THE Imo State Government has refuted media reports that it had sold its Concorde Hotel to Justice Chioma Iheme-Nwosu of the Court of Appeal. Some newspapers, according to a release by Sam Onw u e m e o d o , Senior Special Assistant on Media to Governor Rochas Okorocha had this week quoted Sahara Reporters, an online publication, that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had begun “a probe of seven Judges cutting across the various strata of the Judiciary,” including Justice Nwosu- Iheme. The report further stated that “Justice Iheme-Nwosu has accumulated so much unexplained wealth that she was able to buy Concorde Hotel in Owerri, the Imo State capital as well as a mansion- like residence built near Concorde …” But in its rebuttal, Onwuemeodo noted that “while the Imo State government does not hold brief for the Appeal Court judge, it has to react on the issue concerning it in the report and that is the issue of Concorde Hotel, Owerri, because the claim of selling it to Justice Iheme-Nwosu has no iota of truth and those behind the report knew they were telling deliberate lie.” According to Onwuemeodo, “Concorde Hotel is the property of the Imo State Government and remains as such and has not been mentioned for sale or placed on sale at any given time, talk more of Justice Iheme- Nwosu being “able to buy” the hotel. The truth, and indeed the whole truth is that the Hotel has not been sold to anybody including Justice Nwosu-Iheme. The Imo State Government wishes to solemnly reiterate that the report of Justice Iheme- Nwosu buying Concorde Hotel was a mere fabrication designed by the brains behind it to blackmail the woman, and the Imo State government.”
Tag: Imo govt
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Police arrest Imo govt official
Over 50 armed mobile policemen yesterday stormed the home of the General Manager of the Owerri Capital Development Authority (OCDA), Mr. Iheanyi Anyiabaekwume, and took him away to an unknown destination.
His arrest may be connected to a recent publication by the agency, which accused the police of shielding owners of properties marked for demolition in Owerri, the state capital.
A staff of the agency, who pleaded for anonymity, said stern looking policemen ransacked Anyiabaekwume’s Alamdinma home and office, taking away some documents.
Police spokesman Adaugo Opara confirmed the incident, but did not give reasons for Anyiabaekwume’s arrest.
The Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Media, Sam Onwuemeodo, condemned Anyiabaekwume’s arrest.
He said: “The general manager of OCDA is an agent of the state government and the police should have put that into consideration. The police have a good relationship with the state government and it is the wish of the government that such understanding should remain.”
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Imo Govt promises to establish School for the Blind
Gov. Rochas Okorocha of Imo said on Tuesday that the state government had concluded arrangements to establish a special school for the blind by 2014.
Okorocha said this when members of the Nigeria Association of the Blind, Imo chapter, visited him at the Government House, Owerri.
The governor said he was touched by the plight of the blind and the partially sighted persons in the state and promised to provide them with education and employment opportunities, to ameliorate their sufferings.
He assured them that his administration would prioritise the welfare of the physically challenged persons, to give them a sense of belonging.
Okorocha also promised an upward review of the bursary award to those in institutions of higher learning and promised to support the association financially, to enable it to successfully host its forthcoming zonal conference.
Earlier, the Chairman of the Association, Mr. Clinton Amaechi, appealed to the governor to address some of their pressing needs.
Amaechi listed their needs to include regular payment of their bursary, employment opportunities and political appointment to their members.
He noted that the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities called for practical and positive approach to the issues raised.
While thanking the governor for his concern for the group, Amaechi urged people in authority to grant equal opportunities to both the able bodied and physically challenged persons.
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Students threaten showdown with Imo govt
Students of the Federal University of Technology, Owerri (FUTO) and the Federal Polytechnic, Nekede have threatened to attack the vehicles belonging to the state and Federal Governments.
They are aggrieved because of the poor condition of the Ihiagwa/Nekede Road. The road, which links the two federal institutions and government agencies, has become a source of pain to the students and other residents, following the heavy rains, which washed away the remaining portion of the road.
Although the state government has attempted to repair the road after women threatened to go naked over its poor condition, the students accused the government of playing politics with its renovation.
The students, who gave the warning when briefing reporters in Owerri, the Imo State capital, said: “We will no longer fold our arms and suffer because of government’s negligence. Henceforth, we will set ablaze government’s vehicles that ply the road.”