Former Governor Obaseki, LG Chairman and PDP leader are charged with alleged fraud.
Nigeria News Nalin The inquiry executive team formed by the governor of Edo, Okpebholo, on Monday investigated the financial accounts of 18 local government chairmen of the state between September 4, 2023 and November 2024, allegedly sued directly Former Governor status, Godwin Obaseki.
According to a statement provided to news reporters on Sunday, the governor’s chief press secretary also sued some local government chairmen, the leader of the People’s Democratic Party PDP, etc.
Panel Chairman Solomon Imohiosen claimed in his report to Governor Okpebholo on Monday that they were prosecuted for not committing crimes and/or transferring to private accounts, N95,080,676,687.86, the amount received from the Joint Allocation Commission Committee. JAAC, chaired by 18 local governments, during the review period.
iMohiosen listed some of the prosecutors, including Newman ugiagbe, the embattled chairman of the local government of Olhimwan, who is also the state chairman of the Nigerian Local Government Association Argonne.
The others are Ahonsian Igfufor, Eric Diagles, Abrahar Burma and Dickson Imasonwan Notiamwenmwan.
He claimed that the chairman of Algon used his hotel, Demarriots Hotels Limited, which colluded with others, to plunder local government funds.
He further claimed that the discovery and forensic investigations found 96 billion guilds of bad and/or transferred to private accounts.
According to him, the team observed that 185,080,676,687.86 was received from the Common Allocation Accounts Committee (JAAC) and was received by the 18 local government regional chairmen during the investigation. However, since there are no meaningful projects to justify the amount received, these funds are not used wisely.
“The team transferred fraudulent local government funds to the state’s political godfather. More than $658,4520 billion was found to be cheated using the pseudo-name “Safety, Environment and Training”.
“The 18 local government district chairmen contributed the amount to the account, using it as a pipeline to exhaust government resources, as the amount has been transferred from there to individuals and companies.
“The team’s investigation identified significant violations in financial activities of 18 local government councils. The recommendations outlined in the report are designed to address these issues and promote transparency and accountability in local government finances.
“The report alleges that former Argon Chairman Oghomwen Newman Ugiagbe, who used his hotel, Demaritus Hotels Limited, Ahonsi Ogiegbaen Osifo, Eric Agbonmwanre, Abraham Burma , Abraham Burma and Dickson Imasogie notiemwenmwan notiemwenmwan came to rob local government funds.”
However, iMohiosen noted that the group faced different challenges during the mission, including the late financial records of various local government councils, which are incomplete records submitted.
Other challenges he listed were that the Council staff deliberately hindered the investigation that failed to comply on time, but brought a lot of sacks as later thoughts to dazzle the group members.
Speaking after receiving the committee’s report, Governor Okpebholo vowed that the EFCC of the Economic and Financial Crimes will prosecute people accused of robbing the local government’s finance ministry, suspected of robbery and possessing more than 95 billion guilds.
Okpebholo said he would personally request the EFCC the results of the report of the immediate prosecution and promised that he would follow the person being prosecuted to steal from the people of Edo.
“I want to thank you for doing a great job. I listened carefully to the submission of the report. The fact is that the government of former Governor Godwin Obaseki took the Edo people for granted. They took all of them belonging to Edo. The households took them away and guided them for their personal gain.
“We thank God for helping us change the narrative to benefit Edo. We also thank Nigeria President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, because without His support, we would not have witnessed us today Developments experienced in Edo.
“A lot of things happened. The People’s Democrats plundered the Treasury Department of the local government and stole our collective legacy and no one followed them or took action. This time, things were different. We’ll follow them and get them back from Things stole from the Edo people.
“They will be paid. I will bring this document to the EFCC myself and ensure justice is made for the mistakes against the Edo people.
“In addition to the local government chair of the improper each, former Governor Godwin Obaseki, the faction leader of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), has also been blamed.
“The days of financial recklessness and lack of transparency are over as Nigerians need to start demanding accountability for elected public office holders. This is the only way to combat corruption and ensure development,” he said.
Recall that Governor Okpebholo formed an inquiry executive team on December 18, 2024 to investigate the financial transactions of 18 local government chairmen at Edo State impeachment.
