The footprints of the recently kicked out Labour Party gubernatorial candidate, Chijioke Edeoga is such that can never be cleaned in a hurry by the people of Enugu State especially as it concerns how the State environment faired under his watch as the Commissioner for Environment.
The man whom many, especially the inhabitants of Isi-Uzo Local Government Council where he was adjudged to be the worst council Chairman that has ever led the local government area was appointed a Commissioner for Environment by the administration of Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi in 2019.
Throughout the time of his service as a Commissioner, Enugu State environment became an eyesore with mountainous heaps of dirt ravaging the whole city. Alas! The Enugu which was well known for its beauty started losing its bridal colors with undenduring smell oozing from all nooks and crannies. Even the entrance gate of the Ministry of Environment was nothing to write home about. But Edeoga while going into his office, still found a way to riggle out of the obstructing heap of dirt, folding his trousers upward as though he was passing out of a muddy area.
Under the leadership of Chijioke Edeoga as the Commissioner for Environment, the state government gives 120million naira monthly for the ESWAMA Agency. The agency is under the Ministry of Environment which is spearheaded by Amaka Anajemba but gives report to Edeoga as a Commissioner. This means that she is answerable to Chijioke Edeoga.
According to Amaka Anajembah, Edeoga would not want to release funds in order to expedite waste evacuation in Enugu State. This made a lot of residents wonder why Edeoga as a Commissioner had chosen to uglify Enugu State. Unknown to many, his inability in releasing funds was because he was using the money to purchase illicit properties in Enugu, Abuja, Lagos and Port Harcourt.
On several occasions has Chijioke been summoned by the relevant authorities to give an account on why dirt has been ravaging Enugu State, but he as a lawyer, will always find a way to riggle himself out of any question.
When confronted with the question, in an interview conducted by Solid Fm, a radio station in Enugu city, Edeoga agreed that he failed in the ministry with the reason that why Enugu was enmeshed in dirt was because the population of the state has increased. He went further to highlight that the people of Eha-Amufu and Nimbo in Uzo-uwani LGA have migrated into Enugu urban and that was why the daily amount of dirt generated outweighed the capacity of the state in handling the evacuation.
One may need to ask; if the increase of population is the reason Chijioke Edeoga couldn’t sanitize the environment of Enugu State under his regime, why then is Port Harcourt, one of the most populated cities in the South not outweighed by dirt? Is Enugu more populated than Onitsha and Lagos?
Edeoga should tell Ndi Enugu how he got the money with which he used to build three upstairs (Hostels) in Nsugbe Anambra State which was recently discovered through the investigation done by Mainstream media in which they exposed the #2billion fraud perpetrated by Edeoga during his days in the Ministry of Local Government Matters.
He should tell Ndi Enugu how he got the money with which he used to build the 20 rooms self-contain apartment at Odim gate, two Storey building hostel at Odenigwe, the 45 rooms hostel at Onuiyi all in Nsukka and very close to University of Nigeria campus.
Edeoga should tell Ndi Enugu how he got the money he used in purchasing three duplexes at Amazon Estate in Accra, Ghana.
Recently, it was uncovered that the Dogaz Motors in Abuja which has Edeoga’s brother, Jide as the Manager was established and owned by the former Commissioner for Environment.
Recall that on March 10th,2022, a committee that was set up to look into the situation of Enugu environment, recommended that Edeoga should be relieved of his duty, citing incompetence. Sources close to Edeoga revealed that the recently sacked guber candidate of the Labour Party knew that his sack letter was in the offing and he quickly rushed to tender his resignation letter, even though he never tendered the keys to the Prado SUV given to him as an official car which was supposed to be returned to the State, unless monetized.
Edeoga’s only excuse for not performing his duties as a Commissioner was that the state government couldn’t give him the free hand to do so. If the integrity of Edeoga is intact, he would have peacefully tendered his resignation letter, but he failed to do because of the reason that he was swimming in money. That position must have been a juicy one for him.
The big questions remain; If a man like Edeoga who has been rejected by his people Isi-Uzo for his incompetence, marginalization, subjugation and dehumanization of his people with political powers could not be understood and trusted by his kinsmen, how then can we trust and understand him?
If a man like Edeoga whom as a Commissioner for Local Government Matters secretly forced each of the 17 Local government chairmen to be remitting humongous amount of money every month for the publication of their projects in a state owned newspaper called LG News, managed by Edeoga could be this corrupt and mean, how sure are we that he will not swindle the taxpayers’ money if given the opportunity to be the number one citizen of the state?
If a serial political failure like Edeoga could not manage a ministry, what is the assurance that he can manage an entire state if he should become the governor?
Amaka Ngwu writes from Emene
