Heavy looting of Property belonging to Imo State Government is said to be taking place in the Ministries and Parastatals following the dissolution of the State Expanded Executive, Exco, by the Governor, Owelle Rochas Okorocha.
Trumpeta learnt that departing appointees are busy carting away Government property including Generators, furniture, Computers, Window Blinds, Lawnmowers, Grinders, Vehicles and Machines.
Sources from the Ministries and Parastatals said that a particular Woman Commissioner heading one of the Ministries took away about eighteen Generators belonging to her former Ministry, meant for poverty Alleviation for the downtrodden.
When Trumpeta visited the Ministry, a Source told Trumpeta that the former Woman Commissioner ordered that the Generators in the Ministry’s store numbering about twenty, should be taken to her village.
How the bulky materials left the premises of the State Secretariat has remained a mystery, but sources said the Commissioner used a Hilux Van to cart them away, with her personally sitting in from of the vehicle to avoid prying eyes of Security men at the gate.
Trumpeta was also informed of how a top Official of the Government who is close to the Governor, ordered his Staff to empty his office of furniture, Window Blinds, Fridges etc, as he claimed to have used his personal fund to buy the materials, after the Government had failed to provide him the fund to furnish his office.
This Newspaper learnt that the departing appointees, who complained of being denied funds to run their Ministries while they lasted in office, said they cannot leave behind what they used their private funds to provide just because of what People will say.
One of the former Commissioners who spoke to Trumpeta under anonymity said some of them met empty offices and therefore used their personal funds to equip the offices and therefore cannot leave behind those materials since Government did not refund them their money.
“Remember that Owelle at a point appointed over three hundred Aides, some of them had no vehicles and offices. Some of these Appointees moved into dilapidated Government buildings and rebuilt them to at least have an office. So, do you expect less from these people even if they remove the roofs of the buildings?” Trumpeta was asked.
A former Special Adviser who does not want his name in print told Trumpeta that the former Appointees are not looting Government property but only taking away what belonged to them, since they met empty offices when they assumed office, but equipped them to be habitable to their status, adding that Okorocha should order his Principal Secretary, Dr Obi, to take to record of all the past appointees who furnished their offices with their personal monies, know how much they are worth and refund them urgently because what they did was patriotic.
