APGA accuses Abia governor, Ikpeazu of looting state resources through LG
…Abia govt: Your lie against us cannot stand, only sign of a bad loser
By Patrick Okohue
The Abia State chapter of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) has accused the Governor Okezie Ikpeazu-led government in the state of looting and fraudulently diverting public funds in the state, by using the newly-inaugurated 17 transition committee chairmen of the local government areas, as conduit pipe.
APGA, in a statement by its State Publicity Secretary, Mr. Ebere Uzoukwa, claimed that the transition chairmen were allegedly recruited as stooges to criminally sustain what it termed as looting spree that had denied Abians and residents of the state to drive the developmental needs of the people in rural areas.
But in a swift reaction to inquiries by an online medium, the Abia state government dismissed APGA’s claims, saying that the claims were the cry of bad losers, they noted that, “APGA and its governorship candidate, Dr. Alex Otti, are bad losers.
There is no iota of truth that the present Ikpeazu-led government is using Transition Committee chairmen for the 17 local government areas of the state to milk the state.”
But, APGA insisted that the people of the state expected the governor and his government to initiate legitimate actions that would transparently instill proper utilization and deployment of local government allocations, remitted directly to the local government coffers, for purposes of driving development at the rural areas.
According to the party, “The reappointment of the immediate past TC Chairmen whom in Ikpeazu’s hollowed calculation, believed to have contributed to the massively flawed and disputatiously election returning him as governor, is to say the least, designed to extremely loot and divert Abia local government funds under the guise of ‘security votes’ and phantom projects.
“This calls for serious concern; hence, it negates the whole essence of direct funding to the local government councils in the country.
It is also disheartening upon remembering the past when local government councils meaningfully embarked on infrastructural and developmental projects, regularly paid salaries and veritably sustained micro and socio-economic programmes at the grassroots.
“The financial malfeasance as committed by the governor and his hirelings in government have hellishly deepened the sufferings of the people in all facets hence it reinforces government failures.
The inherent danger is that the fact that local government workers will be perennially owed. Development will also remain a mirage in the local communities that populate Abia.
“Given the above scenario, the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Abia State, wishes to invite the anti-graft agencies especially the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to beam its searchlight on Abia council funds to henceforth monitor closely all financial activities in the 17 local government areas of Abia State.”
However, responding on behalf of the government, the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Onyebuchi Ememanka dismissed APGA’s claims, describing it a mourning of a bad loser.
According to him, “APGA is crying woeful, because of its poor outing in the last election. Abia people rejected them and overwhelmingly, transparently reelected Governor Ikpeazu for a second term, so as to enable him consolidate the gains made so far, during his first term.”
