Igbo leaders divert funds meant to develop South East into private pockets – Ex-Minister, Chidoka

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Igbo leaders divert funds meant to develop South East into private pockets – Ex-Minister, Chidoka

A former Aviation Minister, Osita Chidoka, has berated leaders of the South East zone for the level of underdevelopment in the region, alleging that they divert funds meant to develop the region to their private pockets.

Chidoka made the claim during the third session of the Seventh Synod of the St. Mark’s Anglican Church, Diocese of Egbu in Imo state.

He said, “Instead of us turning the monthly allocations to a capital for developing the state, we turned it into a consumption capital, security vote, build bridges to nowhere and to load their pockets with that which has been received as the seed capital.


“When a farmer receives yam seedlings and ends up eating the head of the yam, he will definitely not have yam to plant during the next farming season.

“So we were eating the capital and we are thinking how the south east can develop. There is no reason why the south east regional zone should not be the first to build an internal rail system to be moving our people and their goods around. There is no reason why the south eastern region would not be the first to ask the federal government to hands-off the federal roads in the southeast and allow us to build our roads for the survival of our own people, I’m saying this because at the end of the day our value system is one that promotes merit, equity and growth.”

The former Minister asserted that Igbos are known for upholding the true value of hard work, stressing that corruption was alien to the Igbo race.

According to Chidoka, “Igbo were very skillful that when they got to some part of America they were the ones that were able to plant and tend tobacco because they came with skills of yam planting.


“In Igbo land it’s an abomination to spill blood, it’s equally an abomination to steal yam in most parts of Igbo land. The Igbos hold sacred so many principles, we have natural fear and respect for the unknown such that when Christianity came it was easy for us to accept it because Christianity reaffirmed our love and respect for human life, it reaffirmed our respect for that which is unseen, it reaffirmed our respect for fellow human beings.

“And that is the fear of God, which was why the Igbo didn’t know the word corruption and till now there is no Igbo word for corruption simply because it is alien to us, the Igbos.”

Just yesterday, South East caucus of the Senate led by the Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Ike Ekweremadu presented some issues affecting the zone to President Muhammadu Buhari in a meeting with the President.