Amaechi’s government took N53 billion from Rivers reserve fund’

Damilola J 

Former Rivers state governor, Rotimi Amaechi indicted by Justice Oremeji's probe report

The administration of former governor of Rivers state, Rotimi Amaechi has been accused of diverting N53 billion from the State Reserve Fund.

This was contained in the report of the Rivers State Judicial Commission, which was submitted to Governor Nyesom Wike, on Wednesday.

Wike had constituted the commission to probe the sale of valued assets belonging to the state by the immediate past administration.

Chairman of the commission, Justice George Omereji, while submitting the report, implored Wike to recover the billions stolen from the state’s reserve fund and to prosecute the perpetrators.

While speaking with journalists after the briefing, Oremeji said Amaechi’s government took out N53 billion from the N55 billion left in the State Reserve Fund between 2014 and May 2015.

“There was the sum of N55 billion in the State Reserve Fund. Between 2014 and May 2015, they (immediate past administration) were able to remove N53 billion and we found out that the money (N53 billion) was not used for the projects in the state. 

The money went to individuals. From the papers submitted to us, we also found out that the money was given to people they like.

“We went to the site of the Justice Karibi Whyte Hospital, we did not see anything at all. When I told the project contractor to come with us (panel) to the place, he said snakes would bite us.

“But I insisted that we should go there. Behold, by the time we went inside, we did not see anything. The whole billions of Naira given to the man cannot be accounted for. We have recommended that those found culpable should refund the money. We even recommended that some people should be prosecuted.

“I don’t want to tell you those that will be prosecuted. It is not good for me to reveal the content of the recommendations now because we have just submitted our report.”

“We hope that the government will act fast and by the time the government looks into this report and act fast, it will be able to recover billions that are still stashed in where they kept them.

“That money belongs to Rivers people and they should be recovered so that we can use it for the people of Rivers State.”

Culled from www.ynaija.com

Rivers election tussle: Nyesom Wike closes case

The Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike on Tuesday told the state Governorship Election Petition Tribunal, sitting in Abuja that he had completed the presentation of all his witnesses.

The governor spoke through his Counsel, Emmanuel Ukala after presenting 24 witnesses to defend his case that he is the right winner of the April 11 governorship election.

Wike also tendered newspapers clippings wherein the former Chairman of the Independent

National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Attahiru Jega declared that the Rivers State governorship election was free and fair.

The governor tendered other documents which also said that the election was peaceful, credible and conducted in line with the Electoral Act.

The governor also tendered his certificate of return, APC agents list, organogram of INEC in Rivers State and the State APC notice of primaries election issued to INEC.

The governor’s Counsel said that documents would assist the tribunal to resolve the matter before it.

Justice Suleiman Ambursa adjourned sitting to Thursday for the state PDP, the third respondent to open its case.

The governor had on Monday called a retired National Commissioner of INEC, Mr Christopher Iyimoga to defend his case.

Iyimoga had told the tribunal that he was one of the three-members of INEC National Commissioner monitoring team who supervised the April 11 election in Rivers.

Iyimoga told the tribunal that the election was peaceful, a position which contradicted the testimony given Charles Okoye, also an INEC staff on Sept. 12.

According to Iyimoga, Okoye invited by the APC to testify on Sept. 12 lied before the tribunal.

He said that Okoye was just a travel guide to the team and that he had no “locus standi ’’ to write a formal report which the said witness tendered before the tribunal on the day he testified.

One Mr Emmanuel Phillips, a retired officer of the Department of State Security (DSS) had earlier testified that the election was devoid of violence.

Phillips said that he was able to lead a team of 200 DSS operatives from Abuja to monitor the election and that it was peaceful.

Among those who also testified before the tribunal for governor Wike include an Assistant Commissioner of Police, a Chief Superintendent of Police, a traditional rulers, clerics, civil servants, among others.

Meanwhile, Counsel to the APC, Mr Akinlolu Olujimi objected to the admissibility of those documents which the tribunal ruled out and admitted the documents in evidence.

Culled from www.thenewsnigeria.com.ng

Rivers Election Tribunal: Wike Insists He Won, Calls In More Witnesses

The dispute over the authentic winner of the April 11, 2015 governorship election in Rivers State continues at the election petition tribunal in Abuja as the Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, called more witnesses to testify that he won the election conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

At the resumed hearing of the petition filed by the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its candidate, an Assistant Commissioner of Police, Mr Kenneth Akubue, who testified before the tribunal said that as an Area Commander on election duty, he witnessed the distribution of election materials in Rivers State and the conduct of the elections.

Another Police officer, a Chief Superintendent of Police, Mr Uche Chukwuma, who also testified before the tribunal, said that there was no threat to security during and after the elections, neither were there arrests made as a result of hijacking, ballot box snatching and other forms of violence.

Governor Nyesom Wike’s lawyer, Prof Epiphany Azinge (SAN) expressed optimism that the tribunal would weigh the evidence of the witnesses and uphold the election of his client.

Lawyer to the Petitioners, Akin Olujimi (SAN), however, expressed disappointment over the refusal of the witnesses to read reports obtained from the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

Having presented a total of 13 witnesses in three days, Governor Nyesom Wike now has three more days to present other witnesses.

Culled from www.channelstv.com