By Yemi Adebowale

Former governor of Imo State, Rochas Okorocha claims he is being oppressed as Hope Uzodimma moves to recover state assets plundered by this former governor. For me, Okorocha is just shedding crocodile tears. He deserves no pity. His eight-year reign as governor was dominated by massive looting of state resources as revealed by the recent report of a judicial panel of inquiry that looked into land use and related matters. It was set up by the Emeka Ihedioha administration. Uzodimma inherited and retained the panel. The report was accepted and government followed with a White Paper. Of course, before this panel’s report, it was an open secret that calamity Okorocha spent eight years helping himself and family to Imo State’s resources. It got so bad that he was unable to pay civil servants while infrastructure deteriorated across the state. Many in some Imo State agencies went without salaries for years, with civil servants turned to beggars. For eight years, blood, tears and pain dominated the state, no thanks to Okorocha.

The judicial panel’s report simply confirmed the open and massive looting of Imo State under Okorocha. The Royal Palm Estate, Owerri, is one of such assets which the panel got facts and figures to show that it was built with the state’s funds and not Okorocha wife’s money as claimed. Effort to recover this property led to the recent fight involving Okorocha and Imo State Government officials. The Eastern Palm University is another asset which the panel confirmed was built with the state’s resources. The Uzodimma government has already retrieved this school. The list of state assets to be recovered from Okorocha is very long. I will probably need a full page to list them. I urge Uzodimma to ensure that Okorocha and his family vomit all they took from the state. This is the only way to assuage the pain of the thousands of people Okorocha inflicted discomfort while his reign lasted. If the EFCC were to be truly independent, Okorocha should be cooling his feet in their office by now.

Originally published at Thisday