Ebonyi State Governor, Francis Nwifuru, has suspended the state’s Commissioner for Health, Dr. Moses Ekuma, and the Commissioner for Housing and Urban Development, Francis Ori.
The suspensions were announced on Monday during the State Executive Council meeting in Abakaliki, the state capital.
A statement issued by the Commissioner for Information and State Orientation, Jude Okpor, revealed that the suspensions were a result of “gross misconduct and dereliction of duties by some government officials.”
Okpor’s statement, which was seen by our correspondent on Tuesday morning, read, “Following cases of gross misconduct and dereliction of duties by some government officials and matters related thereto, the Chairman of Council directed the indefinite suspension of the Honourable Commissioner for Housing and Urban Development and three months suspension of the Honourable Commissioner for Health respectively.”
The suspensions are believed to be linked to recent incidents, including the alleged theft of government property by officials in the Ministry of Health and the underperformance of the Housing and Urban Development Commissioner.
The latter is also accused of mishandling the Amaeze Housing Scheme in the Ishielu Local Government Area of the state.
Governor Nwifuru had visited the health ministry’s premises on Saturday night and reportedly caught six officials in the act of allegedly diverting government materials. Following this, he ordered the officials’ arrest and prosecution.
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In addition to the suspensions of the two commissioners, the governor also directed that the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Health, the Executive Secretaries of the State Primary Healthcare Development Agency, and the Ebonyi State Health Insurance Agency, be suspended for three months.
Okpor confirmed this during a briefing with journalists on Tuesday.
“Following cases of gross misconduct and dereliction of duties by some government officials and matters related thereto, the Chairman of Council directed the indefinite suspension of the Honourable Commissioner for Housing and Urban Development and three (3) months suspension of the Honourable Commissioner for Health respectively,” Okpor said.
Governor Nwifuru has also instructed that the suspended officials hand over all government properties in their possession, including vehicles, to the Secretary to the State Government by the close of work on Monday, November 25, 2024.
Okpor added that the State Executive Council has also begun ministerial debates and defenses for the Ministries Departments and Agencies (MDAs) in preparation for the official presentation of the 2025 budget proposal to the state House of Assembly for legislative consideration and approval.
