A Chieftain of the Labour Party, LP, Mr. Philemon Asonye Ogbonna, has described the rush to complete projects by the Abia State Governor, Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu, a few days to the end of his tenure as suspicious.
Governor Ikpeazu had stated recently that he would deliver the new Government House, Umuahia, the multi-specialist hospital, Aba, Mgbarakuma Road, Umuahia South, the new garment factory, diagnostic hospital, Isiukwuato and the new permanent site of the Abia State College of Health and Sciences before leaving office on May 29, 2023.
In a statement on Thursday, Ogbonna maintained that the last-minute rush by the Governor may not be unconnected with plans to pad the cost of the projects as a way of covering up misappropriated funds.
He wondered why a government that has less than a month to the end of its tenure is running from pillar to post to deliver signature projects that should have been handed over to the people some years back.
His statement reads in part:
“It is curious that a government that has not done much for the people of Abia State for the past eight years, would come towards the end of its tenure to rush the completion of projects as if there is an emergency of some sort in the State.
“I find it absurd as a Chartered Accountant of long-standing experience that projects execution, which ought to have been planned and finances provided for in stages should be given unprecedented rush as it is being done in Abia State now if not to cover up for monies that have been recklessly spent.”
He said he was sure that if the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, had retained the governorship seat in Abia, the Ikpeazu-led administration would not have been in a hurry to complete the projects, arguing that it is clear that a new administration would not spend the kind of money that the government is spending presently on these projects to ensure their completion.
