It called for the Wike years at the Education Ministry to be
thoroughly investigated in the following areas:
1. The N20 billion voted for the purchase of books for Federal
Government institutions which was not duly executed as no book
was purchased or distributed.
2. The Almajiri school scheme, the Universal Basic Education (UBEC)
and the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND).
3. The N87 billion approved for the Ministry but not utilised.
4. The whereabouts of the 15 UBEC Toyota Hilux buses that Chief
Wike commandeered for his gubernatorial election campaign, which
he has refused to return to the Federal Ministry of Education
thereby hampering official activities in the Commission.
5. The over N180 Billion UBEC funds allegedly looted by Chief
Wike and Dame Patience Jonathan through fraudulent contracts for
the supply of textbooks to higher institutions. (The textbooks
were never supplied.)
6. The recent fire that razed down only the Basic Education
Section of the Ministry of Education building in Abuja
containing relevant indicting documents about Wike’s activities
while he held sway as the Supervising Minister of Education. “We
should unravel why the fire incident took place and why only
this section should be burnt. Was it for the sole purpose of
covering up the illegal transactions of the immediate past
Supervising Minister of Education, Chief Nyesom Wike? The burnt
documents included the ones for the contracts Wike awarded to
himself and his cronies as a conduit to siphon public funds. We
want the Buhari Administration to, as a matter of urgency, look
into this now that he wants to recover looted funds,” Rivers APC
said.
The party declared that there should be no hiding place for
people like Wike who as a minister hired private jets and wasted
whopping sums running into billions of naira, living an opulent
lifestyle far higher than his legitimate income, all at the
expense of tax-paying Nigerians. “Mr. President should
investigate if the looted funds were part of the billions of
naira used in purchasing arms given to Rivers State youths with
which to kill innocent people in his desperation to capture the
Rivers State Government House during the March 28 and April 11
general elections. In any case, we have heard that both the
Education and Sports Ministries under the former President
Jonathan have already submitted their audited reports to the
appropriate authorities and the reports are indicting
particularly the Tertiary Fund 2013 Tax which was siphoned
through the Central Bank to the tune of N246bn,” Rivers APC
said.
According to the party, Chief Wike is the true face of
corruption in Nigeria and if his issue is not addressed now he
will surely run aground the economy of Rivers State as he has
ordered cartons of his breakfast favourite drink (Louis XIII) of
which a bottle costs N1.5m. “Although Wike has been unjustly
declared Governor by Rivers INEC, his immunity does not prevent
him from being investigated. In any case, he will soon lose the
immunity when he is removed from office by the State Election
Petition Tribunal. We, therefore, passionately appeal to
President Muhammadu Buhari to take necessary action to bring
this man to book so as to serve as a deterrent to his type in
government,” Rivers APC said in the statement.
The party commended the governments of USA and Britain for
supporting the APC Government in its efforts to recover
Nigeria’s looted funds stashed in foreign banks by agents of
wickedness. It pleaded with Nigerians to see reason and support
the administration of President Buhari in his efforts to clean
the rot of the past administration and put our nation on a sound
footing. “The next three months may be hard as predicted by Mr.
President but we wish to assure our fellow countrymen and women
that these are necessary steps and for the good of our dear
country,” Rivers APC said.
Signed
Chief Eze Chukwuemeka Eze,
SSA on Media and Public Affairs to the State Chairman, APC
Rivers StateRivers APC backs President Buhari’s recovery of
looted funds
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