A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Abia State and former Executive Secretary of the National Agricultural Land Development Authority (NALDA), Prince Paul Ikonne, has called on Abians to remain vigilant and hold the government of Governor Alex Otti accountable over alleged financial inconsistencies in the state’s budget.
Speaking on a monitored radio programme from Abuja, Ikonne expressed shock over the inclusion of N210 million in the Abia State budget, reportedly earmarked for the purchase of a photocopier—an item the state government has since dismissed as a “typographical error.”
“This is exactly how Abia money is written off. If Abians had not paid attention and raised questions, this whopping sum would have quietly disappeared,” Ikonne stated.
He questioned how an administration led by a seasoned banker and former bank chief executive could repeatedly commit such grave errors in public financial documents. Ikonne recalled a previous incident where about N1.2 billion was reportedly marked as a typographical error for the purchase of Hilux vehicles.
Questions Over Other Projects
The APC chieftain also raised concerns about major projects allegedly funded with enormous sums, including claims that about N100 billion has been spent on smart schools that are yet to be seen, as well as the controversial N7 billion recreational centre, which he described as existing largely on social media.
Ikonne wondered how N210 million and N12 million could be mistaken for each other, further querying what kind of photocopier would cost N12 million, let alone N210 million.
He accused the government of being insensitive to Abia’s resources, warning that what has come to light may only be a fraction of deeper financial irregularities.
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