Rivers State
Governor, Nyesom Wike yesterday insisted that the $45 million recovered from
Ikoyi, Lagos luxury apartment was his state’s money kept by his predecessor and
Minister of Transportation, Chibuike Amaechi.
He insisted
that the money was part of proceeds from the sale of four power plants and
other assets of the state by ex-governor Amaechi in 2012. He also asked
Christians in Rivers State to pray for God’s intervention, so that the money
will be returned to the state government.
To buttress
his claim, Wike made public an earlier released White Paper indicting Amaechi
for the sale of the power plants. He had
set up a Judicial Commission of Inquiry, under the chairmanship of Justice
George Omereji, to investigate the administration of Amaechi over sale of
valued assets of the state and other related matters. The probe was followed by a White Paper
issued by the Rivers State government.
The Judicial
Commission of Inquiry indicted Amaechi
for allegedly “engaging in defective share sales contract,” just as the
office of the Attorney-General of the state was directed to take measures to
recover proceeds of the sale of the power assets.
The
commission report had stated: “The commission finds that the sale of 70 per
cent of the First Independent Power Limited in Omoku Gas Turbine, Trans-Amadi
Gas Turbine, Eleme Gas Turbine and Afam Gas Turbine is difficult to justify,
considering the enormous investment made by the Rivers State government in the
construction of the four gas turbines and the very limited number of years the
turbines have served the people of the state.”
Continuing,
it stated: “In furtherance of the findings that the sale of the four gas
turbines was unjustified and against the interest of the government and people
of the Rivers State, the commission recommends that the former governor of
Rivers, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, along with his former Commissioner for Finance
and Power, Dr. Chamberlain Peterside and Sir Augustine Wokocha respectively to
be held to account for the roles in the sale of the power generation assets of
First Independent Power Limited and the disbursement of the proceeds.”
On what
happened, the commission of inquiry wrote: “The commission finds that Rivers
State Government Executive Council at its 19th executive council meeting held
on 15th and 16th August 2012 approved the sale of 70 per cent equity of the
state-owned First Independent Power Limited to NG Power-HPS Limited comprising
Omoku Gas Turbine, Eleme Gas Turbine, Trans-Amadi Gas Turbine and Afam Gas
Turbine at the unite price of $800, 000.00 USD per megawatts, which multiplied
by 541 megawatts amounts to $432,8000.00 and 70 percent of which amounted to
$302,960,000.00.
“The
commission further finds that based on the above transactions, the Rivers State
government handed over the management of First Independent Power Limited to NG
Power-HPS Limited; that so far only the sum of $274,563,559.59 had been paid to
the Rivers State Government by NG Power-HPS Limited leaving an outstanding
balance of $28,4 million and the NG Power-HPS Limited is nothing but a
subsidiary of Sahara Energy Resources Limited.
“Government
accepts this findings but notes that the actual sum of money due and payable to
the government of Rivers State by
NG-Power-HPS Limited under the power sale contract is $116,522,042.46, made up
as follows: $63,456,440.41 being outstanding balance on the purchase price of
$302,960,000.000; $53,95,000,602.05 being monies transferred from Rivers State
government domiciliary account from Access Bank to Sahara Energy Resources
Limited…”
On the
Monorail Project, the Commission recommended “the recovery of
N35,108,316,295.65 from Brigadier-General Anthony Ukpo, TSI Limited, former
governor Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi and George Tolofari, for being the masterminds
behind the failed monorail project. “
Meanwhile,
Governor, Wike, while reiterating that the money recovered from Ikoyi
apartment, was Rivers State
government’s funds kept by Amaechi, has
asked the state’s Christians to intercede in prayers, to ensure the Federal
Government returned it.
Wike had, at
the weekend, said the money recovered by the Economic and Financial Crimes
Commission (EFCC) was part of proceed from sale of Rivers’ electricity plants
effected by Amaechi when he was governor.
He said
Amaechi used part of the proceeds from the sale to sponsor the All Progressives
Congress (APC) during the 2015 elections and hid part of it in the Ikoyi
apartment. He demanded the return of the money to Rivers or the state
government would institute a legal action to recover it from the federal
government. Amaechi has since denied ownership of the money.
Speaking
during Easter Church Service at Saint Peter’s Anglican Church, Rumuepirikom,
yesterday, Wike said the church has a responsibility to pray that God touches the
federal government to return the money to the coffers of Rivers State, as its
belongs to the state government.
He said: “We
need the prayer of the church, because there is nothing that prayer cannot do.
Pray that God should touch the government of Nigeria, so they will return the
money to us. What we are interested in is for the money to come back to us.”
Wike said
contrary to the false propaganda being peddled by Amaechi, he has not declared
war on the federal government, but the State government is simply requesting
the return of funds belonging to the state.
He said: “I
cannot declare war on the Federal Government.
Anybody bringing Buhari’s name in it should leave Buhari and face his
own problems. The issue is who kept the money at the Ikoyi residence? The money
was kept there by the Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi.
“No amount
of blackmail; no amount of distraction will stop us from getting our money.”
He alleged
between 70 and 80 percent of the APC campaigns in 2015 was sponsored with funds
sourced by the Rivers State government under the leadership of Amaechi.
According to
him, the idea of selective war on corruption would not help development in the
country.
Wike
wondered why security intelligence “go for opponents of the Federal Government,
but when glaring corruption issues, like the Ikoyi case, where millions of
dollars, belonging to Rivers State but kept by former governor of the state and
a serving minister and member of the APC, have been found, the war on
corruption is suspended and diversionary tactics adopted.”
Vicar of
Saint Peter’s Anglican Church, Rumuepirikom, Venerable Israel Omosioni, prayed
God to grant the request of Rivers people for the Ikoyi billions to be
returned.
He said with
the execution of projects across the state by the governor, additional funds
would assist Wike to achieve more for people of the state.
The church
resolved to start the prayers, which would be sustained till the funds are
returned.To ascertain the circumstances of the sale of the Omoku 150 mega
wartrts gas turbine, Afam 360 mega watts
turbine, Trans-Amadi 136 mega watts gas turbine and Eleme 75 mega watts turbine
by the administration of former Governor Chbuike Amaechi.
Tpo
identiofy the purchasers of the gas tiurbines, the total costs for which they were sold and the whereabouts of the
proceeds of the sale
To ascertain
whether the transaction was conducted with the requisite transparency and
accountabiolity in accordance with the probisions of the extant laws enforced
in Rivers Starte
To determine
if if the government and people have any equity left in the said gas turbine
and the value of such equity.
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