Rivers State Government has said that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has no constitutional powers to look into its books.
Attorney General of the state and Commissioner of Justice, Mr Emma Aguma, in a letter to the Chief Justice of the Federation, said there were judgements barring the anti graft agency from investigating the state.
The Attorney General, also described as untrue, a newspaper report that a staff of the state government withdrew N11 billion for the state.
He said: “I write as the Chief Law Officer of Rivers State and at the instruction of the Governor of Rivers State, Mr Nyesom Wike, and the Government of Rivers State. My instruction and direction is to state as follows.
“The totality of the allegations made in the said publication is untrue and unfounded. It is a salacious publication aimed at both scintillating the reading public and scandalizing the Government of Rivers State by the usual methods of trial on the pages of newspapers devoid of verifiable facts.
“The wild allegations contained in the said publication would be appropriately addressed and their falsity shown when they are raised by due process of law at the appropriate forum.
“There are two subsisting judgments of the High Court of Rivers State and the Federal High Court that bar the EFCC from investigating the finances of Rivers State.
The first of these judgments is the judgment of the High Court of Rivers State in suit Number PHC/114/2007: Attorney General of Rivers State Vs the Speaker of Rivers State House of Assembly and 36 others. “The judgment was delivered by Justice P. Agumagu on February 16, 2007.
This judgment enunciated the following principles of law which till date have not been set-aside by the EFCC in any appellate court. The principles of law are: “By the combined effects of section 125 subsections (2), (5) and (6) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (the 1999 Constitution), it is the House of Assembly of a state, Rivers State inclusive, that has the final say on matters pertaining to the funds of the state as laid before it by the Auditor-General’s Audit Report of all public accounts and the Accountant-General’s financial statements and published annual accounts.”
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you dey fear?
ReplyDeleteEFCC has no power to look at your books, and you have been reporting your former governor of stealing your state fund? I am beginning to think all that Amaechi explanations on how his state allocation was brought down from 27 billion to 7 billion for his last 5 years by the government and his Salary wage bill alone is 9 Billion as genuine; because I cant see why such drop wont affect a governors performance when you do not have even enough to pay salaries..... and again I have not heard governor Wike talk about Rivers Oil wells that were given to Bayelsa and Akwa-Ibom Respectively by His former boss, if you have nothing to fear please let check such investigation might benefit your state....
ReplyDeleteIf your hands are clean pls allow them to investigate your account. Let not your heart be troubled.
ReplyDeleteYou don't need to fear expected if your hand are not clean
ReplyDeleteWhy would EFCC by touch lighting everything, if they have no right, it means they have no right and by the way EFCC is working for Buhari's government while only APC cannot be probe, i can see that you people is really working for the good of this country lol..
ReplyDeleteThere is no way Ameachi can be investigated without looking at the accounts of Rivers State. Maybe Integrity Group should change their applications to EFCC for Amaechi's probe.
ReplyDeleteThis is Nigeria and under APC govt so EFCC can investigate anybody Buhari is the new constitution so forget what Nigerian constitution says for now.
ReplyDelete