Fresh Trouble For UPP’s Chief, Okorie Over Vehicles

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BY OGBONNA CASMIR, ENUGU – Another round of crisis is festering in the United Progressive Party (UPP) with allegations of pilfering and misappropriation of Party’s property against its National Chairman, Chief Chekwas Okorie.

Insiders said Chief Okorie is in trouble over accusations that he purportedly converted to personal use four exotic vehicles donated by Party’s faithful for official use.

Among the vehicles, currently setting the Party on edge, are a Toyota Hiace Bus; Toyota Land Cruiser Jeep; Toyota Tacoma Truck and Toyota Pick-up Truck donated to the party in 2014 for the 2015 general elections by COGiPAR Nigeria Ltd, Port Harcourt and DEC Oil & Gas Ltd, Port Harcourt respectively.

Competent sources told Forefront that police operatives from the Force Headquarters last week stormed Okorie’s Enugu residence and carted the vehicles to the Enugu State police command for further investigations.

Chief Okorie, who confirmed the incident, said the Police invited him for questioning and he would therefore be retrained from making comments on the subject matter given that investigation is on-going.

“I don’t want to talk about it. It is a matter already before the police. I know where the problem is coming from. So, let the police do their work,” Okorie said.

However, reliable police sources hinted Forefront that  the operatives were acting on a petition to the Inspector General of Police, IGP Ibrahim Idris by the donor, one Chief Patrick Ugboma through his attorney, Latter House Attorneys, alleging that the vehicles had long been cornered by Chief Okorie and converted to private use rather than UPP’s programmes and activities.

Ugboma’s petition, dated January 15, 2018, urged the IGP to investigate the allegation with a view to recovering the vehicles for the Party’s official use.

The petitioner gave out all documents, including the registration numbers, chassis and engine numbers of the vehicles as proofs to authenticate his claims even as he further asserted that the vehicles’ particulars were doctored to present them as Okorie’s personal property instead of the Party’s, hence the moves to recover the vehicles.

When contacted, the police spokesman, SP Ebere Amaraizu, denied knowledge of the vehicles’ seizure from the UPP chieftain, saying; “I have not gotten any report yet”.

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