Okorocha begs Imo pensioners for patience over N16b arrears  

Imo state Governor, Chief Rochas Okorocha, on Monday pleaded with the state pensioners to exercise patience with his administration over the non-payment of their pension arrears as government plans to offset the N16 billion pension burden hanging on the State government.

Okorocha who made the plea during a briefing with journalists in Owerri said his priority now is how to offset the pension burden.

“AS we talk, my priority now is to clear the entire pension owe Imo retirees and how I will do that is only what is before me now and I will address that soonest’’.

He said that his administration had cleared the backlog of salary owed to state civil servants, stressing that, “the workers being owed now are only those of judiciary and Imo State University Teaching Hospital. The government plans to sack all of them before they returned to their duty post having spent six months at home. To that extent government is applying no work, no pay policy.”

Explaining the rationale behind the three-day work policy, he said that it was aimed at addressing the economic realities on the ground as well as to redress the state over dependence on agricultural products from the northern part of the country.

“As we talk, the food we consume in the state come from the north name it; rice, yam, tomatoes, pepper, and livestock etc all come from the north, and if they (north) decides to cut the food chain, we will be in serious problem’’.

He further stated that the agriculture policy was to position the state as one of the beneficiaries of the federal government’s agricultural loan noting that, those who keyed into the policy would be documented.

On the embargo on employment placed on the state Civil Service, Okorocha announced that the state government would soon employ 3, 000 computer literate graduates to stimulate the state workforce, while teachers already engaged under the Youth Must Work Programme would be confirmed.

Speaking on lingering controversy over the relocation of the Ekeukwu Owerre Main Market, he said that there is no going back, adding that, “government had already given deadline to traders to move to the new market at Egbede and we will not talk about it again.’’

He said, “all that government is telling the traders is to move out their goods gradually because as soon as the rain subsides, we will close down the market and demolish the whole structure in the market.’’

He therefore announced the suspension of road expansion in the state capital due to the intensity of the rains which had slowed down pace of work until when the rains are over.

On the alleged encounter he allegedly had with a ghost Okorocha said, “there was no truth behind that rumour. My initial reaction to that rumour that I returned from the land of the dead was to make jest of the evil-minded persons who engineered such negative rumour.’’

According him, “I am a Christian and do not believe that a deity in form of spirit has any power to attack me, and those championing such rumour should know that as a governor both the living and dead in the state are under my control’’.