By NewsCritic Reporters
Abia State Commissioner Ministry of Finance, Mike Akpara, has come under public scrutiny following the veiled admittance that he collects over N10m monthly as salary and allowances from the Gov Alex Otti Government, at a time when civil servants in the State are yet to receive the wage award as announced by the federal government to cushion the effects of the fuel subsidy removal.
Critics of the Gov Alex Otti’s administration have raised alarm over what they termed as the financial recklessness of the Otti led administration at a period of severe economic difficulties occasioned by the removal of the fuel subsidy. Specifically, they accused Commissioner for Finance Mike Akpara of monthly take home of over N10m, which is made up of N5m monthly allowance, 1.5m FAAC allowance, N3.2m paid to all the commissioners in the State.
The controversy over the said monthly salary amplified when the Commissioner for Finance Mike Akpara was quoted to had admitted on a radio program last Friday that the said amount of money, he is accused of receiving monthly was allegedly inherited from the past administration.
He went further during the interview to explain that he spends money in hotel accommodation during FAAC meeting, fuel for his vehicles and also on feeding and logistics throughout his stay at Abuja, thus explaining the high FAAC expenditure profile by his office.
However, a twist was added to the whole drama when the former commissioner for Finance Abia State, Obinna Oriaku accused Mike Akpara of misrepresenting facts, adding that he never took N10m monthly pay while he served in that capacity. He claimed that he only received N500,000 as FAAC allowances.
Mr Oriaku stated that as much as he commends the Commissioner for coming on air to provide answers to some questions bordering on salaries, pensions and humongous entitlements of his office, “I however, wish to place on record without fear of contradiction that his receipt of N10m monthly entitlement is in line with past traditions in the office of Finance Commissioners, is to all intents and purposes, misleading as I Obinna Oriaku who served between June 2015 to June 2019 is an exception”.
On Tuesday Newspaper Headlines series on Flo fm Umuahia, radio callers expressed their disappointment with the Commissioner for Finance over the N10m monthly entitlement controversy, while calling on Gov Otti to suspend him from office immediately, in line with his zero-tolerance principle to corruption.
Hon Ugochukwu Emezue, the former Commissioner for Documentation and Strategy led the group of callers demanding for the removal of Akpara in a similar way that Dr Ngozi Okoronkwo the Health Commissioner was suspended by Gov Otti. He wondered how the Finance Commissioner could claim such huge amount of monetary spending on accommodation, fuelling and feeding when there is a liaison office at Abuja that ordinarily will provide the required services to him any time.
Also, another caller Chief Chinedum Obilor said if it is true the Commissioner receives that amount of money then it is a bad signal, especially where the road sweepers are owed three months salaries that amounts to nothing substantial while civil servants are not paid the new wage award by the federal government.
