“I saved over N300hn for Anambra State and I achieved this by cutting down on the cost of running the state”
PETER OBI

“I always tell people to question how Local, State and Federal Government are spending the resources meant for development of our nation.”
PETER OBI


All of the above quotes were credited to Peter Obi at the occasion of Government College, Ughelli, Old Boy’s Association (GCUOBA) Annual Luncheon Party in Lagos by Vanguard Newspaper of Tuesday the 9th day of December 2014 at Page 55.
The word “savings” has remained consistent on the lips of Peter Obi and his spin doctors. The N75 bn propaganda, said to have been handed over to Governor Willie Obiano has been proved to be an accounting heist, intended to market self to the presidency and Nigerian public to the detriment of the present administration. The new twist now is the saving of N300bn in the running of the state. In other words, Obi is saying that for every single month of his tenure as the governor of Anambra State, he added value to the tune of N3.125bn. Amazing hell of a man.
Upon the receipt of state monthly allocation from the federation account which varies and the corresponding monthly internally generated revenue, his managerial proficiency enabled him to enjoy latitude of N3.125bn development. He was able to accomplish the feat by cost cutting measures such as reducing the cost of constructing a 100km road from say N50 million to N25 million among others. It also means that he was able to construct a 200km road for the cost of a 100km road. While his miserly propensity is legendary, I disagree on the garb of “Mother Theresa” heart for Anambraians. Peter Obi knows very well that there is a “take” for him in-between the savings stretch. I do not mean the 10% norm nor the one called party support.
I cannot imagine the face of Anambra State as a region if the so-called crafty savings were all deployed in the state. It would have meant Gov. Obiano not having to deal with the multitude of developmental needs of the state. The “Altar Boy” persona of Peter Obi blindfolded Anambraians. Savings of any sort went into Peter Obi’s pocket or the secretive state investments such as Sab Miller, Agulu Lake Resort and Onitsha Mall and Hotel project under a blurred ownership structure.
Peter Obi’s savings practice works as follows: when a department of the state or a collection of it tables their needs in writing, the religious duty of price inflation as practised in Nigeria will come along with the respective procurement demands or proposals and Obi regularly expects the price inflation, he will then personally negotiate a bulk transaction on it all, bypassing the due process of government procurement system. He gets to decide the fate of the price differential, whether to retire it at the respective departmental quotations or to credit the savings to the state by retiring it at the personally negotiated bulk transaction price. We are left with the option of accepting his word, and only his word, on what happened to the price differential.
I agree with Peter Obi on the need to question our leaders such as him and that is what I am doing. Anambraians will so much appreciate it if he can publish in specific details, the investment called Sab Miller, Agulu Lake Resort and the Hotel and Shopping Mall Project at G.R.A. Onitsha. The owners, share distribution, capital contributions and the modus and proof of capital contributions, articles of association and memorandum of the companies, Anambra State’s stake in all, evidence of foreign investors capital contributions through the Central Bank, if at all there is any foreign investor.
Anambraians will also like to know the origin of the monthly huge amount of cash that was regularly transported to his Next International office in Lagos, which was once intercepted by the Lagos Police. His explanation as per the source of the cash was pathetic. Is it possible it could be the acclaimed savings? Obi’s dubious fragrance of integrity which his economic history as per (http://ireport.cnn.com/docs/DOC-1193248) does not support and his pretence of exemplary leadership while labelling others as contaminated are now things of the past as Anambraians now know a lot better. Peter Obi and I agree on this one.
Meanwhile we are now closed for the year but we will start again come January 2015.

Chief Bonaventure Mokwe.
(Obiridike Umuchu)

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