v Petition Imo Assembly
v Say banker engaged to carry out hatchet job
Financial experts and members of the financial advisory committee set up by the former Imo State governor,Rt. Hon. Emeka Ihedioha to support his development agenda and other ancillary financial assignments have raised alarm faulting the recent appointment of Dr. Doris Nkeiruka Uzoka and have in a strong worded petition to the 9th Imo House of Assembly opposed the appointment of the candidate who they described as a former staff of Zenith Bank who is hired to do a hatchet job to cover the over N112billion illicit deal involving the bank.
In the four page petition to the Imo State house of Assembly through the speaker, signed by Dr Abraham Nwankwo and four others, backed with verifiable document, to the house against the commissioner tagged “request to save Imo State from continued assault, interest. The appointment of one Dr. Doris Nkeiruke Uzoka Anite of Zenith Bank Plc, as Commissioner for Finance vis-à-vis non recovery of N111.5 billion of state funds from Zenith Bank Plc. A case in point” the petitioner gave reasons why the lady should not be appointed as she is only there to cover the deal already known to the financial advisory committee and some Imolites.
The relevant bodies and persons to whom the petition was copied to, include the executive governor of Imo State Senator Hope Uzodinma, his predecessors, Rt. Hon. Emeka Ihedioha, Senator Okorocha, Dr. Ikedi Ohakim, Achike Udenwa, Governor of the Central Bank, Chief E.C. Iwuanyawu Chairman of the elders council, all the trade and labour unions various religious leaders and organizations as well as all the political and cultural organizations pointing out the anomaly in the said appointment.
Part of the thought provoking petition include, “being citizens of Imo State, committed to contributing to its progress, and having been mandated under His Excellency, Rt. Hon. Governor Emeka Ihedioha’s administration as the Financial Advisory Committee (FAC) to solve a major problem, and having meticulously carried out the assignment for the good of the present and future generations of Imo State, we are committed to ensuring that the people of Imo are not denied the benefits of our contribution, under whatever guise”.
“Accordingly, we write to petition against the appointment of Dr. Doris Nkiruka Uzoka-Anite as Finance Commissioner with the added mandate of coordinating the economy of Imo State, and the failure of the administration of His Excellency, Distinguished Senator Hope Uzodinma to recover amounts which have been established that Imo State was defrauded of by Zenith Bank Plc.
Dr. Doris Nkiruka Uzoka-Anite is a former staff of Zenith Bank Plc which is the major bank involved in severe financial infractions tantamount to allegedly defrauding the State of over N111.5 billion.
On June 6, 2019, the former Governor of Imo State, His Excellency, Rt. Hon. Emeka Ihedioha, CON, KSC, set up a Financial Advisory Committee (FAC) with Dr. Abraham Nwankwo as Chairman and Mr. Nick Opara-Ndudu as Secretary, to resolve the issue of financial infraction that occurred in the State. It had as part of its terms of reference the following:
i. To ascertain and document the locations of and balances on all bank accounts operated by the Imo State Government, its Ministries, Departments and Agencies as at May 29, 2019.
ii. To review all Financial transactions and where necessary a forensic audit with a view to ascertaining sources of funds and the application of same.
iii. To review such disbursements/applications of states resources, to ascertain the propriety of levies charges on accounts, interest payment of loans and deposits, year applicable authorization etc.
In the course of this assignment, given the scope of the work, and the need for professionalism, the State Government upon the recommendation of the Committee engaged the services of ten (10) consulting firms. After four months of work, and extensive review of the bank accounts, a report was presented to the government of His Excellency, Rt. Hon. Emeka Ihedioha on December 1, 2019.
Following the change in the government occasioned by the Supreme Court judgment of January 14, 2020, government being a continuum, the current Governor His Excellency, Distinguished Senator Hope Uzodinma was apprised with the work of the Committee via letter dated February 6, 2020. The letter (hereby attached as Appendix /) referred His Excellency to the joint report of the consortium of accounting and auditing consultants, which concluded that the nine banks whose accounts were reviewed were to refund the sum of N74,602,631,560.46 (Seventy-Four Billion, Six Hundred and Two Million, Six Hundred and Thirty-One Thousand, Five Hundred and Sixty Naira, Forty-Six Kobo) only to the State as physical amount involved in infractions and attendant penalties. In addition, the sum of N38.221,701,806.96 (Thirty-Eight billion, Two Hundred and Twenty-One Million, Seven Hundred and One Thousand, Eight Hundred and Six Naira, Ninety-Six Kobo) only was to be claimed covering the principal sum and attendant penalties arising from the aggregation of debit entries to the State account without proper narrations and for which no explanation was provided to the Financial Advisory Committee in spite of repeated demands.
