Impeachment: Clark Son, Ebikeme Run To Governor Okowa; Insists I Remain Council Chairman

Ebikeme Clark

Embattled Chairman of Burutu Local Government, Hon Ebikeme Clark has stormed Asaba to meet Governor Ifeanyi Okowa over his alleged controversial impeachment.

BigPen Online learnt that without prior notification of the impeachment, the local government Legislative Arm had on Tuesday announced the impeachment of the Council boss after which they forwarded the notice to the State House of Assembly against the procedures in the local government law as amended.

Dependable Government House source said that Ebikeme was currently at the state House awaiting the arrival of Governor Okowa as at press time to have a brief with him about the political crisis rocking his Council.

The source said that Okowa was trying to intervene in the matter, despite the fact that the alleged impeachment may have been faulty in order not to generate bad blood in the local government council ahead of 2019.

Ebikeme, who had insisted that he remains the council Chairman until the state House of Assembly do otherwise, told one of our correspondents on Wednesday that he was being blackmailed by councillors who wanted indiscriminate sharing of the council allocations to the detriment of the people.

In a statement obtained by BigPen Online, Hon Ebikeme Clark who gave a graphic details to why the legislative arm of the council are after him said, “Burutu local government is the only local government in Delta state that is not owing worker’s salaries .

“N50M loan borrowed by previous administrations and shared was paid by me, I met a riverine local government without a boat I bought 3 (for workers,  legislative arm and the executive).

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“The boat given to the legislative arm was hired to an oil company without due process and up till now we don’t know where the boat is. I met  a Council without a working vehecle I bought 6 brand new ones, I gave each of the 20 Councillors a constituency project which I have completely paid for.

“Outside full payment of all Burutu local government workers up to date I have given the Councillors in excess of N100M in the form of claims and other allowances.

“The Leader of the legislative arm enjoy a brand new car. I have always asked them to compare themselves to their counterparts in the other local governments in the state.

“I just completed the renovation of the council secretariat and the legislative chambers with internally generated revenue.

“Furniture to replace the last ones bought since 2002 are in production and will be delivered in less than 2 weeks from now. These and many more I can’t remember were done in this harsh economic situation we found ourselves.

“I have always pleaded with them that if not for the recession I would have done more. The  Councillors are critical of my administrative style.

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“They believe I should have accumulated salary arrears like other Councils and diverted some of the money for sharing to enable them build their houses and buy cars.

“They had threatened that if I do not  leave part of  the  last two months allocation for sharing they will  move a motion against me. These are the sins of Ebikeme Clark”.

BigPen Online recalls Ebikeme Clark, son to elder statesman, Chief Edwin Kiagbodo Clark was allegedly sacked following allegations of misconduct and mismanagement of council funds including non adherence of due process in his dealings.

It was gathered that the council legislative arm on Tuesday passed a vote of no confidence on him and subsequently forwarded notice of impeachment to the State Assembly.

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