— Alleges Mismanagement of Constituency Projects, Demands EFCC, ICPC Investigation
— Says Ideato Communities Still Await Visible Impact of Federal Allocations
ABUJA — The Executive Director of Civic Action for Democracy (CAD), Mazi Franklin Ngoforo, has launched a blistering attack on the member representing Ideato North and South Federal Constituency, Hon. Ikenga Ikeagwuonu Ugochinyere, accusing him of diverting over N18 billion meant for the reconstruction of a constituency ravaged by insecurity.
In a statement released on Sunday, Ngoforo alleged that the lawmaker has “profited from the blood of his kinsmen” by leveraging the insecurity in Ideato to nominate high-value projects into the federal budget, only to ensure those funds never reach the ground. Ngoforo slammed the lawmaker for squandering these development funds on a lifestyle of vanity, including the maintenance of lengthy luxury convoys and frequent private jet travels, while Ideato remains the same.
Ngoforo provided an audited breakdown of the projects Ugochinyere purportedly attracted but failed to implement, starting with the 2025 “Budget of Restoration.” He pointed to the N1.2 billion voted for the Construction of the Umuchima Bridge and Retaining Walls, and the N850 million for the Asphalt Overlay of the Akokwa-Arondizuogu-Okigwe Road. According to CAD, Governor Hope Uzodimma has intervened and built the Umuchima Bridge with state funds, while Ugochinyere, after nominating and defending the projects, cannot tell Ideato people the whereabouts of the money.
Ngoforo noted that the N350 million voted for a Modern Police Area Command HQ to restore security, and the N110 million for the Rehabilitation of Vandalized High Court and Magistrate Buildings under the Ministry of Justice, have vanished into private pockets.
The expose further delved into the 2024 Appropriation Act, where the CAD Director listed several “ghost projects” routed through various agencies. These include the N450 million for Emergency Erosion Control at Umuchima-Dikenafai (Ministry of Environment), N300 million for the Rehabilitation of the Orlu-Ideato-Akokwa-Uga Road (Ministry of Works), and N250 million for Security Solar Streetlights through the Border Communities Development Agency (BCDA). Ngoforo maintained that while Ugochinyere used the “fire that once burnt in Ideato” to justify these urgent interventions, the communities of Arondizuogu, Osina, Akokwa, and Urualla remain in darkness and structural decay, with the funds diverted to sustain the lawmaker’s political theatrics in Abuja.
The CAD leader saved his harshest criticism for the lawmaker’s recent conduct at the Ikeji Arondizuogu Festival, labeling it a “disgraceful mockery” of the people’s suffering. Ngoforo noted that Ugochinyere diverted public funds meant for the healing of the land to buy elaborate costumes and props to stage a deceptive drama during the festival. “It is the height of heartlessness to use the money meant for the reconstruction of Arondizuogu, the worst-hit community by insecurity, to hire actors and buy props for a festival parade. This was a staged theatrical performance designed to distract the people from the fact that their development has been traded for the lawmaker’s luxury,” Ngoforo fumed.
Addressing the expected defense from the lawmaker’s camp, Ngoforo preemptively dismissed the claim that the projects were not funded. “Ugochinyere and his handlers will likely start their usual song that the projects were not cash-backed. If that is true, then he has effectively labeled himself the most incompetent legislator in Nigeria’s history. If he has no requisite lobbying skills to push through projects he nominated under the guise of an emergency, then he is a redundant seat-warmer who must never be re-elected. However, we know the truth: the money was moved, and Ideato was robbed,” the statement read.
The CAD Executive Director further listed more looted items, including the N240 million for the FSTC Ideato upgrades, N180 million for Vandalized Power Transformers under the Rural Electrification Agency (REA), and N150 million for Solar Boreholes in Amihe and Ikpa-Okoli. Ngoforo emphasized that these specific entries, when added to other Global Allocations and SEDC regional intervention funds totaling over N18 billion over the last three years, show a consistent pattern of administrative heist targeted at the resources meant for the Ideato people.
Ngoforo lamented that while the kinsmen of the lawmaker in Akokwa, Arondizuogu and Ideato South continue to live in poverty and lack, Ugochinyere is preoccupied with “flying private jets and parading luxury convoys” that have no bearing on the welfare of his constituents. He challenged the lawmaker to show the people the location of the N150 million Youth Empowerment Starter Packs under SMEDAN or the N110 million Arondizuogu Dry Season Farming Inputs routed through NALDA. “The people are no longer deceived by props and costumes; they want to see the bridges, the roads, and the police stations he claimed were urgent,” he added.
Concluding, Mazi Ngoforo called on the EFCC and the ICPC to immediately commence a forensic audit of all projects domiciled in the 2024 and 2025 budgets for the Ideato North and South constituency. He warned that the era of “trading the blood and tears of Ideato for private jets” is over, and vowed that CAD would continue to mobilize the grassroots to ensure that those who have diverted the “restoration funds” of the land are held accountable and barred from further participation in the democratic process