In summary, a summation of N112,824,333,367.42 (One Hundred and Twelve Billion, Eight Hundred and Twenty-Four Million, Three Hundred and Thirty-Three Thousand, Three Hundred and Sixty-Seven Naira and Forty-Two Kobo) only was claimed against all the banks concerned.
Zenith Bank PLC, in particular, was liable to refund the sum of N73,281,899,828.66 (Seventy-Three Billion, Two Hundred and Eighty-One Million, Eight Hundred and
Ninety-Nine Thousand, Eight Hundred and Twenty-Eight Naira and Sixty-Six Kobo) only of the primary amount PLUS all of the secondary amount of N38,221,701,806.96 (Thirty-Eight Billion, Two Hundred and Twenty-One Million, Seven Hundred and One Thousand, Eight Hundred and Six Naira and Ninety-Six Kobo) only – a total of about N111.503 billion.
We had made it clear in our referenced letter (Appendix 1) to His Excellency, Distinguished Senator Hope Uzodinma that it was necessary that the Government recovers the money from Zenith Bank PLC as the State direly needed money to fund provision of services and infrastructure to Imo people. We also pointed out that it would be a historic disservice and insult on Imo people if Zenith Bank PLC was not made to return all the loot – under any guise.
After several months of correspondences and negotiations, involving the consultants, representatives of Imo State Government and Zenith Bank PLC, the sum irrefutably established against Zenith Bank PLC as MINIMUM recoverable was N27.093 billion. Surprisingly and strangely, out of that amount, N3,000,000,000.00 (Three Billion Naira) only was reportedly paid to Imo State as full and final payment.
We, therefore, write on behalf of the citizens of Imo State, demanding that the House of Assembly, as part of its constitutional role investigate and establish the following:
1. Why only N3 billion was paid by Zenith Bank Plc out of the sum of N27.093 billion which was already irrefutably established as minimum recoverable from the bank (letter and schedule of computation from Consultants forwarded to the Governor is hereby attached as Appendix
2. Why the same bank which had been found to deliberately defraud the State by booking and recovering a loan that was unrequested and undisbursed, even charging interest on the fictitious loan, amongst other infractions, has not been reported to CBN and EFCC but instead is being retained as banker to the state.
3. Why, with all these allegations against Zenith Bank PLC and with no clarity as to the outcome of the review process, a staff of the same bank in the person of Dr. Doris Uzoka-Anite, would be seconded as Commissioner for Finance with the additional mandate of coordinating the economy of the State. While it is the prerogative of the Governor to make appointments, we believe they should not be inimical, antithetical or overwhelmingly against the progress of the State. This appointment clearly appears so and seems like a reward to Zenith Bank Plc for its fraud against Imo State. Indeed, it creates the grave impression that Imo State is being treated as a vassal territory of Zenith Bank Plc – a huge insult on each and every citizen of Imo State, which can only be assuaged by ending this type of malevolent marriage with Zenith Bank PLC, refusing to have its officers seconded to oversee Imo State’s Treasury, thereby refusing to sustain the plundering of the State’s Treasury.
It is worthy to note that all the infractions contained in the report were committed against Imo State Government under the stewardship of a former staff of Zenith Bank Plc, who was equally appointed Commissioner for Finance in the Governor Rochas Okorocha administration. The Committee noted that most of the bank charges against the State were far in excess of that allowed by the extant banking regulations and guidelines underscoring the incestuous relationship between the then Honourable Commissioner of Finance and his former employer.
The full report of the Financial Advisory Committee and joint report of the Consortium of Consultants, which were submitted to Governor Uzodinma’s administration can be referenced to confirm these facts.
History beckons the Speaker and the entire House of Assembly to pursue and recover these sums in the best interest of the State and for the sake of posterity, so that the present and future generations of Imo State are not condemned to carry a mark of stupidity, subservience, derision and indignity because of the nonchalant attitude of their elders”.
Effort to reach the commissioner for Finance for reaction was unsuccessful as she did not pick calls put across to her, Upto the time of going to Press.
