Governor Umo Eno of Akwa Ibom State has distanced the state government from the N700 billion fraud allegation leveled against his immediate predecessor, Udom Emmanuel, by the Network against Corruption and Trafficking, and being probed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.
Eno stated this on Saturday at a town hall meeting in the Abak area of the state.
“I don’t know where they get those figures from because it can’t be from Akwa Ibom State; it can’t be from us – we don’t have such figures,” he said.
The governor condemned what he described as a vilification of the past governors of the oil-rich South-South state since the return to democracy in 1999.
“I begin to feel that how we treat our leaders after they have put in all their efforts to serve can be very discouraging.
“We have done this consistently from Obong Attah, even the distinguished Senate President (Godswill Akpabio), we also vilified him; we went to EFCC. Now, we are doing it to Gov Udom Emmanuel,” he said.
According to him, subjecting leaders to fraud probes after they have served their people well in office would discourage those currently in office from giving their best whilst in service.
Recall that on Tuesday, operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, arrested Udom over alleged N700 billion fraud.
The arrest followed allegations of money laundering and diversion of funds preferred against PDP’s Emmanuel, who was Akwa Ibom State governor from May 2015 to May 2023.
According to the petitioner, the former governor received N3 trillion from the Federation Account in eight years but left a debt profile of N500bn and unpaid ongoing projects worth N300bn.
He was also alleged to be unable to account for N700bn.
