2019: Enugu APC guber candidate, Ayogu Eze speaks on EFCC case
Congress, APC, Senator Ayogu Eze has denied allegations of
embezzlement bordering on diversion of money meant for road contracts.
DAILY POST reports that the matter is now a subject of investigation
by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.
Speaking to journalists on Thursday, through the spokesman of the
Ayogu Eze Campaign Organization, Mr. Steve Oruruo, the Senator said he
was yet to be invited by the anti-corruption agency.
While accusing the PDP of being behind the petition against him before
the EFCC, he said the onus lied on the petitioner to prove that he
diverted any money.
He described the petition as frivolous and called on his supporters to
"remain calm. Let investigation be carried out by the EFCC. The onus
lies on he who alleges to prove.
"The EFCC has not invited Senator Eze, but we are aware the petitioner
has been invited as part of the investigation. So, there is need to
clear the air. It is merely a campaign of calumny against our
candidate.
"The people are yearning for change and that window is available."
Oruruo further accused the PDP of coercing the Enugu State workers and
traders into submitting details of their Permanent Voters' Cards, PVC,
with the sole-aim of manipulating the 2019 governorship election.
He alleged that "the Enugu workers and traders are being compelled to
surrender the particulars of their PVC, apparently to scuttle the will
of the people in the election.
"It's being given as a condition for workers to receive their December
Salary. So, we are calling on security agencies to rise up to the
occasion and investigate this."
But in a swift reaction, Comrade Igbokwe Chukwuma Igbokwe, the
chairman of the Trade Union Congress, TUC, Enugu State, said the
claims do not hold water.
He said, "Not to the best of my knowledge, there is no medium through
which that has happened; to my knowledge, no worker has reported such
to me, that he is being forced to release any details, and I have not
had any meeting or conveyance of any such meeting.
"As far as I am concerned, there is no circular to that effect
directing or instructing workers to do such. I am not aware and I can
tell you no single worker has brought such complain to me as their
leader."
Describing it further as "laughable," he said "no government takes
such decision, it will communicate it through a circular and it will
come from the office of the Head of Service and as far as I am
concerned, we have not seen a copy of such circular.
"The issue of forcing workers to submit details of PVC for salary, no
government can do that as far as Enugu State is concerned. We will
have been the first to come out publicly and challenge it. Workers'
PVCs are personal to them. So, there is nothing like that as far as
the workers of Enugu State are concerned. Anybody making such claims
should come and prove it."
Similarly, the President-General of the Enugu State Amalgamated
Traders' Association, Mr. Temple Udeh described the allegation as
unfounded.
He said in a reaction that "we were shocked that our members are being
forced to surrender their PVC details. We want to say that it is a lie
from the pit of hell. There is no iota of truth in it. They don't know
what they are saying, they should not subject traders to their
politics of lies.
"Even the traders' grant courtesy of the Enugu State Government, which
has positively affected the lives of traders in the State, there is no
condition attached. We have about 100 beneficiaries every month and it
has been on for the past 3 years, and nobody has been asked to even
show evidence of having a PVC.
"So, this is lie of the century. Nobody has ever asked us of PVC. We
are just hearing this for the first time. Do we even have a polling
booth in the market? So, how are you going to do the maneuvering, let
them go and do campaign and win voters not cheap political ideas."
No comments
Post a Comment