July 14, (THEWILL) — The Chairman of the Supporters Club of Abakaliki Football Club, Maurice Mbam, has debunked rumours making the rounds that he embezzled money given to members of the Supporters Club after the President’s Federation Cup competition held at the Mobolaji Johnson Arena, Lagos.
Mbam Maurice, who doubles as the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Crook Animal Farm, in an interview in Abakaliki, denied tampering with the N4 million naira approved by the Ministry of Youth and Sports for the Supporters Club of Abakaliki FC.
He stated that one of the ways he could support the administration of Governor Francis Nwifuru was his contribution in the area of ensuring the rapid development and growth of football in Ebonyi State.
He also commended the administration of Governor Francis Nwifuru for his legacy projects, especially the Vanco junction flyover and tunnel, while blaming some government appointees for placing their personal interest above the interest of their office.
Mbam disclosed that on his return from Lagos after the President’s Federation Cup competition, the Ministry of Youth and Sports, out of the N4m given by the state governor, paid N1.5 million into his account for the Supporters Club of Abakaliki Football Club.
He said, “I sent my account number to the accountant of the Ministry of Youth and Sports, and they wired N1.5 million. That is our own part of the money. So, the money came through the Ministry of Youth and Sports. You understand?
“So, when they wired N1.5 million to me, I said, okay. I quickly called my publicity secretary, which is Spanish. I said Spanish, put up a meeting for the supporters that went to Lagos so that I can address them and talk to them. And again, thank them that I have not spoken to them since we came back. I was waiting for this money to come.
“So, when they put the meeting here, I said, no, put it in stadium. There is no enough seats to contain the noise and so on. So, we went to stadium. I now explained this to them. Before I explained, I told them that I, of course, I thanked them and thanked God for how he took us to Lagos and came back. I now told them that in every system, there are people that run it.
“I can’t get up and start running the ministry affairs. I told them that as the Supporters Club, we are an arm of the football team, not in the ministry. I told them that where we source our power from is from the club, that we are the Supporters Club of Abakaliki FC, not of ministry.
“And this is the decision of the club, that they have agreed that we are not the only people that supported them and that they have to carry other people along. And it will be unfair for us to also claim the whole money that we need to also share with our brothers who travelled with us. This season has ended, and they know that we started this on our own.
“Even up to now, people are still calling me. I’m still paying people, even those who couldn’t go, but they had one reason or the other not to go. I’m still paying them 20,000. Because there are more than 100 Ebonyians and supporters who are registered. And they register with 5,000. So, they deserve also part of whatever comes to the club.
“So, I didn’t know this boy was also a member. I didn’t know him as a member. But I was told that he was there in my explanation. And then, when we finished the meeting, everybody was happy. I left. Lo and behold, that night, I received a call from the top, telling me I should go to social media and look at what is going on in social media. You understand? I went to social media and saw it.
“And I explained to number one, look at what happened. You know, I was not there when he gave four million. I wasn’t there when they gave it. This is the one I was given. And I’ve shared it with them. I told the supporters, calculate what I told you is my own expenses.
Speaking on the attitudes of politicians, Mbam Maurice wondered why political appointees place a much higher premium on their personal more than on the interests of the offices they are manning.
“I used to ask myself, why is it that it is easier for a government appointee to finish his house and furnish his house during the time he’s in government, and then he will not succeed in anything in his ministry. I don’t know if you will understand. Why is it that the personal activity of a political appointee is settled even before the position of the government requirement?
“That is the problem of the country. You are given an appointment, and you buy some land. You are given an appointment, and you start building a house. You build your house and finish it, and then test it to test. But there is a job given through your ministry, and that job will not be completed. But you will complete your house within one year.
He further commended Governor Francis Nwifuru for fulfilling his promise of embarking on legacy projects.
“The governor made a statement that he wants a legacy project in his name. And we owe him that. So, we are sitting back. We may not see what Vanco is turning into until they finish Vanco. And that Vanco job is not a small project. It’s like this unfinished building that he has attacked now.
“And for the first time, as I started politics, I see a governor going back to projects that were abandoned to attack them after so many years. So, if these projects are finished now, who takes the glory? Is the governor who started it?
“So, it depends on how people rate people. If you put the roads that have been given together, if you add all of them together, how many kilometres, you find out that it is more than the one that the former governor has done”, he said.
Sunday Ogbu is a professional journalist with eight - twelve years experience that had worked with various print and online media. Sunday specializes in news reporting with the aim of educating his readers on current social, political and economic occurences within his area of coverage. Sunday is a strong force to work with in the media industry and uses his positive attitude and tireless energy to encourage others to work hard and succeed. Sunday is inspired daily by his wife and their four children. In his free time, Sunday likes sight-seeing, reading and discussing issues of societal interest.
