Cross River Transparency Network International, (CRTNI) has called on the Cross River State House of Assembly to immediately commence impeachment process of Governor Ben Ayade for over alleged illegal foreign trips. The group while addressing a press conference in Calabar alleged that since assumption of office, Governor Ayade had traveled to overseas more than any governor in the history of this country under the pretext of looking for investors for the State.
The coordinator of the group, Comrade Jonathan Agbor, said
it has become imperative for the State House of Assembly to impeach Ayade for
violating constitutional provisions of frequently traveling abroad without
handing over to his deputy just as he squanders state funds on such trip.
Agbor said, “Since Ayade came on board, he has spent more
days in Abuja and abroad than he had spent in the state, adding that out of 365
days in a year he spends less than 100 days in office.”
Consequent upon this, the Governor according to them has
abandoned his constructional duties of administering the state to the deputy
governor, Prof Ivara Esu, just as he left unattended to, major issues that
needed his attention.
The Coordinator, who claimed that the group was committed to
ensuring transparency of governance in the state, stated that in the cause of
the traveling, Ayade had spent millions of naira of tax-payers money on foreign
trips.
Insisting that such travels have crippled socio-economic
activities of the state, he said that the state had signed over one hundred
(100) MoUs abroad and with little or no benefit to the common man. According to
him, it is quite unconstitutional for the governor to have traveled abroad
since July 23, 2017 in the name of sourcing for investors that never came and
called on stakeholders to also rise against the rule-from-abroad style of
Ayade.
Hear the grup: “Ayade has committed impeachable offences
including abandoning the state for over one month now and travelled abroad. His
long absence has crippled administration at all levels. He has not been
implementing the budget since even when he swore an oath to protect and uphold
the principles of the constitution which includes working within the framework
of the constitution. But we can make bold to say that 90 per cent of the
projects implemented by Ayade’s administration is not in the budget”.
“Ayade has also made it difficult for his aides,
commissioners and civil service to function due to non-payment of impress to
agencies, commissions and ministries even when some of them generate revenues,
but he spends millions of naira globe-trotting. Ayade runs a close system
whereby only him and his close families led by Frank Ayade can have access to
contracts. We can tell you authoritatively that most commissioners don’t even
know how contracts are awarded as they are discreetly reverted to Frank who
does internal bidding and selection processes while the paper advert is a
smokescreen”.
“In view of all these, we call on the Hose of Assembly and
the critical stakeholders to please intervene and invoke relevant provisions to
impeach Ayade. Failure to do that the group might be forced to organise a
one-million man march to protest against mal-administration and illegal
traveling. OurMumumuDonDo!”
By Edem Edem
