By We Won’t Trade Words With You, But You Never Paid For The Property- LASG Replies Lawmaker’s Husband, Kayode Tejuoso
The Lagos State Government on Sunday debunked claims by the husband of Lagos State House of Assembly member, Hon Funmilayo Tejuoso that the GRA apartment they were recently ejected from was never completely purchased.
The State Government’s response was contained in a statement signed by the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr Steve Ayorinde. The statement disclosed that the property was earlier slated for sale to a company but until the ejection, full payment was yet to be made.
It will be recalled that the husband of the lawmaker, Mr Kayode Tejuoso, a private citizen had in an interview disclosed that he used his private company to purchase the house and made appropriate payments amounting to N150m, but this has been denied as Mr Ayorinde stated that no full payment was received.
The Commissioner also added that as at the time the property was put up for sale, it was expected that a civil servant or member of the State Government hierarchy would indicate interest and purchase, but it became void when a complete private company purchased it, without having any State official as one of it’s Directors.
Mr Ayorinde noted that the property remains the official quarters of the Deputy Speaker of the State House of Assembly.
See the full statement below…
Lagos State’s Position On Deputy Speaker’s Residence
Being neither an official of Lagos State nor the purported beneficiary of the government property on No 3A Sasegbon Street, Ikeja GRA, we ought not to dignify Mr. Kayode Tejuoso’s befuddling statement to the press with a response. However, in order not to have the public misinformed, it’s important to make the following clarifications:
That the matter in question does not involve the governor’s office as being erroneously alleged but a tussle of ownership on a government property between an interloper and the Deputy Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly.
That while a couple has stepped forward to claim ownership of the said property, this is a misdirected claim as the couple did not make any purchase on the property. The company that made the purported purchase did so in error and is yet to step forward to challenge the cancellation of the purchase since the company — a certain Debam Mega Solutions — which paid only a portion of the offer price never completed payments on it that would have entitled its full takeover and access to Certificate of Occupancy. The incomplete payment has since been refunded to the company and the property retrieved so that it can continue to serve as the official quarters of the Deputy Speaker of LAHA.
That while government acknowledges a form of monetisation policy that allowed certain levels of government officials and political appointees to purchase official quarters in their individual capacity on owner-occupier basis, this policy never extended to companies like Debam Maga Solution, which, being no government entity, could not have legally made a bid for a government property.
That the names of the two directors of the said company are never Lagos State officials and the media is encouraged to investigate the names of those directors with the Corporate Affairs Commission, whether the company is owned by the Tejuosos or not as claimed by the husband.
Signed
STEVE AYORINDE
Commissioner For Information & Strategy, Lagos State
