I left N6bn for my successor, Ikpeazu claims

The outgoing governor of Abia State, Okezie Ikpeazu, disputed Alex Otti’s assertion that he merely left behind debts and no cash or other assets.
Ikpeazu claimed to have left N6 billion in the government’s coffers and maintained that, at the time of his departure, the Abia State government owed no commercial banks anything, not even short-term overdrafts.
According to a declaration made by Ikechukwu Iroha, Ikpeazu’s former media assistant, “Abia State under the control of Dr. Ikpeazu spent $5,000,000.00 in Geometric Power Company. That asset is almost cash.
“As of Friday, June 9, 2023, the state had a balance of N48 billion, of which N24 billion had been received through the Nigeria Governors’ Forum. The money was made under Dr. Ikpeazu’s supervision.
He claimed that Ikpeazu’s administration had “perfected a $50 million World Bank credit at a 0.06 percent interest rate with a 10 year repayment moratorium for the construction of more than 500km roads, including the crumbling Port Harcourt Road in Aba.
“The implication is that the current administration can start using that facility right away to build important roads in Abia State and won’t have to pay the money back during the course of its tenure, assuming it lasts up to eight years,” he continued.
“The new administration can now access a $200 million African Development Bank facility that was processed by the Ikpeazu administration for the construction of rural roads.”
Iroha claims that even though the Ikpeazu administration presided over the state for the majority of May 2023, the current administration will be the one to collect the FAAC allocation for that month.
He mentioned that the future administration also has access to the internally generated revenue for May 2023.
Ikpeazu’s former aide claimed: “Abia State Government and the office of the accountant general of the federation reconciled their books with N6 billion standing to the credit of the state before Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu exited from office.
What that also indicates is that the FGN, not the Ikpeazu administration, was in debt to the state, not the federal government. The additional $6 billion fund is available to the current administration.
“While we are still waiting for the new administration to provide a detailed breakdown of the alleged debts that the Ikpeazu administration is said to have left behind, it is safe to assume that the majority of them are long-term development facilities, contractor debts, and possibly unpaid pension and salary obligations.
In my honest opinion, the state’s new administration can effectively launch and handle its obligations with what it has on hand without fuss or fuss.