By Ken Afor
The immediate past governor of Abia State, Okezie Ikpeazu, has addressed the accusations leveled against him by his successor, Alex Otti over claims of misappropriation of state funds through the awarding of questionable contracts and payments made to non-existent entities during Ikpeazu’s eight-year tenure.
Reports monitored by TheNewDiplomat indicate that during a visit to the United States, Governor Otti shared details with stakeholders regarding an audit report he claims to possess. This report, allegedly prepared by a reputable auditing firm, purportedly outlines a series of concerning financial irregularities that occurred during the previous administration.
Among the most startling allegations is the claim that a staggering sum of N10 billion was paid out for the construction of an airport within the state, despite no such airport project ever existing or taking place. Otti emphasized the audit’s findings, which he deemed to be a comprehensive documentation of the mismanagement and misappropriation of state resources under the former governor’s leadership.
The governor was quoted saying: “I’ve set up forensic audit as soon as I took over as Governor. So that there will be no argument, I called in one of the top three audit firms in the world and not too long ago they turned in their reports and some of the things in their reports in frightening.
“N79.3 billion naira was paid to seven Contractors for contracts that were not executed at all. Another 15.9 billion almost 16 billion was paid to 63 contractors with no supporting documents anywhere. Another 13 billion naira was paid to two contractors for contracts that do not exist out of these figures, 10 billion naira was on September 25, 2020 paid to some contractor for the construction of Abia State Airport.
“We’ve spent time trying to locate the airport and up till now, we’ve failed. One of my aides told me the other day that maybe we’re using native intelligence to look for the airport and that we should seek artificial intelligence. We’ve also involved security agents to help us find the airport.
“That’s just an example of what happened. When you juxtapose that with pensions that were lying unpaid for about ten years and salary arrears, 10 billion that was used to build a non-existent airport was exactly the same amount of money our government used to take off the pension arrears.”
Meanwhile, Ikpeazu in response to these claims through Onyebuchi Ememanka, his spokesman, with the aim to defend his record and clarify the situation surrounding the handling of state finances during his administration called on governor Otti to mention the accounting firm that carried out the audit and asked him to publish the report on the state’s website.
“Governor Alex Otti should, as a matter of public policy, name the Accounting Firm that did the audit and release the audit report. Abia State has a functional website. The audit report should be posted there immediately. Going to a foreign land to make comments about a document that is not in the public domain portrays the Governor as an administrative comedian,” he said.
He described the claims as not only baseless but also a display of high comedy. He challenged Otti to make public the documents he purports to have obtained, asserting that forensic audits are not a “voodoo scheme” and should be transparent processes.
Ikpeazu’s camp maintains that the allegations leveled against his administration’s financial dealings are unfounded and has demanded that any purported evidence be presented for scrutiny, as forensic audits are meant to be comprehensive and factual endeavors, not sources of unsubstantiated claims.
The former governor’s spokesperson explained that it is customary for forensic audit reports to be made public, allowing the documents to speak for themselves. He stated that the governor believes in according respect to the office he previously held, making it imperative for him to avoid direct confrontation with the current administration as a matter of policy and in line with the dignity expected of his position.
Ememanka added that the best course of action for the former governor is to offer clarifications whenever the present administration attempts to misinform the public about events that transpired during his tenure.
He strongly refuted Otti’s comments, labeling them “a tissue of lies” carefully crafted by a spin doctor to deceive the audience and further amplify Otti’s well-known aversion towards his predecessor. However, he welcomed the fact that Otti had engaged a reputable firm to conduct a forensic audit.
According to Ememanka, Otti claimed the auditing firm is “one of the top three in the world,” suggesting it must be either Deloitte, Ernst & Young, or PricewaterhouseCoopers – firms whose professionalism and global reputation are undisputed.
Ememanka acknowledged the credibility of these top-tier auditing firms, implying that if a reputable and professional audit has indeed been conducted, the findings should be made public and subjected to scrutiny, rather than selectively disclosed through unsubstantiated claims and allegations.
“Forensic Audits are no voodoo schemes. They are acceptable means of investigating the finances of organisations and governments. They are carried out by top accounting professionals who are disinterested in politics and internal shenanigans in the organization they are auditing.
“They are not even conclusive evidence of any guilt on the part of any person. They are at best, pointers to financial malfeasance. When they are to be used in a criminal trial, lawyers will subject them to cross-examination and the people involved will be afforded the opportunity to defend themselves,” he said.
Regarding the specific claim about funding an airport project, the former governor’s spokesperson categorically denied ever making such a statement. Instead, Ememanka explained that while the idea of an airport was initially conceived and preliminary plans were made to explore its feasibility, the project was abandoned at an early stage.
According to Ememanka, certain stakeholders within the state did not view the airport as a priority at that time, prompting the former administration to ultimately shelve the idea after considering the concerns raised.
The spokesperson, however, clarified that no funds were actually allocated or disbursed for an airport project, as it did not progress beyond the conceptual stage due to a lack of broad support from relevant parties.
