Nigerians from the Kogi Conscience Liberation Movement and the Kogi Concerned Citizens Forum gathered at the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) offices on Friday in a daring demonstration of civic engagement. They loudly demanded that the N80 billion alleged fraud involving the former governor of Kogi State and other important people be looked into more quickly.
The protest, led by Peter Onuma and Okpanachi Jacob, highlighted the severe economic consequences of corruption on the citizens of Kogi State. The demonstrators emphasised the plight of the civil service, where workers are receiving only a fraction of their rightful salaries, severely impacting the local economy.
Reflecting on the tenure of the former administration led by ex-Governor Bello, the demonstrators highlighted prolonged and controversial screening exercises that resulted in job losses, deaths, and widespread hardship.
“Our state’s economy is bleeding, and the people are suffering because of the greed and mismanagement of those in power. It’s a domino effect. When the workers are underpaid, the entire community suffers. The velocity of cash flow is crippled, and the hardship is palpable.
”It wasn’t just the former governor. The corruption has seeped through to the local government chairmen and financial appointees. It’s systemic,” Onuma declared.
Reeling out their demands, Okpanachi, on his part, said, ‘”We are asking for a thorough examination of Kogi State’s expenditures from 2016 to January 27, 2024; an investigation into the former Governor of Kogi State and other corrupt officials to set a precedent for future administrations; an investigation into all local government chairmen involved in the corruption network; public disclosure of the findings from the endless screening exercise conducted by Governor Yahaya Bello’s administration; and a comprehensive probe into all parties connected to the alleged N80 billion and N10 billion fraud cases,” he added.
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