The Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, has accused the Rotimi Amaechi administration of abandoning the state-owned Legacy 600 aircraft in Germany.
He claimed that under Amaechi’s administration, the aircraft was flown to Germany in 2012 and abandoned there.
The governor, in a statement by his Special Assistant on Media Kevin Ebiri, said it was unconscionable for the immediate-past administration to surreptitiously take a state asset there without documentation.
Wike, who led a delegation of Rivers leaders to the General Atomics Aerotec in Munich, Germany, where the aircraft had been kept for 10 years, said efforts to repair and retrieve the aircraft cost the government over €3million
Speaking during a meeting with the General Manager, Business Development, General Atomics Aerotec, Markus Froetschi, Wike explained that his administration in a bid to recover state assets, discovered through intelligence that the Legacy 600 jet purchased by Dr. Peter Odili’s administration was in Germany.
He said: “When we came into office in 2015, we never had an idea that our plane was in your facility.
“It was a matter of asking questions before we got the information that Legacy 600 belonging to our state is in RUAG before General Atomics.
“We tried to make contact with you and which you obliged. So, we want to sincerely thank you for not hiding anything from us, because it is the property of the state government.
“This plane was bought in 2003 by the government of Dr. Peter Odili, and by 2007 he had handed over to the next government which was my predecessor’s, now, Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi. While he was in office, by 2012 this plane was brought here. Reasons we do not know.”
Wike said there was no documentation that the state-owned aircraft was flown to Germany.
He said: “The issue is why was there no documentation to let the incoming government know that we have this facility and we sent it to RUAG for inspection?
“I do know from experience that inspection of such facility does not take more than six months. So, if it was brought in 2012, expectantly at least, by early 2013, the plane ought to have come back for use.”
On the governor’s entourage were the House of Assembly Speaker Rivers State Ikuinyi-Owaji Ibani; Deputy Speaker Ehie Ogerenye Edison; Rivers Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Prof. Zacchaeus Adangor; member of House of Representatives, Ken Chikere; Rivers State chairman, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Desmond Akawor; Chairman, Ikwerre LGA, Samuel Nwanosike among others.
The statement quoted Froetschi as saying that the aircraft was brought to Germany by the immediate past administration and abandoned since 2012.
He expressed delight that Wike took the initiative to repair and return the aircraft to Nigeria for use by the state government.
According to him, his company will be done with general maintenance work and deliver the aircraft to the state government by March.
Iban said he was elated that the aircraft had been recovered.
He said state lawmakers would continue to support every effort to recover all government assets and property.
Edison described the abandonment of the aircraft in Germany as administrative reckless.
“We are surprised that this is more than seven years that the aircraft has been here.
“Their intention we cannot say, but it shows administrative recklessness, and worst of all, there was no proper documentation to show the government meant well for Rivers people,” he said.
Amaechi did not respond to the allegations when correspondents contacted him.
One of his media aides, Taiye Elebiyo, said the minister would respond later, but did not do so as of the time of filing this report.
