As the
face-off between Senator Florence Ita-Giwa and the Cross River State Government
deepens, the later has withdrawn the official Toyota Prado Jeep attached
to
her. This was contained in a letter dated June 9 addressed to her in her
capacity as Chairman of the Board of Bakassi Deep Seaport.
The
withdrawal might not be unconnected with her recent decamping to the All
Progressive Congress (APC) and whistle-blowing on the alleged diversion of
relief materials meant for Bakassi Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) at Atai
Ema, said to have been grabbed by top government and Peoples Democratic Party
(PDP) officials in the state.
The letter,
captioned, ‘Request for Return of Vehicle,’ from the state government said:
“With compliments and best wishes from the office of the Governor, I most
respectfully request you to please return the black Toyota Land Cruiser Jeep
officially allocated to you by this office on September 6, 2016,”
The letter
signed by the Director of Administration, Mr. David Edem, added: “The vehicle,
with chassis number JTEBX9FJXCK233671, is required to boost our depleted fleet
and deepen our service delivery responsibilities.
“Any
inconvenience caused by this request is regretted, while thanking you for your
understanding, even as your prompt response to this notice is anticipated.
“Please, accept the assurances our deepest respect, consideration and esteemed
regards.”
In her
absence, the vehicle was on June 15 retrieved by the Transport Officer in the
Governor’s Office, Mr. Bisong Agbe, who acknowledged receipt, stating: “I received,
with thanks, one Toyota Prado Jeep returned by Ita-Giwa. Vehicle is in good
working condition.”
But the
former senator condemned the way and manner the vehicle was retrieved, saying
the governor in their private discussion, had verbally accepted that she can
keep the vehicle, only for some persons to storm her house on June 15, same day
some government officials were in Ata Ema trying to defend government’s
position regarding the diverted relief materials and at the same time
denouncing her as a Bakassi leader.
According to Guardian report, Ita-Giwa,
who claimed no letter was written to her, said: “No matter the attempt to
intimidate me, I will not give up on that fight. I have been on the struggle
for Bakassi for about 28 years and now on this struggle, I will not give up.
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