THE governor of Ebonyi State, Francis Nwifuru, has ordered the arrest of six employees of ministry of health for allegedly stealing government property.
The suspects were reportedly apprehended on Saturday night at the ministry’s premises while attempting to transport the items to undisclosed points for sale.
This was contained in a statement issued on Sunday, November 24, by his chief press secretary, Monday Uzor.
The statement reads: “Ebonyi State Governor, Francis Ogbonna Nwifuru, has ordered the arrest and prosecution of one Ndukwe Ayansi and five others for allegedly diverting materials meant for the state’s ministry of health.”
According to the statement, the governor, while on his way to inspect a project, observed a Toyota Dyna truck being loaded with registers, books, and other materials from the ministry’s warehouse.
Further investigation revealed that the items, including patients’ data registers, cards, and other essential documents, were being transported without authorisation.
“It was also discovered that all the documents had been sold without government approval,” the statement added.
Nwifuru condemned the act, describing it as sabotage against the government’s efforts to improve the health sector.
“You are selling government documents without approval on a Saturday afternoon. Our hospitals in rural areas are in need of registers, data entry forms, and hospital cards. “Sadly, the ones provided by the government are being sold by you. This is pure sabotage to our efforts in the health sector, and it will not be tolerated,” he said.
The suspects have since been handed over to the police for further investigation and prosecution.
Nurudeen Akewushola is an investigative reporter and fact-checker with The ICIR. He believes courageous in-depth investigative reporting is the key to social justice, accountability and good governance in society. You can reach him via nyahaya@icirnigeria.org and @NurudeenAkewus1 on Twitter.