By Chijioke Agwu, Abakaliki
Governor David Umahi of Ebonyi State has said that his predecessor, Martin Elechi, was misinforming the public by claiming that he (Umahi) was the chairman of the Executive Council Committee on Inspections during his second tenure as the governor.
Umahi was the deputy governor during Elechi’s second tenure in office. He was reacting to a private letter written to him by Elechi, rejecting the N29 million Prado SUV car gift he gave to him which leaked recently.
The governor spoke during an Agricultural summit with Christian Association of Nigeria(CAN) held at International Conference Centre, Abakaliki on Thursday.
The governor however admitted that he was sometimes drafted to a monitoring team when they were engineering difficulties in some projects during Elechi’s tenure, saying he saved the state N1.6 billion when he was drafted to Agba bridge project and equally helped revive Oferekpe water project when it had almost came to a halt.
He said that it was the Secretary to the government’s own choice of words to have stated in the government’s letter to the former governor that the car gift was in recognition of his role in the promotion of democracy in Ebonyi State and for other meritorious services.
He emphasized that the car gifts were meant for former governors and a former Senate President in which Elechi rightly belonged to the former and was never for any other reason. He said that the contractors which the former governor said that he pursued were not genuine and no sincere government would have worked with them.
Umahi said that rejecting the car was not the best as Elechi had written to him when he assumed office to give his wife two cars which he quickly obliged.
He also faulted where the former governor said in the letter he never advised him, saying, “how can I advise somebody who does not take advise and never changes his mind when he says something?
“I advised him on the case of NigerCem and the clergy men also did which by now, Ibeto would have revived the company but he refused”, Umahi added.
Umahi said that part of the petitions that have made Elechi regular visitor to EFCC was written when both were governor and deputy and was never from him (Umahi).
The governor said that he had appealed to EFCC to leave Elechi because of his old age with a promise that if there was any where they found him wanting in money, he (Umahi) was going to pay, noting that he made the promise because of the respect he has for him, being the man who brought him to leadership. He pointed out that the gesture to rescue the former governor from the hands of the graft agency was in exception of his children. “The children should face whatever offence they committed,” he added. He explained that the cost of most of the contracts given by the former governor were over-inflated and when his government called for joint measurement they all fled.
Umahi wondered why the former governor whom he served alongside his family as a slave could be harboring ill-feelings against him.
He noted that his commissioners had been a regular visitors to ICPC courtesy of a trumped up allegations by Elechi and his loyalists.
He said that he was ready to give Elechi peace and expressed his readiness and willingness for reconciliation if CAN could bring them in a round table.
