Former Chief of Staff to Bayelsa State governor, Chief Dikivie Ikiogha, Wednesday, challenged Governor Seriake Dickson to name government properties in his possession, The Nation reports.
The state government had in a statement that emanated for the Government House, Yenagoa, accused Ikiogha, a leading All Progressive Congress governorship aspirants in the state, of refusing to return government properties in his possession six months after resigning from his position.
Ikiogha, a close associate of former President Goodluck Jonathan, defected from the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, after he failed to pick the party’s House of Representatives ticket in the last general.
According to the report, a source in Government House, speaking in confidence, said the government had ordered Ikiogha to return all properties in his possession, claiming that in defiance to the civil service rules, the former Chief of Staff only returned some properties but retained others in his custody.
The source said: “In accordance with the administration’s principle of transparency and accountability, the government reported the matter to the police, no public officer, after leaving office has the right to withhold government properties.
“However, instead of doing the needful by returning the remaining properties in his possession, the former Chief of staff headed for court, asking for injunction to stop police from arresting him. Ikiogha, after leaving office as the Chief of Staff, Abuja office is still having some government properties in his custody.
“It is clearly stated in the public/civil service rules that any official that is leaving the office should handover properties in his/her possessions to the most senior officer in the Ministry, Department or Agencies”.
However, in a swift reaction, Ikiogha insisted that he had no government property in his possession and dared the governor to mention the items.
Ikiogha described Governor Dickson as a drowning man, adding that he was after him because he (the governor) was nursing fears that he would emerge as the candidate of the APC and his rival in the December 5 governorship election. .
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