-Appreciate role of media
A passionate appeal has been made to the Imo state governor, Senator Hope Uzodinma to set up a commission of enquiry to investigate with aim to recover the alleged missing bailout fund of N26.8b released to the Imo state government by the federal government at the beginning of the second tenure of President Buhair’s administration for the sole purpose of paying off the lingering arrears pensions and gratuity in some states including Imo, so that the Imo people would be assuaged and the pensioners for whom the money was meant could be settled.
A group of elder statesmen who accompanied the National Executive and state leadership of the National Union of Pensioner (NUP) on courtesy call to the Imo governor a forth-night ago made the appeal in reaction to the government promise to pay retired Imo workers their emoluments regularly but worried that the amount involved in payment of gratuity is monumental and that the money acquired from the federal government for that purpose was diverted through Bureau de change.
The group commended the governor for acknowledging that Imo state government received such money which has generated much fuss and media publication, urged him not to sweep the matter under the carpet by unveiling what transpired and location of the money so that whoever diverted the public fund would be held accountable and refund the money intact.
Commenting on the alleged missing bailout fund, Chairman of the retired permanent secretaries Comrade F.I. Agba said that since the government is aware of the existence of the missing money, it should not play shy in setting up a commission of inquiry to locate the money and pay off the pensioners unless the governor has something to hide or wants to play the pranks of his predecessor, “after all, the money belongs to Imo people and should be accounted for and any fraud discovered should be punished.”
Chairman of the Imo pensioners intervention Committee, Comrade Ohaneje on his part commended the media for the early whistle blowing about the missing bailout fund and argued that if the money was promptly and judiciously utilized would have been reduced by now.
He urged the governor to do everything humanly possible to trace and locate where the sum of N26.8b specifically released to pay arrears of workers’ pensions is domiciled with efforts to recovering from the looters.
He said “let the governor match his words of promise to the visiting pensioners with action and vigor as has been exhibited in the struggle applied in the recovery of looted Imo public property” we are optimistic that the looted public fund must be fully recovered” .
