Following the recent establishment of a committee to probe the activities of the former local government council Chairmen in Imo State, who were in office between 2011 and May 2019, most of the affected persons selected at various intervals by the past administration to allegedly serve as conduit pipes siphon and fritter away the state and local councils allocations they have become very jittery, and in fears thus running from pillar to post to secure soft landing.
A source close to the probe panel reveals that the possible asylum for most of these politician, some of who were novices, is the plan to decamp enmass to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in a bid to evade the sword of democle from the probe committee as most of them were victims of circumstance and chance.
It would be recalled that most of the politicians were at some period or the other ,used to muzzle and emasculate local government statutory allocations and at one time signed and mortgaged the councils statutory allocation for N27.8 billion bank loan, on the prompting and instance of their Chief benefactor, Okorocha.
The worst hit with present scenario are the recently “elected” Chairmen, who were invariably selected by the immediate past Governor, barely six month to his departure from office, who initially proved stubborn and intransigent to the reigns of the present administration.
Our source also stated that group has been running helter skelter since the inauguration of the probe committee and planning to send or plea, loyalty and obedience to Governor Ihedioha and the new government using top PDP state party executives and local government party Chairmen as their solicitors and advocates.
Meanwhile the embattled former Chairmen are embittered and ready to divulge and shame their former boss as they consider what the present government is doling out to the interim management Chairman and the free hand given to them to run their councils when compared to the pittance the rescue mission government gave to them as workers salaries and overhead costs, as generous.
The now “feared gripped and jittery” council bosses expressed total dismay over unfolding events claiming that, “if we were properly and duly paid commensurate allowances, we should have been buoyant enough to withstand the forthcoming challenges but today, we go caps in hands begging for survival. The only soft-landing is to join the ruling party after all, most of us were bonafide members of PDP before we were lured out by Rochas Okorocha, with his filty lucre”.
