PDP should account for N550bn, I did not steal 11bn from Kogi – Prince Audu

APC Candidate for the November 21 Kogi state governorship election, Prince Abubakar Audu has cleared the air on the N11 billion he allegedly looted as a governor of the State. 

Audu who debunked the report of the loot among other questions responded via a tweetChat with his followers on Thursday. The tweet exercise was coordinated by his social media team headed by Philip Obin (@PhilipObin), using the hashtag #AskAudu.

While speaking on the allocation received while in office and how his government judiciously used the various funds it got, Audu said, “When I was in office between 1999 – 2003, we received average monthly allocation of N350 million – about N16.8 billion for the entire 4 years of my tenure. 

With these, we paid all salaries, we built Kogi State University, Obajana Cement Factory (now owned and run by Dangote Cement), Confluence Beach Hotel, Stella Obasanjo Library, Paparanda Square, Govt. house (Lugard) House, Government Office, secretariat, the banquet hall, started the confluence stadium and built the Lokoja township stadium, others are the Fed. Medical Centre + equipped same with 25 state-of-art ambulances, NTA Kogi, Radio Kogi, Kogi Graphics Newspaper, 75 rural electrification projects, the presidential lodge, Governor’s lodge, Abuja, inter-state roads; We also built the specialist eye centre, commissioner’s quarters, 200 housing units, just to mention a few. 

In 2002, the Fed. Govt. instituted a panel to evaluate and reward performance. Out of 12 awards for the 36 state governors, I won 7 awards. Now, how could all these have been achieved?”

The former governor also alleged that his outstanding performance became a threat to the then ruling PDP, hence Kogi people were mobilized against him. He alleged that when they failed to achieve their initial intention, he was dragged before some anti-corruption agencies.

He said,”When the then ruling People’s Democratic Party saw me as a threat, they started instigating Kogites against me, and when the people couldn’t buy into that, having known the truth, they orchestrated my arrest, which led to my being dragged before the ICPC, CCB, CCT and EFCC.

”When all that failed, the then PDP led Kogi state government took over and issued a white paper, banning me from politics for 10 years. I proceeded to court, and the court ruled that the Kogi government has no such right to ban me from politics.

”The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, had also taken me to 7 courts in total (4 in Kogi and 3 in Abuja). In each of these cases, they’ll always pull out before judgment is passed and go back to frame up new figures; I was first accused of stealing N1.5bn, then N4bn, then N8bn and finally N11bn. It’s also on record that I was the most pursued politician by the EFCC, as the PDP wanted my head at all cost – always during elections.

”And so I ask all Kogites and Nigerians, how could my administration have achieved all we did with less than N6 billion, if N11 billion was missing? Again only the work I did in Kogi State stands there today. The PDP govt. since I left office, has received about N550 billion, without accounting for it.

”So the questions should be where have these funds gone? Why are Kogites still languishing in abject poverty? Why is Lokoja the dirtiest state capital in Nigeria? Why has EFCC been mute? 

Clearly the PDP led EFCC had a different agenda. I leave these thoughts to my fellow Kogites to mull over and ponder. The truth is out there for those who care to know but my happiness is that all well-meaning Kogites know the truth and have pledged to support me and the APC to victory ahead of the November 21 Governorship election, as I promise to do even more, when we eventually take up power,” He asserted.