Rights group, the Rule of Law and Accountability Advocacy Centre, RULAAC on Monday, urged the Imo State Command of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, to urgently wade in and investigate the vandalisation and looting of gigantic water project installations in Umuokpo village in Adakam Amumara autonomous community, Ezinihitte Mbaise LGA, Imo State.
The group in a statement by the Executive Director of RULAAC, Okechukwu Nwanguma, said it has received information from the Chairman-General of the autonomous community,on the shocking incident.
The vandals are reported to have claimed that they bought the multi billion naira installed equipment from the Imo State government under former Governor Rochas Okorocha.
The RULAAC boss in the statement said the petition is in line with NSCDC’s statutory mandate to protect public infrastructure, in conjunction with the Nigeria police.
It read; “Mr. Nkemjikam Erondu, former chairman of Umuokpo village stated in a voice note (which the complainants shall make available at the appropriate time) as follows:
“That some people (whose identities he is yet to disclose) called him and said they wanted to see the Umuokpo village council chairman;
“That they invited him to Town School, Adakam Amumara, where they told him that they bought the water scheme project from former Governor Rochas Okorocha far back in 2017 when he was in office.
“That the people claimed that they confirmed the sale with the current govenor of Imo State, Senator Hope Uzodinma.
“That the people said they invited him, in his capacity as the chairman of the village, to inform him so that they would not face any challenge when they come to dismantle and carry away the installed equipment.
“That the people promised to pay the sum of two hundred thousand Naira (N200,000.00) to the host village as compensation.”
Nwanguma noted that Mr. Erondu further revealed that the traditional ruler of Adakam autonomous community, Eze O.B. Nwokocha ‘sent someone’ who confirmed that the project was sold to the people and that the village chairman should be informed before the people dismantle the equipment.
“According to the leadership of Umuokpo village, Mr. Erondu did not communicate to the village council after he received the message from Eze Nwokocha, to enable the village leaders to verify the information from the traditional ruler.
“Villagers woke up about 2 weeks ago to witness massive vandalisation and carting away of dismembered equipment and raised the alarm. Videos of scenes within the precincts of the project site reveal dismantled and massively vandalized installations with tools such as gas cylinders and others suspected to have been used for the dismantling and dismemberment of the equipment before carting most of them away.
“More than two weeks after the village raised the alarm about this disturbing development, the community leadership has remained mute and has done nothing known to the entire Adakam community which is the host community for the government project.
“This is in spite of the further information that the ‘people’ also previously visited the Palace accompanied by ‘a lawyer’ who presented some documents to the traditional ruler which they claimed was evidence that ‘their company’ had bought the project from the state government.
“The people of the community are in serious doubt about the genuineness of the claim by a yet to be identified ‘company’ that government sold to them a government water project installed at huge cost.
“The more curious thing about this whole episode is how this ‘company’ could have waited for more than 8 years after the administration they claimed to have sold the project to them left office before they came to claim it.
“Could it be true that the administration of former governor Rochas Okorocha sold a government project to a private company? Who are the owners of this company? Is it also true that the current government under Senator Hope Uzodinma approved the sale of the project instead of completing it to serve the purpose that the project was conceived and initiated to serve?
“These are questions the community is looking for answers to,” the group queried.
The RULAAC boss said it is informed that the water project at Umuokpo village is one of the greater Owerri, Umuahia, Okigwe and Aba Water Schemes started by the then Governor of old Imo State Dr. Sam Onunaka Mbakwe in the 1980s which he could not complete before the Muhammadu Buhari coup which terminated the life of the republic.
“Jim Nwobodo also started the greater Enugu, Awka, Onitsha, Abakaliki and Nsukka Water Schemes but could not complete them before he lost power to late Chief Christian Onoh in the 1983 election. Today, most of those water schemes are yet to be completed, thus exacerbating the problem of acute water shortage in the zone.
“This gigantic water project initiated at huge financial cost was intended to provide pipe borne water to Mbaise and parts of Obowo. The project contains heavy and multi-billion Naira equipment that could not be dismantled and evacuated in one week,” he said.
The Rights group called on the NSCDC, on behalf of the community members, to spare no effort to unravel the truth and if they find that the claims are false- as they seriously suspect- all those responsible should be brought to book, the already stolen equipment recovered and further stealing of the remaining ones prevented.
“We are also worried that two of our brothers met with these vandals and allowed them to get away with the vandalized items, without alerting the community leadership. Instead what I am hearing is that one of them was claiming to be the chairman of the village.
“The persons are Nkemjika Erendu and Onyekachi Otuonye and presently, they are on the run because the whole village is looking for them,” he said.
Albert called on the appropriate authorities to investigate the matter and ensure that all those involved are made to face the law.
