Elder statesman and First Republic Federal Commissioner for Information, Chief Edwin Clark, on Thursday, came so hard on Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta State, with a prayer that he does not succeed in his ambition for Vice Presidency.
According to him, the governor should, in his own interest, openly apologise to his colleagues in both the All Progressives Congress and the Peoples Democratic Party he had allegedly deceived into taking a decision he never believed in.
Read Also: Aviation Unions Threaten NiMET Over Non-Implementation Of Approved Minimum Wage
Clark also gave Okowa between now and May 29 to give an account of the N250 billion 13 per cent derivation fund which he collected from the Federal Government as exposed by Governor Nyesom Wike of River State or face action in court.
He noted;
I wish to refresh your memory on the official figure issued by the Federal Government of Nigeria on the buck payment approved by President Muhammadu Buhari, which your colleague of River State, Nyesom Wike publicly admitted to your annoyance.
You have between now and May 29 2023, to give your report to the people of Delta State as per how this huge amount of money was being spent by you to your people, otherwise, we will end up in the Law Court.
Several calls, SMS and WhatsApp messages to the Delta State Commissioner for Information, Charles Ehiedu Aniagwu, for a response were not replied to.
Clark stated these in an open letter to Okowa dated Thursday, January 2 2023, titled, ‘Your dictatorial government and the reign of unaccountability in Delta State.’
The letter reads in part;
Your Excellency, my letter will definitely come to you as a surprise because of my unusual silence over your nearly eight years of governance in Delta State.
But my unusual silence does not mean I have kept a blind eye over some corruption and misuse of power by you.
This is particularly, having regard to my activities during your predecessor’s reign where I openly criticised them, and I was tagged as a troublemaker by my detractors; hence I did not act for some time during your administration.
It is my intention, therefore, to release some of this ugly information to Delta State people by your lack of sincerity, lack of honesty, and lack of transparent administration. This is especially as the Delta people are scared of you and unable to speak out against your government.
Most of them have been reduced to mere robots either because of self-interest or personal patronage or the allowances they receive from the government.
I am indeed very sad that some of our leaders from the State who betrayed us in Abuja during Goodluck Ebele Jonathan and Alhaji Atiku Abubakar’s presidential primaries in 2010/2011 have relocated to Delta State to perpetuate their evil design again. Let them be warned, otherwise, they will be exposed.
Clark further noted;
It would be recalled in 2007, that Delta State finances were used in funding part of the election of Umaru Musa Yar’Adua through the directive of President Olusegun Obasanjo. We were therefore not surprised when you too decided to finance Atiku Abubakar with Delta People’s money because; there is nobody to challenge you. I repeat you will not succeed.
It is therefore in your own interest to openly apologise to your colleagues of both APC and PDP whom you deceived in taking a decision you never believed in. After your unreserved apology to your people and Southern Nigeria, you should step down your ambition of becoming a Vice-presidential candidate of the PDP. There your honour lies.
We can now understand the reason why you are never serious with your Chairmanship of the South-South Governors Forum since this will definitely compromise your ambition.
