SEN GODSWILL AKPABIO DUMPS PDP FOR APC

IKOT EKPENE, Akwa Ibom, Nigeria – Senate Majority Leader, Senator Godswill Akpabio has finally dumped the Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) to the ruling All Progressive Congress(APC). He and members of his family defected to the APC at crowded gathering in Ikot Ekpene, Akwa Ibom State.

Akpabio has been in the news lately after meeting President Muhammadu Buhari in London. He was also at Bordillon, where he met with national leader of the APC, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu. Akpabio was quizzed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in October 2015, following a petition by Leo Ekpenyong, an Abuja based lawyer who had accused Akpabio of stealing N108.1billion of Akwa Ibom funds, while he was governor.

In the petition dated June 22, 2015, Mr. Ekpenyong alleged that between January and December 2014, the ex-governor colluded with two of his personal aides to steal a huge sum of N108.1 billion from the state’s treasury.

“Between January –December 2014, it is on record that the trio of Godswill Akpabio, Mr. Etekamba Umoren and Mr. Udo Isobara, made illegal but substantial withdrawals of cash from a designated state government-owned account with Zenith Bank with account number: 1010375881 amounting to N22.1 billion’’.

“It is worthy of note that reasons for such ungodly cash withdrawals against financial regulations and due process laws range between sundry use and unjustifiable expenditures by Akpabio and his numerous surrogates and proxies. For example, a whopping N18 billion was withdrawn fraudulently from the state FAAC account with the United Bank for Africa in tranches of N10 million and above by Mr. Isobara in a surreptitious manner to conceal their dishonest intention.”

In the period under review, the petitioner added that the ex-governor also withdrew a huge sum of N18 billion from the state account under the guise of special services, reception of very important guests and sundry items.

“The cumulative aggregate of these monies stolen by Akpabio from the coffers of government as pocket money is the annual budget of some states in Nigeria put together.”

Among the properties, which the petitioner claimed the ex-governor acquired through proxies include, a multi-billion naira mansion at Plot 5 Ikogosi Spring Close, off Katsina-Ala Crescent, Maitama-Abuja; a multi-billion naira maisonette at Plot 28 Colorado Close, Maitama, Abuja and another multi-billion naira mansion at 22 Probyn Road, Ikoyi, Lagos.

Others include a multi-billion naira property at Plot 23 Olusegun Aina Street, Parkview, Lagos; a multi-billion naira 25 storey building and others in Lagos.