The Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, says the huge sums of money, uncovered by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), in an apartment in the Ikoyi area of Lagos on Wednesday, belong to Rivers state.
Wike gave details during a press conference at the Government House in Port Harcourt, the Rivers state capital. The Governor gave the Federal Government 7 days to return the money of face legal actions.
It would be recalled that a Federal High Court in Lagos, had earlier ordered the temporary forfeiture of the fund, (43 million Dollars, 23 million Naira and 27,000 Pounds), to the Federal Government of Nigeria.
The court said the monies should be in the Federal Government’s custody until May 5, for any interested party in the funds to show cause why the money should not be permanently forfeited. Wike alleged that the money was stolen by Amaechi, an allegation the minister had already denied.
”We want to confirm that the houses in Ikoyi also belong to Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi.
“If you recollect in 2015, we said that gas turbines built by former Governor Peter Odili were sold to Sahara Energy, business partners of Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi at $319 million.
“That money was used to sponsor the All Progressives Congress for the 2015 general elections. From the date of sale of the gas turbines to May 29, 2015, the money depleted from $319 million to $204,000. What was stashed at the Ikoyi residence was part of that fund,” Wike stated.
Further speaking, the special assistant to the governor on electronic media, Simeon Nwakaudu, in a statement quoted the governor as saying further: “We have facts to prove that the said money belongs to the Rivers state government. The federal government must return our money.”
Governor Wike said all the stories being peddled about the money belonging to the National Intelligence Agency were false and mere face saving measures by the embattled APC federal government.
“As I speak to you, the federal government is so embarrassed that this has happened.
All the stories that the money belongs to the NIA are fake,” the governor said while challenging the federal government to set up a panel of inquiry, which will sit publicly to investigate the money if it doubted the claims of the Rivers state government.
Wike said the Rivers state government needs the money to complete an array of projects, insisting that on no account would this criminal activity be swept under the carpet.
He also said as long as the federal government continues to disturb the progress of Rivers state, so long would God throw the government at the centre into confusion.
“We are giving them seven days to return our money. Otherwise, we would take legal action to recover our money. $43 million will help us complete several projects.
We need that money for projects,” he said.
source:tori news
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