils' bosses to the state House of Assembly in a letter he wrote to the house on efforts by his administration in tackling the challenges facing the local governments in the state.

The letter was read by Speaker, Alhaji Razaq Atunwa on the floor of the house early last week.

Already, the state's legislators have approved an investigation of the finance management and administration of the councils by its Committee on local government and chieftaincy matters.

According to the letter, only two council areas, Baruten and Kaima had clean bills of health in relation to the issue of loan. Those whom the governor claimed were the worst culprits who 'obtained loans without authorisation' include Ilorin East, Ilorin South, Oke-Ero, Ifelodun, Ekiti, Irepodun, Offa, Edu and Asa.

The letter was the outcome of an investigation into the affairs of councils in the state following the widespread confrontation between the councils and their workers over default in salary payment. The committee recommended that council chairmen found to have run foul of the law should be sanctioned as deterrent to others.

Reacting to the development, the secretary of the state chapter of Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON), Hon. Bode Ogunleye said "whenever the house committee invites the affected local governments, they will be able to make their own areas of observations known to the house."

Ogunleye, who is also the chairman, Ekiti local government, added that, "at least, they should be law abiding and be able to respond to the call of the house."

On his part, the chairman, local government service commission, Alhaji Suleiman Kayode Yusuf backed the government's decision to probe the councils chairmen, saying that "it's a right decision".

Yusuf added that it was totally unacceptable for any local government to bypass the commission and the ministry of local government, chieftaincy affairs and community development, in such a sensitive matter as loan obtainment.

On the visitation panels to the three premier state owned Colleges of Education in Ilorin, Oro and Lafiagi, the state executive council had during its last meeting in Ilorin, the state capital directed the three colleges to discontinue all degree and outreach courses and focus on training teachers for basic education level.

The Secretary to the state government, Alhaji Isiaka Gold who addressed newsmen after the meeting said that the council also "approved the setting up of committees to look into the debt profile of over N152m in the College of Education, Ilorin and another committee to check the appropriateness of re-introducing the IJMB programme in the Colleges of Education, Oro and Lafiagi without losing focus of their primary mandates".

In the same vein, Governor Ahmed has approved the composition of a 10 member implementation committee on government White Paper on the three owned Colleges of Education in Ilorin, Oro, and Lafiagi.

A statement from the office of the Secretary to the Kwara state government, Alhaji Isiaka Gold said the Committee has Prof, Shehu Jimoh as Chairman.