The current political crisis rocking Ikono Local Government Council seems to have a different dimension penultimate week following the intervention of the Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs Adasi Ubulum who directed the council chairman, Hon. Emmanuel Ukpong to set-up an investigative committee to look at the allegations leveled against the embattled council secretary, Mr. Ekan Udo Ukpong and report back to the ministry.
The council supervisor for works and transport, Mr. Sampson Okorie disclosed this last week while speaking with journalists at the council headquarters, Ibiaku Ntok Okpo during the inauguration of a 6 member investigative committee to look into the fraud and sharp practice allegations leveled against the council secretary. He said that the bottom line of the crisis is that councilors said that the council secretary has violated the civil service rule and defrauded the Akwa Ibom State government by withdrawing salaries in two government establishments which is against the civil service rule and should resign, but the council secretary is saying that he cannot resign because he has no case to answer.
Mr. Okorie maintained that based on this disagreements and the advice of the commissioner for Local government, the chairman had to set up of the investigative committee to look into the problems and make recommendations so that appropriate actions can be taken in resolving the crisis, adding that the chairman of Ikono Local Government Council who inaugurated the committee has given them one month to report back to the council so that he (the chairman of council) can reach-out to the commissioner for local government who is very much interested in ensuring that the problem is resolve amicably.
On the status of the embattled council secretary, the supervisor said that Mr. Ekan Udo Ukpong is still the council secretary of Ikono Local Government and that the investigation committee is to verify claims and come out with the correct report on the situation so that appropriate action can be taken.
According to Mr. Okorie, “it was the commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs who advised the chairman, Hon. Emmanuel Ukpong when he appeared before the commissioner penultimate Monday to go and set-up a committee to investigate the crisis and report the committee’s findings to him for appropriate action.
“To say the secretary is on suspension as directed by the councilors I cannot say because I have not seen the suspension letter from the chairman and the suspension has not been announced. I am telling you that the secretary is not on suspension, the chairman has not yet approved the suspension because if the secretary is on suspension I will know, maybe the chairman is awaiting the outcome of the just inaugurated investigative committee”.
He expressed optimism that the current political crisis in Ikono will be resolved soon and described Ikono Local Government Council as one big family which must have misunderstanding and resolve it.
The supervisor said that the investigative committee is chaired by a legal luminary in the state, Obong (Barr.) Eteyen while Barr Victor Akang is to serve as secretary with four other as members.
The council chairman, Hon. Emmanuel Ukpong also inaugurated another committee in partnership with NDDC to train some youths in the area. But while speaking with the council chairman in his office shortly after inaugurating the two committees, the chairman Hon. Emmanuel Ukpong said that he has fully complied with the directive of the councilors who resolved the council secretary should be suspended to allow full investigations to be carried on him.
In his words, “I have complied with the directive of the councilors, if not the secretary should have been here to record what we are doing today, so you can see he is not on duty, he is on suspension pending the report of the investigative committee just inaugurated so that we can take appropriate action on the matter”.
The chairman maintained that when he appeared before the commissioner for local government and chieftaincy affairs recently, he was advised by the commissioner to come and set-up an independent committee to investigate the crisis which he has complied with without delay. He said that the current crisis in Ikono is because his administration has decided to use the council funds on people oriented projects instead of splashing on councilors and individual godfathers that is why they are igniting crisis using the councilors to cause confusion.
He further said that his administration will always remain focus on achieving its set goals in line with his campaign promises of ensuring a better live for Ikono people in spite the current challenges.
The chairman also said that as the chief security officer of Ikono Local Government Area, one of his primary focuses is to ensure peace, security and unity of Ikono people that is why he has always followed the part of peace and togetherness in settling any problem in the local government since he came on board. He added that if he has been sharing money without any tangible project to show, everybody would have been happy, but because he is accountable to the people who constitute the rural poor, he must do those things that will have direct impact on their lives.
He used the opportunity to renew the call for local government autonomy to allow free flow of resources directed to the local government, saying that it is only those council chairmen who don’t have or know what to do with money that will oppose local government autonomy and be satisfied with the present condition of local government administration.
He also called on the revenue allocation and fiscal commission to expedite action on the review of revenue allocation sharing formula which he expressed optimism that will boost local government funds, and called on all parties in the lingering crisis in Ikono to give peace a chance so that the ongoing investigation effort to amicably settle the matter will yield a positive result to restore peace in the local government for development to continue.
No comments:
Post a Comment