Saturday, March 21, 2015

MANY REASONS WHY EMPEROR ROCHAS MUST NOT BE RE-ELECTED By I. Iwuoha


This is Governor of Imo State, Rochas Okorocha's score card. There are still a lot of areas where he has failed woefully, but below are the few I can remember for now:

1. Owing of retired staff of Imo Broadcasting Corporation more than 42 months arrears of pensions and gratuities and retired primary school teachers more than 12 months of pensions.

2. Owing of more than 8 months arrears of salaries to staff of General Hospitals and Imo Transport Company Illegal Dissolution of Elected Local Government Councils.

3. Legalized abortion in Imo State

4. Illegal Suspension/Retirement of Permanent Secretaries and public Servants.

5. Demolition of Houses in Owerri, Orlu, Okigwe, Anara, Amaraku etc without due process and compensations to victims of demolition.

6. Illegal Revocation of Plots of Lands allotted to persons without due process.

7. Illegal trespass into Area ‘K’ Land belonging to Amawom Owerri people when the matter is still in court.

8. Illegal acquisition/revocation and trespass to land belonging to Umuguma and Naze people in Owerri.

9. Illegal Dissolution of Town Unions in all the Autonomous Communities in Imo State as against the provision of the Nigerian Constitution, the Companies and Allied Matters Act and the Imo state laws on town unions,

10. Use of state fund and land to build private university at the Governor’s home town pretending to relocate Imo State University to the site

11. At the inception of the administration, Governor Okorocha told the whole world that he had ceded the state legislative quarters to Concorde Hotel Owerri and named it Concorde Extension. Later, he renamed the place Luxury Apartment and leased it to the wife of his former Special Adviser on Project Monitoring and strong political associate, Mrs. Macdonald Akano for many years.

12. Sale of ADAPALM to Roche Group, Imo Transport Company (I.T.C.), Concorde Hotel, Children’s Park (opposite Concorde Hotel Owerri), state General Hospitals etc for many years.

13. Sale of Imo Road Maintenance Agency (IROMA) graders, bulldozers, pay-loaders etc and appropriating same to yet-to-be accounted source.

14. Alleged auction of world-class Printing and Sword Machines worth over 200 million naira (acquired during Mbakwe Administration) belonging to Imo Newspapers to the governor’s private printing press in Lagos.

15. Borrowing of many Billions of Naira from banks and denying that no money was borrowed.

16. Reduction of admission quota for Imo Indigenes in Imo State University and Imo State Polytechnics (IMSU) to 30%. Tactically increased school fees of Imo Indigenes in IMSU from =N=30,000 to =N=120,000

17. Use of state fund to sponsor daily advertorials, propaganda, world press briefings and slanted news stories in the media for presidential contest.

18. Illegal sack of Education Secretaries in Imo State.

19. Misappropriation of Funds meant for local government councils and the Imo State Oil Producing Area Development Commission (ISOPADEC).

20. Owing ‘Youth Must Work’ teachers employed in November 2013 more than 5 months areas of allowances.

21. Refusal to pay severance packages to political appointees who served the Okorocha Government.

22. Refusal to Pay Rescue Mission Community Speakers and Government Liaison Officers monthly allowances.

23. Illegal suspension of Traditional Rulers of the 106 Autonomous Communities created by the Ohakim administration but later approved staff of office to more than 103 new traditional rulers.

24. Stoppage of overtime allowance to public servants.

25. Refusal to pay minimum wage to Judiciary workers.

26. Cajole of Government Contractors into borrowing money to do government projects and refusing to formalize and pay for the contracts done.

27. Abandonment of city-gate projects in Owerri and refusal to pay contractors who are doing the job.


28. Refusal to Pay April and May 2011 Salaries, Severance benefits and other statutory entitlements to Ex-Governor Ikedi Ohakim, his Deputy Dr. Ada Okwuonu, former State Legislatures and Government Appointees who served between 2007 and 2011.

29. Creation of unconstitutional four-tier government in utter disregard to the three-tier government recognized by the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

30. Declaration of Public Holidays to celebrate Governor’s birthday and personal programmes.

31. Appropriation of state fund without recourse to budgetary provision.

32. Allocation of land meant for New Government House Complex in New Owerri to the Governor’s wife and associates as against the provision of the Owerri Master plan.

33. Refusal to refund the sum of =N=5,000 being fees collected from aspirants to the 2012 cancelled Community Governing Council election.

34. Appropriation of State fund without recourse to budgetary provision.

35. Sack of beneficiaries of the Ten Thousand (10,000) Job Scheme without regard to the Imo State Public/Civil Service Rules

36. Illegal proscription of Local Government Development Areas Councils

37. Illegal deduction of salaries of civil servants for government Identity cards

38. Falsely blackmailed former deputy Jude Agbaso of fraud knowing full well that he was innocent. Set him up and sponsored his impeachment

39. Governor Okorocha broke alliance with APGA, President Jonathan, Senator Chris Anyanwu, Chief Martin Agbaso, Chief Achike Udenwa, Senator Hope Uzodinma and many who contributed to his campaign that gave him the first election victory in his life in 2011

40. The administration luntly refused to Pay Severance Allowance and Other Entitlements to Chairmen and Councilors who served during Udenwa Period (Promised to Pay them During 2011 Election Campaign To Pay Them)

41. Sale of all General Hospitals in Imo State to the Governor’s friends from Northern Nigerian.

42. Malicious transfer of the Chairman of the Nigeria Union of Journalists Imo State Chapter to Abia State office of I.B.C. in Aba so as a reprisal for the NUJ Chairman’s condemnation of illegality that happened in the Okorocha’s Government.

43. At the inception of the Okorocha Administration, Governor Okorocha declared publicly that he was not going to receive any salary as a governor. In one of the Imo State Executive Council meetings held towards the end of 2012, he directed his Principal Secretary to remit all his arrears of salaries to a foundation run by his wife claiming to donate them to the less privilege.

44. During the time of Ohakim Administration, the Security Vote for a Governor was around =N=2 billion. (See 2010 budget of Imo State). But at the inception of the Okorocha Administration, Governor Okorocha lied that the Security Vote of the Governor was =N=6 billion but that he was going to take only half of the vote which is =N=3 billion. What this implies is that Governor Okorocha tactically increased his Security Vote by =N=1 billion while claiming to cut it down.

45. Importation of school materials from an unknown company abroad while our artisans wallow in abject poverty. Importation done without Executive Council approval, due process, budgetary provision.

Nigerian Woman Shows Off Giant Cassava Tuber She Harvested From Her Farm (Photo)

  A woman from Orlu, Imo State showed off a giant Cassava tuber she harvested from her farmland, NairaNaijaNews reports. See photo below.