Two former principal officers in the government of ex Governor Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi have risen to debunk allegations of corruption leveled against their boss.
George DN Peyii former secretary to the State Government and Chamberlain S.Peterside former commissioner of finance have written to President Muhammadu Buhari debunking the allegations of corruption which the Integrity Group recently raised against former Governor Amaechi.
In the letter to the president the former officials of Amaechi’s government attached bank statement and relevant documents to prove that the allegations against their former boss was baseless.
According to the ex officials, the authors of the publication by The Integrity Group “twisted and misrepresented facts in a manner designed to serve an ill-conceived purpose of maligning the integrity of Rt.Hon.Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi Administration."
Amaechi’s SSG and Commissioner of finance then proceeded to preseent President Muhammadu Buhari with a blow by blow account of the facts concerning three key allegation raised against the ex governor.The principal allegations include:alleged fraudulent sale of Rivers State power assets and conversion of proceeds amounting to N60,480,000,000.00;unlawful payment to and criminal conversion of N6,633,440,000.00 by Clinoriv Specialist Hospital and unlawful enrichment of Messr Collect Solutions(Nig)Limited with public funds to the tune of One billion,five hundred and five million,eight hundred and ninety five thousand,six hundred and ninety-eight Naira ,seventy Kobo.
The ex-officials informed Buhari that the decision to sell 70% of the state’s equity in the power assets of the state was arrived at after an extensive deliberation by the Rivers State Executive Council on 15th and 16th August 2012 .The letter listed the reasons behind the sale and the leasing and concessioning of entitities such as Risonpalm,supabod and Olympia Hotel. “These entities were leased/concessioned and NOT sold as being mischievously and erroneously peddled by some individuals in Rivers State.At the end of the lease/concession period, these revived assets will revert to the State Government”
Buhari was informed that the payments from the proceeds of the transactions were lodged in the Rivers State Power Assets Sale Account with Access Bank as well as the Rivers State Revenue Account at Zenith Bank.
They also informed Buhari that “the compsnies that were erroneously portrayed as fronts for looting of the funds were actually those that bought the USD and made remittances of Naira equivalent into the Rivers State Revenue Account with Zenith Bank.”A table of the companies was also included in the letter to thepresident.
On the alleged unlawful payment to and criminal conversion of N4,633,440,00.00 by Clinoriv Specialist Hospital, the two officials also explained in details, the efforts made by the Amaechi government on the matter to convince Buhari that Amaechi “ did not maintain ‘a studied silencefor seven years without making any efforts’ as claimed by the peitioners ,and he is also not involved in any unlawful enrichment and criminal conspiracy to convert public funds to private use.”
The duo also dismissed the issue of alleged unlawful enrichment of Messrs Collect Solutions(Nig)Limited as bunkum.
They concluded that the allegations of fraud and wrongdoing against Amaechi are baseless.”The authors of the petition are either ignorant of the true facts or deliberately misrepresented and twisted the facts in order to tarnish the image of the image of the former Governor Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi and his administration for the purpose of achieving some heinous political agenda”,the ex SSG and former Finance Commissioner said in the rejoinder to Buhari.
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