Following the directive from Governor Umo Eno to the Akwa Ibom Investment Corporation, AKICORP, to revitalize the moribund state owned Peacock Paint, a group, Open Forum, has urged him to carry out a forensic audit to determine how the N526 million invested in the company ended up.
It could be recalled that the former governor, Mr Udom Emmanuel within his first 100 Days in office in 2015, sunk in the said amount to revamp Peacock Paint company.
However, there has not been any visible result from the investment.
Addressing journalists in Uyo, the founder of Open Forum, Matthew Kofi Okono popularly refered to as MKO said further investment in Peacock Paint without the forensic audit would amount to putting a cart before the horse.
He said all those involved in the management of the failed company, including the supervisory agency, AKICORP should be made “to explain what happened to the over half a billion Naira invested by government in 2015”, adding that those found culpable should be made to refund amounts unaccounted for.
He said, “The directive to AKICORP to ensure the revitalisation of the Peacock Paint at Ikot Ekan, Etinan LGA calls for concern given the monumental loses the government and people of the state have suffered from the company during the immediate past administration of Mr Udom Emmanuel.
“It is our recommendation that any further investment in Peacock Paint without a forensic audit of how N526m put in to revamp the company within the first one hundred days of the Udom Emmanuel administration in 2015 ended up being a monumental waste due to alleged and obvious corruption will amount to putting a cart before the horse.”
On the proposed state of emergency declared on the power sector by the Akwa Ibom State government, Okono said the trending and troubling scandal rocking the sector should be addressed first and wondered why up till this moment there was no report by the Commissioner for Power and Acting Managing Director/CEO of Ibom Power, Dr. Camilus Umoh on the state of the controversial “comprehensive technical audit” of the company ordered by Governor Umo Eno around April 2024.
Okono said it was baffling that the commissioner for power revealed that Accugas, the gas supplier to Ibom Power, is being owed N40 billion but no mention was made on the information that $80 million given to Ibom Power by the Federal Government is nowhere to be found.
“Also, we have not seen an update on an international court case in London/Cairo, as well as others, over debts by Ibom Power. We do not know if mention was made on the level of progress in the Power Policy Bill in the Akwa Ibom House of Assembly.
“It is our considered opinion that if the challenges plaguing Ibom Power and those who have by their actions and inactions brought the legendary vision of the Obong Victor Attah administration to harms way are not made to account, Akwa Ibom may not be able to benefit from the deregulated power sector in Nigeria despite owning a power plant.
“The Boards of Ibom Power Company and Akwa Ibom Investment Corporation (AKICORP) need to put the records straight on these troubling issues and others known by the public but not mentioned here,” he added.
He also appealed to the governor to conduct a tour of all the industries of note in the state, demand their status report and order forensic audit on them with a view to ensuring funds, assets and opportunities are not lost to “organised corruption or negligence”.
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