EX-GOV IGBINEDION BREAKS SILENT OVER ALLEGED 31-MILLION -USD FRAUD….SAYS OSHIOMHOLE  LOOKING FOR CHEAP HYPE TO RE-GAIN RELEVANCE

By Eben Enasco Kingsley (Benin City)

Former Edo State Governor, Chief Lucky Nosakhare Igbinedion has replied Governor Adams Oshiomhole on alleged thirty-one million dollars spent on projects during his administration asgovernor of Edo State.

Chief Lucky Igbinedion in a press release said the latest publication on a national daily on fifth November, 2015 where Governor Adams Oshiomhole through his Commissioner for Information, Louis Odion and his Commerce and Industry counterpart, Abdul Oroh alleged his administration siphoned the sum of thirty-one million dollars from the state coffers is laughable.

He said, Edo State Governor, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole has failed the people hence trying to get relevance by his latest diatribe on his administration.

He said it is laughable again that it took the Comrade Adams Oshiomhole’s Government seven years to uncover alleged fraud during his administration in Edo State.

The former Governor pointed out that Nigerians especially Edo people are aware of the antics of Governor Adams Oshiomhole for trying people on the pages of newspaper.

Chief Igbinedion further described the recent allegations against his administration of using thirty-one million dollars on establishing Avrant Cement Factory attempted to deceive the people of Edo State that he used state funds to build a cement factory for himself.

Chief Lucky Igbinedion stressed that the lies of Governor Adams Oshiomhole cannot go far as the facts are well documented.

The former Edo State Governor said Avrant Cement Company situated at Ekpe near Ikpeshi in Akoko-Edo Local Government was supposed to produce cement to take advantage of the large scale deposit of limestone and that the company was registered as AVA Cement Company with three shareholders, adding that, AVA Cement Company had seventy-five percent shares, Edo State Government had fifteen percent shares and ten percent shares reserved for other Nigerian.

He however stated that an attempts by Governor Adams Oshiomhole to cast aspersions on his person also helped Edo people to know the number of industries he established while serving as governor of the state.

He challenged Governor Adams Oshiomhole to make public industries established by his administration in the past seven years.

On the issue of selling below cost price, the fruit juice factory and the solid mineral processing company at Ehor and Ikpeshi, he challenged Governor Adams Oshiomhole to show Edo people the extent his government has developed cassavita factory at Uromi not sold.

Mr Igbinedion said his effort at establishing industries during his tenure as governor of Edo State was purely driven by the desire to provide job opportunities for the teeming unemployed youths.

Earlier in the penultimate week, Edo state government had accussed him of thirty-one-million USD fraud related issue urging the Judiciary to probe the transactions as per vanguard report.