Engr Chinedu Onyeizu, the Abia South Labour Party’s senatorial candidate in the 2023 general election, has taken a swipe at Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe for secretly collecting N266m meant for poor Abia South constituents and pocketing it without considering the biting hunger in the land.

Onyeizu stated that it is regrettable that without Senator Ningi opening the can of worms in the senate, no one would have known that Abaribe got such a whopping sum of money meant for our people in Abia South.

Onyeizu stated:
“For Over 17 years, these monies and more are given to him for interventions and constituency projects, yet there are no visible projects to show for it. Today, his own village people can’t use good roads because of decades of neglect. The poverty index of indigent people in his own community and local government is above the top 10% in Abia State. It’s terrible! During elections, we see a man who returns with a few bags of fertilizer to pacify the hungry and abandoned farmers in his constituency.

Is it not most inhuman and sad that amid the abject hunger and poverty in the land, someone who was sent to represent his people will collect such an amount of money on their behalf and conceal it ?

In the midst of this worst economic hardship, Abaribe collected such an amount of money, yet no Abia South youth has been empowered, no woman has been given a dime as start-up capital, no palliative was given to even the poorest person in the senatorial district? He can’t attract projects like other senators, he can’t build any by himself, he can’t even give the people the money he collected on their behalf directly if he is bereft of ideas.

It’s heart wrenching to see that those that have been called to serve are now turning around to steal from the very poor they claim to be representing. This is horrible!

What is happening in Nigeria is what you see when INEC and the courts decide to give mandate to who they wish and against the will of the people of Nigeria.

The other day, we watched an Abaribe who unabashedly went to a national television to say that he received only N266m while other senior senators got N500m. Oh no! If Senator Jerigbe hadn’t exposed the rot in the Senate, would Abaribe have gone on the TV to admit receiving the money?

I still believe the story is not almost accurate. I am wondering, if the money Senator Abaribe received were constituency projects fund, how come it was given to him from the same controversial N3trn – a padded amount that was not supposed to be accounted for ab iinitio?

Secondly, would we have known about the N266M credit alert from the Senate if Senator Nigin hadn’t come to light?

Also, as concerned constituents of Aba South, we are curious and yet to understand the motive of the recent TV interview granted by Senator Abaribe – was it to demand for them to give him the remaining balance of what he deserves as a ranking senator? Let’s remember that his cohort indirectly reminded him that all animals are not equal and as a result the loot shouldn’t be shared equally, or was it to challenge the wrongdoing of the Senate as the Almighty Mma Agha Ndi Igbo?

If continuously pocketing poor and hapless people’s money is part of your mandate as Nma Agba Ndi Igbo, then I think we need to reassess your capacity to represent our people.

I advise Abaribe to resign honourably and allow Abia South to work for Abia Southerners.