Wike Begins Probe of Amaechi, Constitutes Judicial Commission

Buhari will support inquest, says governor

Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike yesterday flagged off the probe of the administration of his predecessor, Chibuike Amaechi with the constitution of a judicial commission of inquiry to look into the sale of valued assets and withdrawal of funds by the last administration.

Wike also expressed optimism that President Muhammadu Buhari would support the probe.

The five-member judicial commission of inquiry, which has 23 terms of reference, has Hon. Justice George Omereji (Chairman), Dr Edith Chukwu, Chief Monday Ekekenta, Ven. Alex Usifo and Elder Ignatius Piegbara as members.

Mrs. Florence Fiberesima will serve as secretary while Dr. Zacheaus Adango would serve as counsel to the commission.

Inaugurating the commis- sion yesterday at Government House, Port Harcourt, Wike said they should investigate the sale of Omoku 150 MW Gas Turbine, Afam 360 MW Gas Turbine, Trans-Amadi 136 MW Gas Turbine and Eleme 75 MW Gas Turbine.

He also said the commission of inquiry should investigate the mono-rail project and the sale of the Olympia Hotel by the Amaechi administration.

According to Wike, other

areas for the commission of inquiry to investigate include “the non-execution of the contract for the construction of the Justice Adolphus KaribiWhyte Specialist Hospital after the payment of the sum of thirty-nine million and two hundred thousand dollars to the supposed contractor; the disbursement or use by the Rivers State Ministry of Agriculture of the sum of N2 billion Agricultural Credit Guarantee Scheme Funds, and the withdrawal and expenditure of the accrued N96 billion from the Rivers State Reserve Fund without compliance with the Rivers State Reserve Fund Law No. 2 of 2008.”

On the gas turbines, Wike charged the commission to “ascertain the circumstances of the sales by the Amaechi administration; identify the purchaser(s) of the gas turbines, the total cost for which they were sold, and the whereabouts of the proceeds of their sale.”

He said the commission should also ascertain whether the transactions were conducted in line with extant laws of the state, and also determine if the state still had any equity left in the gas turbines.

The governor also charged the commission to “ascertain the terms of the sale of Olympia Hotel, the price at which it was sold, and where the proceeds of the sale were domiciled; identify the person(s) to whom Olympia Hotel was sold; ascertain whether the sale of Olympia Hotel was in conformity with international best practices.”

He urged the commission of inquiry to make appropriate recommendations that would assist the State Government recover proceeds from the gas turbines sold by the Amaechi administration.

The Judicial Commission of Inquiry also has the mandate to recover funds wrongfully disbursed on the Justice Adolphus Karibi-Whyte Hospital, the funds illegally withdrawn from the State's Reserve Fund and the N2 billion illegally disbursed under the Agriculture Credit Scheme.

Wike gave the judicial commission of inquiry one month to submit its report.

In his response, the Chairman of the Judicial Commission of Inquiry assured the governor that the commission would diligently carry out its duties in line with the terms of reference.

He assured the governor that at the end of the day, Rivers people would be happy with the report of the commission.

Wike: Buhari Will Support My Probe of Amaechi’s Administration…

Also, yesterday, Wike expressed optimism that Buhari would support his probe of the administration of his predecessor.

Wike, who spoke in Port Harcourt while receiving the final report of the Transition Committee of his administration, said his administration was committed to recovering all funds diverted into private pockets by officials of the last administration.

He said: “I am confident that President Muhammadu Buhari will support my administration in the quest to tackle the massive corruption that characterised the Amaechi administration.

"We are aware that the immediate past administration and her officials will resort to blackmail and propaganda for the purpose of diverting attention from their corrupt practices. We shall remain focused on the task of getting back Rivers State resources and assets.”

The governor commended the transition committee for a job well done, saying that the committee's interim report helped his administration to take off.

Submitting the final report of the Transition Committee, former Deputy Governor, Tele Ikuru, described the Amaechi’s administration as the most corrupt in the state's history.

Ikuru said the former governor expended N812 million to furnish his personal residence at the expense of the state, while N4.96b was spent on Justice Adolphus Karibi-Whyte Hospital with no structure on ground.