His words: “At some point in our administration, the idea of building an airport came up. It was an ambitious idea that the Governor wanted to pursue and one of the schemes that were considered then for funding the project was a Public Private Partnership.
“The State Government announced their plan to invest the sum of 10 Billion Naira into the project. Some private investors showed interest and the Government through the Ministry of Lands, commenced the acquisition of a large expanse of land at a location between Ikwuano and Isiala-Ngwa North Local Government Areas.
“There were interfaces between the Ministry and the representatives of the land-owning communities, and some investors actually came to Abia to hold preliminary discussions with representatives of the State Government on the project.
“While these talks went on, a section of the Abia public felt that the airport idea was ill-timed. Indeed, the State Traditional Rulers Council led by their then Chairman, Hrm Eze Joseph Nwabeke visited the Governor and advised him to shelve airport plans and channel such funds, if they were available, into the completion of some critical road projects then.
“This was exactly what the Governor did. Indeed at a hangout with some selected journalists in Lagos, then Governor Ikpeazu, after speaking on the advantages of having an airport, told the journalists that he had decided to backtrack on the project based on the yearnings of our people. The video wherein the Governor made that statement is available and will be made public after this release. The only money the Ikpeazu administration committed to the airport project was 10 Million Naira, released to the Ministry of Lands during the process of acquiring the land and managing the interface with the local communities.
“Not a Kobo more was spent! The Honorable Commissioner for Lands then, is still alive. There was never any design for the airport. There was never a contractor selected and there was never any contract signed between the State Government and any person for this job.
“Neither Governor Ikpeazu nor the State Executive Council at the time approved the payment of any money to any contractor for any airport. It is only God in heaven and Governor Otti who knows where he found records of 10 Billion Naira paid to any person to build an airport. It is disturbing that people actually believe what he termed ‘trash’, querying the possibility of any State Government in Nigeria paying 10 Billion Naira for any project at all and not making it a press event.
“At least, there will be a flag off for such a project that the Government paid 10 Billion! In Abia, ceremonies are held for the flag-off of road projects, let alone an airport. We hereby throw a Public Challenge to Dr Alex Otti, Governor of Abia State, to make public any documentary evidence or any kind of evidence at all that shows that the sum of 10 Billion Naira, or any other amount at all, apart from the initial 10 million Naira mentioned above was paid to anyone for an airport.
“What is the name of the Contractor who received the money? Who authorised the payment? Was it a one-off payment or was it paid in different tranches? Which bank handled the payment? Or was it paid in cash? Is it possible at all for any State Government to make such payment in the absence of a design and even a contract document? So, Abia State, under our watch, that was struggling with poor finances, will pay 10 Billion Naira to someone, just like that.
“The Commissioner for Finance and Accountant General of the State then who should be in the know of such transactions are still alive. If Governor Otti fails to provide answers to the questions above, the Ikpeazu team will leave the public to draw their conclusions about the character of the man who occupies the office of Governor of Abia State. It is not enough for Otti to just claim that 79.3 Billion was paid to seven contractors for contracts that were not executed at all up till today and challenge Otti to immediately release the names of the seven contractors and evidence of monies paid to them together with the contract papers.
“We demand to know the dates the monies were paid and the banks that handled the payments. Otti is a banker. He still runs Signature Bank. This information shouldn’t be difficult to get. No one should take 79.3 Billion of Abia’s money and walk away just like that!
“At this point, it is important to note that the total budget for Abia State under the watch of Ikpeazu never got to 170 Billion Naira for any year throughout the 8 years he held sway as Governor. This included both recurrent and capital expenditures. Indeed, capital expenditures in any particular year hovered between 70 and 80 Million Naira.
“Having said that, the public should note the assertions made by the Governor on this point are false and malicious. Just like the airport issue, we challenge him to make public the audit report. Otti also made a laughable claim when he said 16 Billion Naira was paid to 63 contractors with no supporting documents anywhere.
“Since there are no supporting documents anywhere, how did Otti know that they are contractors? Contractors are defined in contract documents which also define in clear detail what job they will do. Governor Otti should immediately provide the names of the 63 contractors for the public to know. Under the Ikpeazu administration, no money was paid to any contractor without supporting documents. That is not even possible and no proper Accountant will effect such nebulous payment.
“No Accounting department will allow such malfeasance. Since there were no supporting documents, on what basis were the payments made? Yet the people who allegedly authorised the payments are still walking free? We went on…”Another 12 Billion Naira was paid to 2 contractors for contracts that do not exist”. These contractors, don’t they have names? It was here that he said that out of the 12 Billion, 10 Billion was paid to a contractor for the airport. Our response to the airport nonsense is already stated.
“While we await the release of the audit report with the names of the contractors who were paid, we wish to remind the public that this is not the first time Governor Otti will lie in public about issues of the State finances. Upon taking over in May last year, he told the world that his predecessor incurred a debt of about 190 Billion. He “wondered” where the money went to. What he didn’t tell the public is that the amount he mentioned represented the aggregate total of all the debts incurred by the State since its creation, including loans that were carried over from the old Imo State.
