Senator Theodore Orji, representing Abia Central senatorial district, has denied collecting pensions from Abia State Government, Igbere TV reports.
Igbere TV recalls that Orji was Abia governor from 2007 to 2015.
The senator in a statement by his media adviser Eddie Onuzuruike, made available to Igbere TV, addressed a report where his name was mentioned among former governors who were still collecting double pay as pensions.
The statement said the publication quoted the Deputy Director of Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), Kolawole Oluwadare, urging former governors now senators including Orji to return the double pay received by them as pensions.
“This issue was raised some time ago by a national daily and the office of Senator Orji through a press release took time to disclaim this allegation stating clearly that Senator T. A. Orji is not collecting any pension from Abia State Government.
“In the said publication, it was clearly stated that Senator Orji reached the apex of the Civil Service cadre as a Permanent Secretary and knows the implications and dire consequences of collecting pension while being remunerated as a Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“One would have expected that an International NGO that once won the Wole Soyinka award with immense sources of information available to it, would have crosschecked their facts before publishing such defaming information.
“We by this medium are calling on SERAP and Kolawole to retract this information on a Nigerian daily and apologise to Senator T. A. Orji before legal action is instituted against them,” the statement said.
The senator in a statement by his media adviser Eddie Onuzuruike, made available to Igbere TV, addressed a report where his name was mentioned among former governors who were still collecting double pay as pensions.
The statement said the publication quoted the Deputy Director of Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP), Kolawole Oluwadare, urging former governors now senators including Orji to return the double pay received by them as pensions.
“This issue was raised some time ago by a national daily and the office of Senator Orji through a press release took time to disclaim this allegation stating clearly that Senator T. A. Orji is not collecting any pension from Abia State Government.
“In the said publication, it was clearly stated that Senator Orji reached the apex of the Civil Service cadre as a Permanent Secretary and knows the implications and dire consequences of collecting pension while being remunerated as a Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“One would have expected that an International NGO that once won the Wole Soyinka award with immense sources of information available to it, would have crosschecked their facts before publishing such defaming information.
“We by this medium are calling on SERAP and Kolawole to retract this information on a Nigerian daily and apologise to Senator T. A. Orji before legal action is instituted against them,” the statement said.
