Abia road maintenance agency dragged before assembly over alleged N10.3m scam

By EMMANUEL UGWU-NWOGO, Umuahia

The Abia State Road Maintenance Agency(ABROMA) has been dragged before the state House of Assembly over allegations that it received a total sum of N10.3 million from a private farm “by false pretence” starting from December 13, 2019 till date.

In the petition addressed to the Speaker of the Assembly through the Public Complaints Committee, the legal firm of C.U. Azubuike and Associates, Aba, alleged that its client, Kingdom College Farms Limited was allegedly defrauded by ABROMA.

In the petition against the Managing Director of ABROMA, Okochi Okali Oge, the legal firm alleged that the money was paid to the agency “on the false pretence of securing a contractual obligation” of grading a farm feeder road at Ozu Abam in Arochukwu Local Government Area of the state.

According to him, Kingdom College Farms Limited, which is a demonstration farm of Kingdom College University, paid the managing director of ABROMA the initial sum of N700,000 to commence work on the road project and subsequent amounts were paid without the agency fulfilling its contractual obligation.

Azubuike said the agreement between his client and the managing director of ABROMA was for the agency “to do road excavation, repairs, and construction works on the basis of N100,000 per day from December 13, 2019.

He said that while the managing director of Kingdom Farms Limited was making payments to various accounts supplied by the ABROMA boss, the agency did not mobilise its equipment to site to commence work.

The ABROMA MD admitted the existence of a contractual agreement between his agency and Kingdom Farms, adding that the contract has not been abandoned but was temporarily halted due to equipment breakdown.

“We had a challenge of equipment breakdown. Let them exercise patience. It is a matter of patience, the works would be done,” he said, adding: “We will still do the works as soon as the equipment is put in order.”

But the petitioner said all the while his client was not informed about the equipment breakdown and was eventually “forced to give funds for purchase of materials for repairs of the machine.”

He stated that following the intervention of some persons, a memorandum of

understanding was signed between ABROMA and Kingdom College Farms requiring the latter to pay the sum of N1.5 million to enable the agency repair its machines.

However, Azubuike said after his client paid the said money for repairs, the MD of ABROMA still left the road project abandoned, hence he pleaded with the state House of Assembly to intervene and help recover the money allegedly received by ABROMA “under false pretence.” (THISDAY)