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Reports of the alleged arrest of the former Deputy Governor of Imo State, Engr. Gerald Irona by agents of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission are bogus.
This is according to the communications adviser to the former deputy governor, Dr Walter Duru.
According to a statement released by Dr Duru and made available to journalists, the report is not only malicious but contains no iota of truth.
Below is the full statement, as posted by Dr Duru:
PRESS STATEMENT
SUBJECT: EFCC ARRESTS FORMER DEPUTY GOVERNOR OF IMO, GERALD IRONA:
YET ANOTHER PHANTOM REPORT
Our attention was drawn to a malicious report on some online media platforms alleging that the former Deputy Governor of Imo State, Engr. Gerald Irona was arrested by agents of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission-EFCC.
The report claimed that the former deputy governor was “intercepted at Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja and taken to EFCC headquarters for questioning.”
The author further alleged that the former deputy governor was involved in the monthly collection of 400 million naira on behalf of the Imo-ISOPADEC State Oil Production Zone Development Commission during the period. administration of Chief Emeka Ihedioha; adding that the former deputy governor was also under investigation for allegedly mismanaging the N5b counterpart funds for the Rural Access Mobility Project (RAMP). The report adds that the former deputy governor did not return his passport to the EFCC after using it last year.
Normally, we would not have bothered to answer the blind lie, but to set the record straight, we answer as follows:
The entire report is false and contains no iota of truth. Former Deputy Governor of Imo State, the Hon. (Engr) Gerald Irona has no case with the EFCC.
The fact that the author did not contact either the EFCC spokesperson or the spokesperson for the former deputy governor for confirmation clearly shows the intention of the sponsors of the false report.
For the avoidance of doubt, the outgoing Vice Governor of Imo State, the Hon. (Engr.) Gerald Irona was neither invited nor arrested by agents of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission-EFCC or any other law enforcement agency in Nigeria.
Former Deputy Governor Ingr. Irona is not being investigated. He relaxes in his residence and is not arrested, invited or wanted by any law enforcement agency or any authority, inside and / or outside Nigeria.
The allegation of misappropriation of ISOPADEC funds is laughable, as the former Deputy Governor was never the Director General of the Petroleum Commission and could not have been in charge of Commission funds.
We see this as an insult and an attempt to reduce the former Deputy Governor of Imo State to a mere head of one of the state’s many parastatals.
On the allegation of mismanagement of RAMP funds, nothing could be further from the truth. The former deputy governor has never managed such funds and has nothing to do with it.
On the allegation that the former Deputy Governor never returned his passport to the EFCC, it is strange, as Ingr. Irona was never a guest of the EFCC and at no time did the anti-graft agency seize her passport.
Ing. Gerald Irona is a responsible, patriotic and law-abiding Nigerian and will not waste a second to respond to any call or invitation from any constituted authority.
In and out of the office, Ing. Gerald Irona lived a transparent, disciplined and decent lifestyle worth emulating.
The sponsors of this report are envious political detractors of the growing profile of the beloved former Deputy Governor of Imo State, Engr. Gerald Irona.
As we consult our lawyers on a possible legal remedy for this brazen and irresponsible spread of outright lies, the general public is hereby advised to disregard the report in its entirety, as it contains no iota of truth.
It is known that the brief administration of former Governor Emeka Ihedioha remains the most transparent, focused and results-oriented administration Imo State has ever had.
Walter Duru, Ph.D.
Advisor, Communications to the Former Deputy Governor of Imo State
Hon. (Eng.) Gerald Irona
08/20/2021
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