Steven Abia, Media Assistant to former Akwa Ibom State Governor Udom Emmanuel, has dismissed corruption allegations made against his boss as false and groundless.
The accusations were brought forward by a group known as the Network Against Corruption and Trafficking (NACAT), which had called for an investigation into Emmanuel’s eight-year tenure.
While speaking to journalists, Abia firmly denied the allegations, describing NACAT as a “faceless group” that thrives on blackmail and financial extortion from politicians. He urged Akwa Ibom residents to disregard the claims, stressing that they were baseless and lacked any evidence.
His words,”The immediate past governor of Akwa Ibom State has been maliciously accused, so we are here to tell you that those allegations against my boss are unfounded. I implore you, Akwa Ibom people to disregard, what they are saying. Those allegations are not true. The people saying those things don’t even have the facts.
“They are faceless people from nowhere trying to dent his reputation We have never heard of that name. You will agree with me that this NACAT never existed before now, so you can’t even trace them. The name just came up for the purpose of denting this man. And it is clear that they are people who blackmail politicians in order to make money. We know some people benefit from doing this kind of thing.
“My boss did his work very well. Throughout his time he touched every area in Akwa Ibom State. There’s no place that we did not have projects executed. The documents are here you before you. The facts are here and we have loads of them. And that endeared him to the people. Our people love him.”
“This is a man who keeps records meticulously. And then the papers as you have seen, every single project executed throughout his tenure, from day one to the last day, the records are there, and they are excellently kept. So my boss is unperturbed. He worked with audit firm so he knows his left from his right.”
“The man is unruffled. There’s no cause for alarm.
“And I want to tell us that we have not received any petition, notice or letter from any of the anti-graft agencies. All we are reacting to is what you have also seen on the social media. That’s all..And we are expecting that the ICPC and the EFCC go ahead and do their work fairly”
NACAT had earlier submitted petitions to the EFCC and ICPC, urging a thorough investigation of Emmanuel’s administration. However, Abia dismissed the group’s actions as an attempt to tarnish the reputation of a leader he described as sincere.
