By Charles Igbo
Apparently in reaction to the 17 count charge slammed on him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, over an alleged N2.9 billion public funds, allegedly misappropriated while he was the Governor of Imo State, Presidential aspirant under the All Progressives Congress, APC, Rochas Okorocha, says he should be the one asking the State to pay him.
Derisively asking how much money Imo State has, Okorocha said the State owes him a whopping eight billion Naira, an accumulation of Security Votes during his tenure which he did not collect.
Okorocha spoke Monday on a Channels Television programme. In addition to that, Okorocha said he fed himself and his family with his personal funds all through the eight years of his administration.
He denied touching a Kobo of the State, saying becoming a Governor made him poorer.
What, however, he did not explain was how he acquired the many landed property and acres of land in Imo State within the period he was Governor. These also include a University.
Okorocha did not sound worried over the charges against him by the EFCC, saying he was not even aware of the suit which the Commission filed on Monday while he was declaring his interest to run for the office of the President in 2023.
He dismissed the charges as Political blackmail and witch-hunt.
Okorocha: “How much is Imo State government money?” Imo State is really owing me because I never collected my security votes; I am supposed to collect eight billion Naira if I have to make claims for security votes I did not collect.
“I fed myself throughout in the Government House when I was there, I used my personal cars. Those who say I was broke are liars. If you talk about Nigerians blessed by God, I raise my hand to be one of them. I was Rochas before I became governor. In fact, Governor made me poorer.
“I had Rochas Foundation Schools – so many of them, over 18,000 before I became Governor. To feed these children and educate them, it doesn’t cost anything less than N500 a day. Calculate that and know whether there is any day I wake up that N10 million, N15 million does not go out of my pocket.
“The story of Rochas and EFCC, the story of Rochas and politics of Imo State has been a long dragged one. I am not aware of this suit, but what I do know is that the stage I found myself with EFCC, I had an order against EFCC from Federal High Court on the abuse of my human rights, but the EFCC has refused to obey that order.
“It’s been one drama or the other but what is happening actually is that I don’t want to say it is politically motivated, but it is looking more like it.
“Go to Code of Conduct Bureau and see my worth before becoming governor and since I finished. There has never been any property of the Government, any cash of Government found in my coffers or (that of) any of my family members. There is not anything that I have that has been traced to Imo State Government’s money while I was in office.”
The Imo State Government would disagree with Okorocha over these claims.
Till date, properties worth billions of Naira, allegedly acquired by Okorocha and members of his family and some cronies have retrieved by the Government after Judicial Probe Panels indicted the former Governor.
