Former governor of Rivers state, Rotimi Amaechi has refuted the allegations that he diverted N53 billion state reserve fund.

The Rivers State Judicial Commission, submitted its report on Wednesday to Governor Nyesom Wike, where it was stated that Amaechi’s administration squandered N53 billion.

Reacting to the report’s findings, the media team of Amaechi, released a statement on Thursday, to ‘state out the facts of the matter’

Read the statement below;

“The attention of the media office of Former Governor Chibuike Rotimi  Amaechi has been drawn to a statement credited to the chairman of Mr  Nyesom Wike’s invidious panel of inquiry.

The statement credited to the panel’s chairman Justice Omeriji of a  “missing” N53 billion is unfortunate and leaves much to be desired.
The mischief is all the more evident as the funds referred to are  funds from the Rivers State reserve fund which was duly approved by  the Rivers State House of Assembly and whose expenditure were duly  captured and appropriated.

Ordinarily we might not have responded to the mischief of Mr. Wike  knowing that having failed with his various desperate tactics to stop the nomination of the Rt. Hon. Chibuike Amaechi as a minister he has  embarked on this last ditch effort which is his trump card in the hope  that it will diminish the former governor’s towering stature as a  statesman and honest Nigerian.

However in keeping with Governor Amaechi’s ethos of transparent and  accountable leadership we will again repeat the facts of the matter.

Between 2013 and early 2015 revenue accruing to the government of  Rivers State was cut in half due to dwindling federal allocation to  states. From about an average of N 20 billion, the state began  receiving between N9 and N10 billion. By the middle of the first  quarter of 2015 the state revenue dipped to as low as N6 billion.

Salaries alone stood at over N9 billion besides other expenses. Government had set aside the reserve funds for the rainy day and had  need to fall back to it to fund salaries and projects. The details of  the expenditure were very clearly captured and this information which  was already in the public domain was shared with the incoming  government and the Omeriji panel.

Government business should be transparent and honest and if indeed Mr.  Nyesom Wike understands the basics of governance then he should know  that rather than playing to the gallery with his red herring of a  panel, he should simply go to court and prove his spurious allegations  of corruption.

Spending resources left behind for the betterment of Rivers people by  a prudent and thrifty government on frivolities is indeed  irresponsible and unbecoming for a person who aspires to public office  especially that of the exalted office of governor.
We would counsel Mr. Wike to focus on the job at hand and try to make  something of the few days he has before he leaves Brick House, per  adventure he might yet make some positive impact on the minds of  Rivers people.

Janeth J