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A Permanent Secretary in the Imo state Ministry of Works, Engr. Egbuka E.C has come under a barrage of criticisms for allegedly taking sides in a dispute concerning two rival hoteliers.
The senior civil servant who was expected to have fairly mediated in the dispute was rather found attempting to intimidate and wield the influence of the Ministry of Works against a hotelier and Managing Director of Aify Global Queeneth Hotel, Owerri.
Though Egbuka has denied the allegations, his actions seem to suggest that he made himself a willing tool in the hand of one of the rival hoteliers who has conveniently kept himself in the shadows while allegedy working to undermine the good fortunes of his competitor.
Writing a warning letter to the management of Aify Global Queeneth Hotel without hearing their side of the matter smacked of complicity and connivance on the part of permanent secretary who had acted on a purported petition to the Ministry by one Bob Dick, a said hotelier.
The warning letter dated 4th May, 2020 written to Aify Global Queeneth Hotel’s Managing Director by the said Egbuka E. C alleged that the hotel was harassing members of the neighbourhood and had blocked off access road to neighbours. Egbuka had warned the Managing Director to moderate the actons of the hotel.
Aggrieved that the Permanent Secretary, Egbuka did not give the hotel any hearing – fair or otherwise – before coming to the conclusion that the hotel was engaging in the harassment of members of the neighbourhood, the hotel management through their lawyer, A.I. Nwachukwu wrote the Permanent Secretary expressing dismay that a top functionary of the state could throw caution to the wind to decide a matter without hearing both sides.
The lawyer who wondered how a hotel business could block off access road used by its customers, warned Egbuka that the era of impunity was far gone with the administration of Senator Rochas Okorocha adding that his action was clearly sending a wrong signal to the public while misrepresenting the ideals of the Hope Uzodinma administration in Imo state.
There have also been accusations that the permanent secretary may have been paid for the ‘hatchet job’ or was merely renewing his anomosity against the hotel which reportedly, had turned down his contract proposal to handle the construction of access road to the hotel, during the Okorocha adminisration, when he was still a Director of Works in the Ministry.
A top government official who craved anonymity has cautioned against the resort to using government paraphenelia to frustrate private investments in the state by overzealous civil servants, adding that it was doing more harm than good to the economy of the state.
Reacting however, the Permanent Secretary, Egbuka who owned up that he wrote the warning letter to the hotel said he wrote at the instance of the Commissioner for Works, Barr. Ralph Nwosu. He quickly noted that at no time did he approach the said hotel for gratification.
“I wrote the said letter and by that, I was only doing my job. And for the records, I did not demand or collect bribe from anybody”, he said.