“He also didn’t tell the public that since these foreign loans are dollar-denominated, their current value is affected by forex differentials. For example, if there was a loan of 50 Million Dollars taken 20 years ago when the dollar exchanged at say, 100 Naira, the current value of that loan will be calculated at the current exchange value of the dollar.
“So if you calculate the current debt of the State, it would have gone far far beyond what Otti inherited, solely on accounting of foreign exchange differentials. Secondly, Otti came on National TV to deny with a straight face that the Ikpeazu administration didn’t pay any money for the acquisition of equity in the Geometric Power Project.
“Professor Barth Nnaji had also made that statement that Ikpeazu didn’t pay. But when we produced documents evidencing the acknowledgement of receipt of the sum of 1.4 Billion Naira by Geometric, Professor Nnaji quickly beat a retreat and came clean. Till date Governor Otti has refused to acknowledge that any money was paid. If not for the sustained media pressure from them, Abia people and the general public would have stuck with the false impression that no money was paid to Geometric Power by the Ikpeazu administration.
“Because of their persistence, the government and people of Abia State proudly own 3.5% shares in a company, Geometric that is valued at 800 Million Dollars. Another area where Otti has been economical with the truth is in the area of payment of pensions. A few weeks ago, Otti went to town with the news that he has cleared all pensions arrears in the State.
“But that was another lie. What he did was to pay the arrears of the 60% he owed the pensioners since his tenure started. Upon assumption of office, Otti started paying pensioners 40% of their pensions. This continued for 9 months when he now paid off the aggregate of the 60% plus a random selection of some arrears. He now informed the pensioners that what he paid them was full and final.
“His Commissioner for Finance, Mike Akpara confirmed this on a Radio show in Umuahia. They forced the leadership of the Union of Pensioners to forgo their other arrears. Yes, pensioners were owed during our time, but they were paid some of their dues too.
“Otti is less than one year in office and this is not the first time pensioners are getting bulk payments in Abia State. Ikpeazu also made such bulk payments in his first tenure, during the Paris Club refunds and bail-out funds era but never forced anyone to forgo their arrears. Otti’s administration is much more buoyant. More money is available to them.”
Ikpeazu’s spokesperson, Ememanka, pointed out that during Otti’s current tenure as governor, the removal of petroleum subsidies by the federal government has resulted in the state receiving significantly more revenue.
However, he alleged that despite this increased funding, Otti is paying out less in salaries due to the dismissal of thousands of workers, the enforcement of an eight-year term limit for directors, and continuous verification exercises that seem to be used as a means to remove employees from the state’s payroll.
Ememanka suggested that Otti’s administration is benefiting from increased revenue streams while simultaneously reducing expenditure on salaries and personnel costs through measures such as terminations, tenure limitations, and repeated verification processes that lead to workers being removed from the payroll. This discrepancy between higher revenues and lower salary outlays was highlighted by the former governor’s camp as a point of contention.
He noted: “As of today, hundreds of workers in Ministries who had completed the so-called verification have not been paid for several months. These are workers whose salaries used to be sacrosanct. When Otti sent an Executive Bill to repeal the Law that prescribed pensions for former Governors of the State, the Majority Leader of the State Assembly whose duty it is to introduce such Bills to the Assembly stated on the floor of the Assembly that the State has been “spending Billions of Naira every year to pay these former Governors.
“Meanwhile, none of the former Governors in the State from Orji Uzor-Kalu under whose tenure the Bill was passed to Ikpeazu was paid a penny. Yet the impression created was that these former Governors have been receiving Billions. Otti is in love with mentioning Billions, real or imagined. A real Banker.
“Otti’s aversion for Ikpeazu is well known and has been elevated to a tool of State policy implementation. Anything that has to do with Ikpeazu that is positive must either be suppressed or poisoned. The negatives must be blown out of proportion. Ikpeazu must be rubbished at all costs.
“Ikpeazu built a brand new Multi Specialist Hospital at the premises of the Aba General Hospital and got it fully equipped with modern hospital equipment. There is no state-owned hospital that can match it in terms of equipment. It was duly commissioned for use by the people. Otti came in and locked up the place for no reason at all.
“He simply doesn’t want any form of positive mention for Ikpeazu. He prefers to deny our people the use of such a solid health facility just to water his aversion for Ikpeazu. The only reason why the Osisioma Flyover, Ikpeazu’s signature project is standing today is because it will be difficult to pull it down. Instead, what they have done is to allow the environment to decay and rot.
“The areas around the flyover have become a signpost for chaos and confusion. A motor park of sorts. Otti has simply not forgiven Ikpeazu for defeating him in the 2015 and 2019 elections. We understand that but these are facts of history and no attempt at historical revisionism can change that. Never in the history of Nigerian politics has a sitting Governor displayed such a naked show of aggression towards his successor. For Otti, Abia was created in 2015 and every Kobo Abia has earned since creation was stolen under Ikpeazu.”
