The Abia State government has arrested several civil servants involved in various pension fraud schemes, and they will soon be arraigned in court.
Additionally, some of the identified pension fraud suspects living abroad will be brought back to Nigeria to face prosecution.
Governor Alex Otti made this announcement on Thursday evening at the Government House in Umuahia during his monthly media chat with journalists.
Otti, emphasizing his administration’s zero tolerance for corruption, revealed that he had ordered the suspects to be arraigned in court within the next few days. He also criticized those defending one of the arrested pension fraud suspects.
“My question is, if someone steals and I arrest them, and you go to the press to say I shouldn’t arrest a thief, that means you are a thief too.
“There are about 10 or 11 suspects. According to the report I received, some of them are overseas. We will ensure they are repatriated to face justice,” he said.
The Governor stated that the relocation of Abia State University from the Umuahia campus back to the Uturu main campus is final, despite student protests.
He emphasized that the move was made for the students’ benefit and assured that proper accommodations, water supply, and modern facilities would be provided at Uturu.
Regarding the ongoing power outage in Ohafia, the Governor explained that the recent establishment of the Greater Ohafia Development Authority by his administration aims to transform the region and meet the community’s needs.
He also revealed that he has instructed the State’s Commissioner for Finance and the Accountant General to address complaints by some civil servants about errors recorded in their salary payments.
