Could This Be Arunota Bridge Orumba North Have Cost N68 Million? Find Out As Ernest Igboanugo Opens Up

Right of Reply:

Immediate Past Transition Committee Member Orumba North local Government Area, Anambra state , Hon Ernest Igboanugo was attacked in newspapers by the former Transition Committee chairman of the local government and Igboanugo who is also a President General of Ndiokpalaeke Community in his right of reply clears himself of the allegations leveled against him as captured by a reporter of odogwuemekaodogwu.com Excerpts :

 

Hon. Emeka Aforka stated that your petition against him was sponsored      by major stakeholders in Orumba North?

I don’t know about that allegation but a petition written and signed by 21 members initially and 15 others letter should not be sponsored. We were not sponsored by anybody. Besides, he did not mention the names of the purported stakeholders and there is no need to waste our time on that issue.

However, assuming without conceding that we were sponsored by some persons, the “sponsorship” has no bearing on the issue under consideration. The issue here is that his administration was marred by corruption and deceit and he should respond to those allegations of corruption and not to whip up unnecessary sentiments. And as regards to his allegation that we never raised the issues while we were serving in the council, my response is that time does not run against criminal responsibility. Allegation of crime can be raised at anytime by any interested party. However, “the issues were raised by some of our members and they paid dearly for raising them. Some were even sacked. I personally raised them with him and he almost removed me from office.

He stated that you people were paid your salaries and personally signed        for them of which he showed evidence

This is where the corruption manifested most. He paid us our salaries cash instead of the normal culture of paying salaries through the recipient’s bank account. He adopted the method of cash payment to enable him make us sign that we collected the full salaries while he paid them less N25,000. He however contradicted himself by circulating a document wherein he alleged that two of our members, purporting to represent us, authorized him to remove the N25,000 for our welfare scheme. However the two members were people appointed together with him in the year 2011, whom some of us never met in office.

In other words, the two members had left office long before many of us were appointed. How those individuals could had obtained our consent in advance authorizing them to write to the chairman on our behalf even when we have not been appointed. I think that is really funny. The truth is that his response is a fruitless effort to cover-up a clear case of corruption but he has failed woefully.

 He said you know him very well prior to his appointment as a transition Chairman and can therefore testify that he had  block industry, conducted seminars, and served as Transition member. Based on that he could have had enough money to have built his house at Ndiowu?

 I am very happy he acknowledged the fact that I know him very well. Firstly, I served with him as a member of transition during the first tenure of His Excellency Mr. Peter Obi  in 2007 and our salary was only N42,500 while we served for only 3 months. Tell me how that could have built him a mansion. He also said he was APGA Assistant Publicity Secretary, Anambra State Chapter, ask him whether any salary was attached to that position. How would a conductor of seminar or workshop who did not get more than two seminars or workshop from the Local Government Service Commission which more or less is a volunteer work be able to build a house worth millions? Finally, he said he had block industry which I know he folded within six months he established it. Anyway, when the probe panel is set, he would produce all his banks statement of account to buttress his point. The House of Assembly is already inviting us to lay bare all we know and tender documents about the petition we wrote and soonest Governor Willie Obiano  panel would be set and we will appear there too. 

 What about his defense that he has no land in Awka?

 My simple response is that when the probe panel is set up we will provide the evidence. You are not a probe panel , but I called you to ensure that the reports in the Sun , The Nation and Daily Independent , heard my responses to his allegations against me that is democracy and the people would judge.

He also said that he is not a signatory to the Local Government Council’s account.

The issue is not who is a signatory or who is not, but whether he did what we said he did. Is he not contradicting himself when he listed over 50 projects he executed as Chairman, may be it is his urine he used to pay for the projects and not local government’s money. He cannot dodge the allegation by merely being evasive.

What about the projects he alleged he did, which he also have pictures.

If you had read our petition, we were very categorical in our allegation. Thank God he has joined issue with us by denying them, and this is the more reason we requested for site visit and not photographs. When the probe panel visits the sites they would know who is lying. Truth will always survive falsehood no matter how long. We are not indicting him or jailing him yet , we said he allegedly mismanage resources of our local government under our nose as members and we need explanations based on his report card of service and nothing else. He presented the report card himself to the public and should be able to defend the content of what he wrote and presented as handover note.

The most amazing thing about his said response is that he failed to say some thing about how much were budgeted for the purported projects and how much was retired. Finally, our petition was questioning the entire 54 projects he listed in his handover note. Therefore mere picking of some of them and joining issue will not exculpate him. Anyway we are zealously and impatiently waiting to be invited by the probe panel both that of the House of Assembly already inviting us and Governor’s panel.

What is your final statement in response to this reply?

 I am happy our incorruptible Governor have reacted and promised to set up a probe panel as we read in the National dailies. I hope that at the end,  the general public would see the extent of corruption of Emeka Aforka or otherwise because the Arunota bridge which is in his handover note which he said is nearing completion but now he said it is on going.

However , he failed to tell the public how much the project is worth. The bridge is worth about N68 Million from the contract sum from records available yet it has not been completed . He refused to disclose who the contractor is , how much spent so far on the bridge project. That is why I said he should face the issues and leave distracting the public from the main issues we raised.  I don’t want to go into other projects until we appear before the panel  of inquiry.   

It continues to amaze me how any right thinking person would urge the state governor not to react to the allegation of such magnitude. If Emeka believes he is clean, let him allow himself to be probed and be certified clean. I finally urge the State Government to hasten-up and commence the probe because the rumour is every where that Emeka Aforka is making effort to escape justice by traveling outside the country.

Look at this document now from the man Hon Sam Mba he claimed is with him refuting ever granting a press statement to any journalist or signing any document for him and have not lead any member to protest in his favour or discuss petition against him but I am not going into all that now.