I was not quizzed by EFCC, says Enugu Perm Sec

BY TONY EDIKE

ENUGU— MRS. Eunice Ugwu, a Permanent Secretary in Enugu State Civil Service, Thursday,  dismissed as false media reports that she was quizzed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over the construction of a new workers’ secretariat in the state.
Until her elevation by Governor Sullivan Chime to the post of a Permanent Secretary, Mrs. Ugwu was the Accountant General of Enugu State.

In a press statement which she personally signed, Mrs. Ugwu said her attention was drawn to the reports which said that as Accountant General of Enugu State, she was interrogated by the EFCC in respect of a petition said to have been written by one Osita Okechukwu alleging fraud in the construction of a new workers’ secretariat by  Enugu State Government, describing it as totally false and mischievous.

She said: “I wish to make it categorically clear that there is no truth whatsoever in these reports  because I was not, at any time,  invited or interrogated by the EFCC on the issue of the new secretariat or any other issue for that matter.

“Also, I did not, at any time, receive officials or operatives of the EFCC in my office let alone hold discussions with them on the above project or on any other issue concerning the state.

“These reports are, therefore, for all intents and purposes, wicked and mischievous fabrications that could only have been designed to embarrass me and the Government of Enugu State. I challenge the reporters to provide evidence to contradict this fact.
“The authors of this deliberate and obviously syndicated falsehood also mischievously claimed that I was removed as Accountant-General and appointed a Permanent Secretary as a consequence of the non-existent interrogation by the EFCC.

“My simple response to this is to express my gratitude to His Excellency, Governor Sullivan Chime for finding me worthy of elevation along with other citizens of Enugu State, to the coveted pinnacle of the State Civil Service.

“Finally, I am constrained to say that I found it rather surprising that such patent falsehood regarding my person and former office could be published in highly reputable newspapers without making any effort whatsoever to crosscheck the facts with me.

“I believe that the need for this rebuttal would not have arisen had anyone taken the steps in line with standard professional practice, to establish the truth.”