Thirteen Months unpaid salary :Govt House staff mock Okorocha …Say they are happy his empire crumbled

Staff of Government House, Oweri Imo state have cried out loud over the continued refusal of the government of Rochas Okorocha to pay them their entitlements including monthly salaries and allowances running to 13 months because they supported Eze Madumere’s gubernatorial ambition in defiance to the directives of the governor.
Speaking to Nigeria Moment on conditions of anonymity yesterday Monday, one of the most affected posited that those in the “starvation list” were mainly staff from the office of the Deputy Governor, adding that the nonpayment dated from the inception of the governorship struggle in 2018 till the time of filling this report. He submitted that the action was consequent upon the express orders of the governor, Rochas Okorocha in view of their relentless services to the deputy governor, Prince Eze Mdumere who was one of the governorship contestants.
The source told Nigeria Moment that Okorocha’s anger was the insistence of Madumere to run against his choice candidate, Uche Nwosu, describing the insistence of Madumere as gross disobedience to superior authority and sabotage. According to the source, the governor then vowed to ensure that nothing good gets to the office of the deputy governor after the governor’s attempts to frustrate Madumere, including his illegitimate removal from office as the deputy governor failed woefully; hence he resorted to starvation policy and economic blockage to everybody working with the deputy governor.
It however stated that they were happy and will continue to be happy despite not been paid because God had used a possible process to demolish the political empire Rochas was about installing in the state. “What matters is not that we are owed months of salaries, but it is that Rochas and his empire have lost and the Owerri zone agenda that the deputy governor and his men were victimized has come to reality.
Meanwhile, legislative aides of the 8th National Assembly have called on President Muhammadu Buhari to intervene in the non-payment of their allowances over the months.
In an open letter to the President, the Aides under the aegis of Concerned Legislative Aides of the 8th National Assembly, begged Buhari to direct a probe into the nonpayment of their allowance.
According to a statement jointly signed by Chinedu Nwokeukwu and Sunday Chuba the aides particularly urged that SunTrust Bank, the micro-finance institution used in their payment be thoroughly probed. They also sought that the Clerk to the National Assembly, Mohammed Sani Omolori be made to proceed on his pre-retirement leave which he was already due for. The aides in a petition earlier sent to the Presidency, security agencies and the anti-graft agencies, alleged among other things that the leadership of the 8th National Assembly had connived to divert funds meant for their payment.
In its new open letter to the President, the group pleaded that the Buhari should direct the anti-graft agencies to look into the allegations of financial misappropriation contained in the petition.
According to the statement, the petition was duly copied to the Office of the President, and also to the Vice President, Inspector General of Police, Director General of State Security Service and Chairman of Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC). The statement said it is their utmost belief that there should be no sacred cows in the act of ridding the country of the evil tentacles of corruption in its ramification. “We are reliably informed, Your Excellency that the Presiding Officers of the 8th National Assembly are using the Clerk of the National Assembly, Alhaji Sani Omolori to cover the alleged diversion of our entitlements and allowances.
“They said clerk should have proceeded on pre-retirement leave on November, 2018 having attained the mandatory 60 years and 35 years of service. “He was allegedly served a letter to that effect by the Office of Head of Service of the Federation. “There is scheme to add an additional five years to the tenure of the clerk by adding a provision to the Report of the Conference Committee on the Reviewed Conditions of Service in the National Assembly Service before both chambers of the 8th National Assembly,” the group alleged. It said such scheme if successful will extend the retirement age of staff of National Assembly to either 65 years of age or 40 years of service. The statement further alleged that the scheming is geared towards covering the diversion of their entitlements. The aides therefore called on President Buhari as the father of the nation to look into complaints dispassionately and ensure that the EFCC conduct an excellent investigation.
“It may also interest Your Excellency to note the use of SunTrust Bank – a bank with only two branches in Nigeria and the unbridled employment of Special Assistants by Presiding Officers as tools used in siphoning our legitimate allowances and entitlements. “The shareholding of SunTrust Bank should be thoroughly investigated while the exact numbers of special advisers, special assistants and legislative aides of the presiding officers of the 8th National Assembly examined for possibility of fake and ghost names,” the statement said.