George Onyejiuwa, Owerri
The Directors of Administration and General Services of Oru East and Ideato South councils of Imo State, Mr Eustace Chidi Okere and Mrs Osuji Ngozi Chuks, have said that the ‘My People, My People Road’ projects initiated by former Governor Rochas Okorocha were big-time scams.
Mr Okere and Mrs Chuks made the stunning revelations while answering questions from the witness box at the Judicial Commission of Inquiry on contract awards by the Okorocha’s administration.
This was even as the Director of Administration and General Service of Ideato South told the Commission that she could not state immediately how much the council had paid for the non-existent road projects.
But Mr Okere, the DAGS of Oru East Council, revealed that the council had paid the sum of N10 million into a designated bank account.
“There was this project by the Rochas Okorocha administration which was called ‘My People, My People Road.’ The project was not executed by the local government.
“We got a directive from the Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, which had the amount each local government should pay to designated account numbers, for the road. Oru East Local Government Area was ordered to pay N10 million and we complied,” he told the Commission.
Answering a question, Okere not only affirmed that the N10 million belonged to Oru East Local Government Area but also reaffirmed that he was unaware of any road designated as “My People, My People Road,” within the local council area.
On the construction of a chapel in the local headquarters, which was to be executed by direct labour, Okere said that despite the release of an initial N13 million by the state government, majority of the local government chairmen did not complete the project.
“The chapel in Oru East was completed. We didn’t know who the contractor was. I am, however, aware that the Rochas Okorocha administration released another N9.5 million to the council chairman, for the completion of the chapel project,” Okere said.
On whether the N22.5 million chapel project could be regarded as a priority job, in the face of staggering unemployment in the state, Mr Okere said: “The people that initiated it ought to have done better than what we have on the ground.”
The Oru East DAGS equally told the commission that there was no record in his office relating to the Information and Communication Technology (ICT), project, pointing out that he was aware of the N62 million Zero Pothole project.
“Although the Secretary to the Government of Imo State gave us a letter to award the contract to Kriskey, we observed due process and the job was eventually given to Kriskey,” Okere said.
Also testifying before the judicial commission, the Director of Administration and General Services of Ideato South council Mrs Chuks said: “There is no road in Ideato South known as “My People, My People Road.” In full compliance with the government directive, the local government paid money into the designated account we were ordered to pay into.”
She also confirmed that “the huge sum of money spent on the building of a chapel was not and could not have been a top priority project for any local government.”