N140bn Imo LGA Funds Spent on Infrastructure 18 Jan 2014 Gov Rochas Okoroch

By Amby Uneze 

The Imo State government has denied that it misappropriated over N140 billion local government federal allocation accrued to Imo since the inception of the present administration.It said such allocations were fully applied to the relevant areas in the development of the state.Minister of Foreign Affairs and Supervising Minister of Foreign Affairs, Prof. Viola Onwuliri had recently accused the Imo State government of not accounting for the allocations from the Federation Account meant for Local Governments in the state since May 29, 2011.She alleged that “the look of the 27 local governments not being commensurate with the volume of money allocated to the local councils for nearly three years”.In a release made available to THISDAY, the State Commissioner for Finance, Mr. Chike John Okafor noted that the sprawling achievements of the Rochas Okorocha’s administration were visible on the streets, adding that the volume of infrastructure remained unequalled in the history of the state.Okafor said “I wish to inform the good people of Imo State through this medium, that contrary to her claims, this administration in only two and a half years has in every local government built an average of 10 schools at a cost of N27.5 million each, a modern hospital at an average cost of N110 million and 15 kilometre stretch of asphalted roads with drainages at a cost of N60 million per kilometer; each revealing an average investment of N1.285 billion in infrastructural development in each local government”.He stated that the state had consistently paid the salaries of local government workers, primary school teachers and monthly pensions of retired local government workers (a wage bill of over N2.1 billion monthly) timely in addition to provision of free education.