The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) says it froze N5 billion funds belonging to the Imo State Government because Governor Rochas Okorocha was spending too much money in a suspicious manner during the last general elections.
The EFCC further stated that N8 billion Paris Club loan refunded to the state for the payment of salaries was mismanaged by Governor Okorocha.
EFCC’s Zonal Head for South-East, Usman Imam, said this during a chat with journalists.
Imam said the agency’s timely intervention saved the state over N5 billion that would have been deployed in vote-buying by the Okorocha administration during the last elections.
The EFCC director said about N8 billion from the Paris Club Refund bailout meant for payment of workers’ salaries was kept by the state government, only to begin spending it frivolously on the eve of the elections.
According to Imam, “About N7.9 billion is what had been blocked, although with pressure, subsequently, about N2.5 billion was released for salaries. On the whole, we have over N5 billion of those funds blocked; we are following up to see what actually happened.
“Honestly, what we discovered was that within two days, N700 million was withdrawn in cash; N200 million on the first day and N500 million on the second day and all these monies were disbursed in a manner that was honestly unpalatable.
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“Distribution to school teachers; I don’t know. Schools that you were not funding and you woke up on the eve of the election and withdrew N500 million cash and start distributing N1,000 each or so to teachers. Whatever that means, I don’t know.
“When we came in, we were able to save about seventy something million of the funds that we discovered were not disbursed, we also blocked it.
“People are still answering questions as to who asked them to move those monies, monies that were blocked at the banks.”
Imam said it was unfortunate the funds in question were meant for the payment of salaries and pensions which remained unpaid.
He said hopefully when Emeka Ihedioha resumes office as governor of the state, the funds would be put to better use.
Imam continued, “The sad story about this was that these monies were the intervention funds; the bailout funds that the Federal Government released to states to pay salaries when they were having problems paying salaries.
“They didn’t utilise that money to pay the salaries; they warehoused it and kept it until the election period, they started attempting to draw down the money.
“Whatever happens, we have saved over N5bn of that money, as we talk, two weeks to handover.
“Probably, the next government would have that money to use it better. There are a lot of other general investigations going on in Imo right now.”
The EFCC had arrested the Accountant-General of Imo State, Uzoho Casmir, for allegedly helping Governor Okorocha to launder N1.05 billion for the governorship and Assembly elections.
Governor Okorocha, who is a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), supported his son-in-law, Uche Nwosu, of the Action Alliance against the governorship candidate of the APC, Sen. Hope Uzodinma.