…alleges no Ebonyi farmer was empowered with CBN’s N8Bn received by Umahi’s govt
A frontline candidate for the 2023 Governorship election in Ebonyi State, Professor Benard Ifeanyi Odoh has urged Ebonyi indigenes resident in Anambra State to play very active roles in determining who takes over from the incumbent government in the State, urging them never to allow the destiny of the State to remain in the hands of desperate politicians who he accused of plundering the State’s resources.
According to him, for the average Ebonyian, “The election (2023) is not like the elections that were done before. The difference is between life and death now.”
Prof. Benard Odoh
The former Secretary to the State Government who made the revelation while separately addressing Ebonyi indigenes under the auspices of the Great Ebonyi Indigenous Forum, GEIF in Awka and Ezza Indigenes on the occasion of it’s 2022 Cultural Day in Onitsha, Anambra State revealed that the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN allegedly released a total of a whooping N8Billion Naira as Agric Loan To Umahi’s Govt but that no single farmer benefited One Naira from it.
Odoh who resigned in 2018 over what he described as “bad policies” of Umahi said over 3, 000 Ebonyians are in prisons in Lagos State and other different parts of the country and many more others abandoned as hawkers in the streets of of major cities in the country.
He further said that prices of goods are higher in Ebonyi State more than Anambra, Imo, Enugu and Abia States.
According to him, “when I was SSG to Ebonyi State, I told Umahi instead of building flyovers everywhere, let’s empower the poor farmers, our brothers hawking in Lagos State and other places, but the system refused”.
“Today, over 3000 of our brothers are in prison in Lagos State. This is very bad”.
“Over 4000 workers were retired from civil service in Ebonyi, no replacement till today”.
He alleged that, “In the last seven years, CBN has given eight billion Naira loan for farmers but I can tell you that no farmer benefited one Naira from that loan.”
While accusing the Umahi government of paying lip service to Agriculture despite humongous investments in the sector from the State government, the former varsity don reflected that, “The first rice mill was established in Ebonyi State in 1938 but 80 years later, Ebonyi State is still struggling to produce the same rice. Even a single individual, Coscharis has overtaken our entire State with his over 2, 000 hectares of rice farm in Anambra north here.”
“Today one barrel of crude oil is $105 but one barrel of palm oil is $350. In my administration, we will be producing oil locally and even export to other countries because we want to create value for our agriculture”.
He further expressed worry that, “Civil service has died in Ebonyi State. There is no pension. In our first four years in office, we will employ additional 50 health workers and at least 2000 teachers.
“We will mobilise them (the teachers) to go to rural areas and teach our children and our administration will add incentives. Let’s assume that those in urban areas are earning 80,000 Naira, those in rural areas will be paid 100,000 Naira.”
“Our administration will make the Ebonyi environment to be conducive for businessmen. We cannot ask you to pay your tax from the money you are doing business with. No, that is not the way it is done. We can only tax you from your profit”.
“Doctors in Ebonyi State are suffering because of the kind taxes they are being forced to pay and health workers are offering social services.
“It’s very bad that once you see someone from Abakaliki you will know because they are malnourished. It’s very bad”.
Reacting to a letter from the Presidency calling the State Government’s attention to a threat from the world bank to withdraw it’s services in Ebonyi, Odoh said, “Recently, world Bank wrote to Ebonyi State Government requesting to know the whereabouts of three million dollars given to the state government to disburse to poor people in the state, till today, nobody knows how the fund was spent. In fact, World Bank has threatened to withdraw its operations in Ebonyi State “.
“In our first four years, we will reduce our poverty level to 50 percent.
“I want to thank everyone that’s here. Especially for your time and respect to attend this event”.
“Most importantly, I am working with the best in the South. There is no difference between my status and that of my deputy here. Together we will change the ugly situation in Ebonyi State.”
In his remark, a staff of Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka, Dr. Cletus Nwofia who assured of the group’s support to Odoh appreciated him, saying he was the brain behind the formation of the Ebonyi association in Anambra while he lectured in UNIZIK for his boldness to present himself to the people for election.
“As a forum, we had earlier mobilized some of our people to go home and register for the PVCs and many of them complied. We also encourage them to go and get them and be ready to return home to vote. We know your antecedents for our people which you manifested even while in the University here. We will give our unalloyed support to you and pray that you will succeed so that you can indeed change the narrative in Ebonyi State”.
Odoh was accompanied on the visit by his Deputy Governorship candidate, Dr. Nkata Chukwu, some State House of Assembly candidates and a host of other supporters.
