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Wike Claims $39.9m, N65b Were Blew In Rivers For White Elephant Projects During Amaechi’s Tenure
Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Ezenwo Wike has reportedly accused his predecessor, Rotimi Amaechi of spending some huge sum of money belonging to the Rivers people on two projects he described as “white elephant projects”.
He claimed that instead of delivering services to Rivers people, Amaechi was busy awarding political projects to boost his personal ego, saying that his only legacies of eight years rule was to leave behind some projects that had gulped millions of U.S dollars and billion of naira.
Specifically, the governor claimed that a project like Justice Karibi Whyte Hospital which he described as a “scam”, gulped $39.9 Million on paper “as there is nothing to show at the proposed site”.
He also claimed that another project conceived as white elephant project, the 1.2 kilometers monorail project gulped the sum of N65 Billion on paper with nothing on ground to show for it.
According to Wike, most of such “political projects existed either on the pages of Newspapers or were used to settle political allies”.
The Governor further alleged that Amaechi and his political allies siphoned huge sums of money from the State and left behind uncompleted projects.
He spoke during a live interview on AIT’s Focus Nigeria beamed from Government House, Port Harcourt in reaction to recent comments by Amaechi.
A statement by the Paulinus Nsirim, Commissioner for Information and Communications in the statement reads; “Amaechi does not have the moral ground to talk about development in the State when he wasted so much financial resources on non existing projects. Go round the State, you will never see anything that looks like Justice Karibi -Whyte Hospital. It is a scam that never existed.
“Again, tell me what is the traffic along Azikwe Road that a 1.2 kilometers Monorail Project will be awarded for over 65 Billion Naira.
“When I came into office, I was told that it will cost about 30 Billion Naira to complete that project. If I have such money, I will build more infrastructure across the State.
“His Economic Advisory Council led by Prof. Nimi Briggs published a document. The records covered the activities of his administration from 2007 to 2014.
“On education, the council recorded that 485 primary schools were proposed for construction. Some existing old schools were demolished when they required rehabilitation.
“Work actually started on 478 schools but only 116 schools were completed across the State. Amaechi also awarded 15 Modern Secondary Schools for 15 Local Government Areas at over Four Billion Naira each. Only the Ambassador Nne Krukrubo School in Eleme Local Government was completed and functional before he left office”, he stated.
The Governor noted that Amaechi was a self seeking leader who paraded himself as one that knows it all. Governor Wike said there are foremost schools that had produced prominent Nigerians in the State that should have been rehabilitated but he abandoned them to embark on the abandoned projects.
He stated that unlike Amaechi that kills dreams and projects of other people, he voted money to complete road projects his predecessor initiated.
It will be recalled that Amaechi had said that fear has pervaded the state he bequeathed in 2015 but residents have failed to openly challenge the current administration.
But Wike, in reaction berated Amaechi for saying that there is insecurity in Rivers State when he is the one who determines heads of security agencies that should be posted to the State.
“Rivers State is safer than any other State. See what is happening in Bornu, Kaduna and Plateau States where bandits have taken over their areas.
“When Amaechi was Governor, Julius Berger Nigeria PLC was chased away because of insecurity. But they are here now, constructing roads all over the State without fear.
“Amaechi’s hometown, Ubima is a place you have a large number of cultists that he uses. The heads of security agencies he influences their postings, come here and see the reality on ground that the State is safe,” he added.
BIGPEN recalls that Amaechi, the current Minister of Transportation, while speaking during the funeral service of the late Justice Adolphus Godwin Karibi-Whyte at Saint Augustine’s Anglican Church, Abonnema, Akuku-Toru Local Government Area of Rivers State, spoke on the recurring spate of insecurity and political intimidation in the State.
According to him, fear has pervaded the state he bequeathed in 2015 but residents have failed to openly challenge the current administration.
“Everyone is scared. We are going back to when Ateke held sway. We are going back to the period where we run away from our people. We are back to a period when nobody can speak. But from next year, I will begin to speak, if nobody wants to speak,” Amaechi had said.
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