The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ondo State has condemned Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa over the recently signed 2025 state budget, branding it a “budget of looting” due to what it described as excessive and questionable allocations.
Aiyedatiwa signed the N698.6 billion budget into law just a week after its passage by the state House of Assembly.
The financial plan designates N265.04 billion for recurrent expenditure and N433.62 billion for capital projects.
However, the PDP has raised concerns over the budget’s transparency, pointing to allocations it considers wasteful.
Among them are N200 million earmarked for lawmakers and N280 million for the Speaker of the Ondo State House of Assembly for “phone expenses.”
In a statement on Tuesday, PDP Publicity Secretary Kennedy Peretei described these allocations as “outrageous and unnecessary,” adding that key sectors such as education and healthcare—allocated N77.02 billion and N46.02 billion, respectively—were severely underfunded.
The opposition party further urged the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to probe what it called the “brazen looting” embedded in the budget.
However, the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ondo State dismissed the PDP’s claims as baseless, insisting that the budget was structured to drive economic growth and development.
In a counter-statement, APC Director of Media and Publicity Steve Otaloro accused the PDP of misrepresenting facts, asserting that the allocations were made in the state’s best interest.
