Civil rights advocacy group, Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria, (HURIWA), on Sunday, said contrary to fake and mischievous reports circulating online by purveyors of fake news, the former Enugu State Governor, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi is not in hiding and is not probed for any fraud or misappropriation of funds as concocted by persons of dark motives.
HURIWA, in a statement by its National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko said HURIWA’s team recently met with the former governor at his private residence, throwing into the gutters, the fake news that the former governor went into hiding.
The group also said the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission is in the best position to state whether or not it is probing any individual or company or state government for alleged fraud or misappropriation of taxpayers’ fund and the anti-graft agency has not initiated any move because Ugwuanyi apparently utilised the funds of the state on infrastructure development, human capital growth, agriculture, technological and health developments to mention just a few areas of impact of the former governor’s administration of eight years.
The achievements of Ugwuanyi is in Enugu for everyone to see. For instance, a mid-2019 report by the National Bureau of Statistics named Enugu state as one of the six states in Nigeria, which recorded the highest net gains in full-time employment over the years.
Enugu State under Ugwuanyi was also rated by the Financial Derivatives Company as one of Nigeria’s Most Financially Stable States with Lagos and Kano states.
During his time, Ugwuanyi carried out reforms in the Enugu State Internal Revenue Service (IRS), which jerked up the IGR from a paltry N14 billion in 2016 to a record over N30 billion before he left office. Enugu state’s internal revenue generation performance was ranked among the best 10 in the country by BudgIT, a civil group that advocates transparency in governments’ earnings and expenditure.
His diligent implementation of the reforms made former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo’s Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) Awards recognise Enugu in 2019.
HURIWA’s Onwubiko said, “The report that Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi is in hiding is fake as the former governor is in Enugu receiving visitors from different interest groups – traditional institutions, friends and associates including even holding consultations with the new governor on Good governance standards.
“This fabricated tale by moonlight is from enemies bent on extracting its own pound of flesh from.the immediate past governor for not doing their devilish bidding by supporting their crony to succeed him.
“There is no truth in that because HURIWA’s team in Enugu was also around the vicinity of some of these meetings in his private home. The report saying the former governor is being probed by the EFCC is an exaggeration from the pit of hell and by people dissatisfied that Ugwuanyi stood by the then candidate of PDP for governor and now the newly inaugurated governor, Peter Mbah.
“Disgruntled old and spent forces in some political groups who attempted to pocket the immediate past governor but failed to do so because of his commitment to the wellbeing and welfare of the people of Enugu State are behind these incessant attacks on Ugwuanyi in an attempt to build a wedge between the immediate past governor and his successor.
“Ugwuanyi is a statesman and patriotic Nigerian committed to nation-building and he will NEVER run away when he has no skeleton in his cupboard.”