Open Letter to Anambra Governorship Transition Committee And Governor-Elect, Soludo

Open Letter to Anambra Governorship Transition Committee And Governor-Elect, Soludo

Re: Account Of Stewardship: Unmasking The Rot In The Anambra State Ministry Of Commerce, Trade And Investment Under Commissioner Uchenna Okafor (“Wiper”) Shall Be One Of Your Focus Areas; A Majority Report.

Dear Governor-Elect, Prof. Soludo, Dr. Oby Ezekwesili, Chairperson, Anambra 2022 Transition Committee

We write on behalf of the rest of executive/Board members of International Society for Civil Liberties and Rule of Law (Intersociety), Onitsha, Nigeria who were part of the team that received the complaints and went on to investigate same.

Your Excellencies, before we proceed, we would like to refute whatever that was contained in the various letters dated Monday 24th January, 2022 and signed by our board chairman, Mr. Emeka Umeagbalasi, others and delivered to your various offices.

Firstly, a group of traders approached our office in Onitsha about a fortnight ago and told us that they were directed to meet us by the immediate past AMATAS President General and sought our help to assist them stop scheduled elections for Ogbaru Relief Market and Ogbor ogwu Market respectively.

As a group, after the visit, we went into executive session and resolved to investigate the allegations levelled against the incumbent Commissioner for Trade and Commerce in Anambra State, Mr. Uche Okafor “Wiper”.

Our team proceeded to the Government House in Awka.

Findings:

– Government suspended elections into various markets prior to November 2021 Governorship election and lifted same in January of 2022.

– No body fixes election for markets but Government receives letters from markets requesting approval for election which the state graciously approves.

– Nobody foisted anybody on any market save the traders and stakeholders.

Furthermore, we went to Building Materials International Market, Ogidi where we asked traders questions bothering on the “unopposed election of their president” claims by the group that visited us earlier.

We discovered that when the market conducted its election in 2021 that save the president position, all other offices were contested.

Moreover, we found out that Mr. Jude Nwankwo, the President of the market got re-elected because upon assumption of office, he settled over 43 cases in the market that were pending in various courts, built the second phase of the market with over 2000 shops within 2years, secured land for traders estate at Ogbunike and others.

On the issue of Bridge-Head Market leadership.

The Intersociety Committee discovered that one Mr. Sunday Obinze, the President of the market is so popular that when Soludo visited the market for campaign that he mobilised traders en mass and received him and no problem occurred.

Furthermore, we learnt Mr. Obinze built internal roads in the markets and eliminated multi-ticketing through out the market which obviously made him a popular president.

Concerning Ogbor ogwu, we discovered to our utter chagrine that one of our Board members, Barr. Mrs. Obianuju Joy Igboeli, Head, Civil Liberties & Rule of Law Department is the attorney to a former Chairman of the market through whom the faction is pushing postponement or cancellation of the scheduled election.

On the 57-member caretaker committee for the market, we discovered that before their inauguration, all the factions in the market met with the commissioner and every interested group nominated somebody for the caretaker committee.

When these facts came to light, we shuddered that one of us was actually responsible for the hasty ‘open letter’ by our Board Chair to you without recourse to our report which ostensibly is the majority report.

Having said the above, we hereby state categorically, the following:

– The integrity of Intersociety is paramount and cannot be shortchanged with any envelop whether white, brown or pink.

– We took this painstaking move because we wouldn’t like our group which has been towering for years on issues of civil liberties and rule of law to be dragged by pedestrian or mundane interests.

– Our group criticise government when neccessary and applaud when the need arises.

– Greater part of our group and indeed all the members of the Intersociety Investigation Committee on the complaints brought by the traders do not subscribe to the spirit and letters of the “open letters” dated January 24th, 2022 and addressed to your excellencies.

– If not for mischief, why did our Board Chair, others not copy the incumbent but the Governor-Elect and Transition committee? This we believe is aimed at undermining the tenure of Governor Obiano whose tenure has until March 17, 2022 to elapse.

– We urge you and Anambrarians to disregard that minority report and move into these markets and carry out independent investigations.

– We hereby urge our Board Chair, Mr. Emeka Umeagbalasi and others to tender before the public whom we swore to serve an apology for misleading them.

Contacts:

Chinyere Chukwu-Dike, Fnipr, Secretary.