This is a press statement. Read below
Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Ezenwo Wike on Wednesday received the report of the Judicial Commission of Inquiry established by his administration to investigate the sale of valued Rivers State Government property and other related matters by the administration of former Governor, Rotimi Amaechi.
The Governor
who received the report from the Commission’s Chairman, Justice George
Omereji at the Government House, Port Harcourt declared that his
administration will diligently implement the recommendations of the
Commission in the interest of the state and her
people.
This is as the Chairman
of the Commission of Inquiry, Justice George Omereji advised the state
government to act on the report quickly to ensure that billions of
Naira of state funds stashed in private accounts are recovered.
The
governor declared that in addition to implementing the report, his
administration will make the content public and also intimate the public
on the next line of action.
Governor
Wike said: "We will make sure that we swing into action immediately to
see that the recommendations by the Commission are implemented.
"We
will not be intimidated by anybody or group of persons. So many things
have been done to discredit your commission. But to me, I know when
the hands of a person are not clean, he resorts to the media."
While
commending members of the Commission for serving the state honestly,
Governor Wike acknowledged that the he is aware of the threats they
faced in the course of carrying out the state assignment.
He
said : "I know the threats you and your members faced. But what is
important in life is once you are clean and your conscience is clear, go
ahead and do what is right".
Earlier, the
Chairman of the Rivers State Commission of Inquiry into the sale of
Valued State Assets and other related matters, Justice George Omereji
informed the governor that the commission received 442 exhibits, 27
memoranda while 25 witnesses testified before it.
He added that the commission visited several sites in line with its terms of reference.
According
to him: "Government should act fast on the report and Rivers people
will be better for it. If
government acts fast, we will be able to recover billions stashed into
where they kept them. That money belongs to the Rivers people and I
hope government would act fast to recover it, so that it would be used
for the people of Rivers State".
He noted that
the commission’s work was delayed by two suits filed by former governor
Amaechi and Mr Augustine Wokocha. He said the commission only started
sitting after the dismissal of the suits.
It
will be recalled that Governor Wike set up the commission with the
mandate to investigate the sale of the following :Omoku 150 MW gas
turbine, Afam 360 MW gas turbine, Trans-Amadi 136 MW gas turbine and the
Eleme 75 MW gas turbine.
The panel also
investigated the sales of Olympia Hotel, the execution of the Mono-rail
project, non-execution of the Justice Adolphus Karibi-Whyte Specialist
Hospital after the
payment of Thirty-nine million and two hundred thousand dollars to the
contractor.
The Commission also investigated the
disbursement and use of the Rivers State Ministry of Agriculture credit
guarantee scheme fund of N2billion and the withdrawal of N96 billion
from the State Reserve Funds. The panel was also mandated to ascertain
the circumstances of the sales of the four gas turbines and to identify
the purchasers and also confirm whether the transaction was conducted
with transparency.
Simeon Nwakaudu,
Special Assistant ( Media ) to the Rivers State Governor.
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