T.A. Orji: Addenda for EFCC

 

JUST an appetizer to whet your appe­tite: do you still recollect that the imme­diate-past governor of Abia State, The­odore Ahamefule Orji (stupefactiously known as Ochendo), early this year pre­vented the presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Mu­hammadu Buhari, from campaigning in Aba in the feverish build-up to the last general election? Of course, that gross abuse of fleeting power subsequently became insignificant as sai baba went ahead to deservedly trounce T. A. Orji’s benefactor.
For the umpteenth time, before I con­tinue, it is important to explain to read­ers who complain that I dwell so much on the affairs of these men (Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu and his godson T. A. Orji) as if there were no better things to expend invaluable energy and time on! I appre­ciate such reservations and apologize tentatively. The kernel of the matter is that it is difficult to be chasing other things when my state is aflame. Once we extinguish the inferno of leadership poverty lit by Kalu via his imposition of T. A. Orji who inexplicably fuelled the inflammation of underdevelopment of God’s Own State we can then sheathe our swords. For now, the final battle for the soul of Abia has just begun.
Both Kalu and his beneficiary (Ochen­do) must be compelled to account for the finances (income and expenditure) be­tween 1999 and 2015 and anyone found culpable should be incinerated! Now, tell me, where is the sympathy for Kalu as boisterously purported and pulled over gullible eyes?
It is interesting that one of the groups that recently petitioned the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Save Abia Initiative for Change, accused Orji, his wife and son of looting Abia. The spokesperson of the group, Chief Pe­ter Echeta Eme, declared that their objec­tive was to cleanse the Augean stables in God’s Own State.
I am not going to repeat the interview this medium had with Eme on this subject not long ago except to emphasize some of the facts and just two figures (from the maze behind the allegation): “From Umuahia to Apumiri, a little before the Enugu-Port Harcourt road, there is where he (Orji) called Apumiri-Umudegbe ero­sion control, the place is usually water­logged and he (Orji) said they did the job at the cost of N80 million. But I can as­sure you that we went to the Ministry of Environment and got all the ecological projects in Abia State—nine of them— and that job was done twice.
“Another startling revelation we got was that the money for the nine projects was put at N1.9 billion, but they had re­leased about N820 million and N80 mil­lion was supposed to have been used for that particular project. Those mon­ies were fully drawn, but go there, you will see nothing.
“We will be happy if T. A. Orji will go to EFCC and tell them to invite us so that he will ask us if what we are saying against him is true. If you don’s see us, then you know that we are not human beings.”
Indeed, there are copious other ele­ments and figures in this unfolding sleaze enquiry. More and more people are bound to come up with additional information in the days ahead. This group’s intervention is merely a tip of the iceberg. The expectation is that the new leadership of the EFCC would move swiftly on this and other gover­norship improprieties. The earlier these infractions are addressed the better for the soul of the nation.
One-time Minister of Justice and Attorney-General of the Federation, Chief Richard Akinjide, not long ago declared that governors were the most corrupt of all politicians as they steal national patrimony beyond recogni­tion. Nobody countered that statement of fact coming most especially from a respected eminent citizen who is not given to garrulity.
Not long ago, the former governor of old Kaduna State, Alhaji Balarabe Musa, said he had thought that by now President Muhammadu Buhari would have rounded up all the immediate-past governors to face allegations of fraud, misappropriation and outright banditry.
This brings to the fore the case of the former governor of Rivers State, Dr. Peter Odili, who got a court to grant an order of perpetual injunction restraining any person, government agency or their proxies from arresting, harassing or in­terrogating him for his stewardship cov­ering his tenure (1999-2007).
As it stands, the Economic and Finan­cial Crimes Commission (EFCC) or any other such anti-corruption agency cannot do anything with Odili, at least for now, if not perpetually! This is confirmatory of the vista that law is indeed a travesty.
Some ignoramuses easily refer to the EFCC case against the former governor of Abia State, Dr. Orji Uzor Kalu, forget­ting that the matter is in court in Abuja. For the avoidance of subjudice and the full wrath of the law, I will not go into this case beyond this mention.
Now, individuals and groups have sent petitions against T. A. Orji to the EFCC over allegations of misappropriation of funds, other infractions and impropri­eties. I do not know how long it will take the EFCC to investigate this man. Jus­tice delayed is justice denied.
The suggestion made by Alhaji Musa should be considered by President Bu­hari. Governors should be made to ac­count for all the monies that came to their states during their tenures without anything to show for such accruals. Al­most all of them were a bundle of disap­pointment and a bunch of official ban­dits.
Going by the revelation of Chief Akin­jide and the proposition by Alhaji Musa, we need to rev up the tempo on this set of politicians, using T. A. Orji as a ba­rometer for change, especially now that we have a new helmsman at the EFCC, who, hopefully, would sweep cleaner and faster.