Financial consultant and Chief Executive Officer of Mauritz Walton Nigeria Limited, Dr Maurice Ibe, has petitioned the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Alkali Baba, begging to be protected from the threat of Ebonyi State Governor Dave Umahi.
In a petition by Charles Ude, his lawyer, Ibe alleged that Umahi was threatening his life after a Federal High Court, Port Harcourt, gave him a favourable judgment by asking Ebonyi government to pay his company and another consultancy fee on the sum of $119, 419,427.59 Paris Club refund paid the state.
Explaining the genesis of Ibe’s ordeal, Ude stated that the Ebonyi State government engaged Ibe’s company and Andrew Bishopton Limited to recover money wrongly deducted by the federal government on foreign loans from the state government between 1995 and 2002.
He added that the total sum of $119,419,427.59 was recovered by the companies for the state government, noting that the Ebonyi State government defaulted in the payment of the consultancy fees agreed between the state government and the consultants.
Ibe said this prompted the companies to drag the state government to court.
He said Umahi came after him with policemen after he lost the case in court.
He added that some policemen had laid siege to his house, calling on the IGP to come to the rescue of him.
“Based on a Memorandum of Undertaking, Mauritz Walton Nigeria Limited and Andrew Bishopton Limited, acting as partners, entered into a working relationship that enabled them to collaborate on a consultancy contract for Ebonyi State Government, resulting in the recovery of the sum of USD119,419,427.59 for the State, as over-deductions and miscellaneous charges wrongfully made by the federal government of Nigeria on foreign loans utilized by Ebonyi State government from 1995- 2002.
“My client, along with the Chief Executive Officer of Andrew Bishopton Limited, exhausted all diplomatic means to get Umahi to pay them; however, it proved abortive. As a result, they were left with no option than to drag him to the Federal High Court, Port Harcourt Division. Consequently, on Thursday, July 21, 2022, the court, presided over by Honourable Justice Stephen Daylop Pam, passed judgment in their favour, and ordered Umahi and the Ebonyi State government to pay them the agreed amount based on the services rendered.
“Unfortunately, Umahi resorted to using different means to intimidate his client and his partner, including the use of the Ebonyi Command of the Nigerian Police Force, who immediately swooped on her at her Abuja home, and in a frightful manner forcefully took her to Ebonyi and has been incarcerated at their facility in Abakaliki since July 31, 2022.
“My client had observed the following of his car and the strange movement of persons in unmarked vehicles around his home and office on or since July 31, 2022. He is convinced that, but for his personal security personnel, he would have suffered the same faith as Ms. Jackie. He has gone into hiding on account of the same, and needs to regain his liberty and resume his normal activities, which he cannot presently do with the threat.
“Consequently, there is a need for the IGP to protect him from being attacked or abducted by the policemen sent after him by the Governor.“
He said, “Our client had observed the trailing of his car and the strange movement of persons in unmarked vehicles around his home and office, on or since the 31st July, 2022.
The petition, with Ref: CU/01/EB/2022, addressed to the IGP, urged the police authorities to forestall the “Illegal and unlawful attempt to abduct, kidnap and harass Dr. Maurice Ibe by Dave Umahi, Executive Governor of Ebonyi State.”
Dr. Ibe pleaded with the police boss to proactively take steps to halt the move by the governor and the select police officers he has engaged for the nefarious activity against him.
“He had gone into hiding on account of the same, and needs to regain his liberty and resume his normal activities which he cannot presently do with the threat of Umahi’s style of justice hanging on his neck like the “sword of Damocles,” part of the petition read.
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