Abuja Cooperative Foundation (ABCoF) has accused the FCT Secretary Agriculture and Rural Development Secretariat, Nzekwe Stanly Ifeanichukwu, and the Chief Registrar of Cooperatives, Mrs Ango Mohammed of connivance to exhort money from members of the FCT cooperatives societies through unlawful recertification and revalidation exercise.
The executives of the Foundation has therefore called on the Police, the Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to investigate the exercise and those involve to save the farmers from further extortion.
Addressing the press recently in Abuja, the Acting President, Mr Atama Emmanuel, said the foundation has notify it Legal Counsel to seek legal redress should the government refuse to take necessary steps to stop the exercise and refuse the money back to the victims.
Mr Atama said the concept of recertification is not known to the Cooperative Societies Act 2004, CAP 98 LFN hence it is illegal.
He said, “The use of faceless consultant who from our findings are staff and friends of the office of the Chief Registrar do not comply with public procurement process more so, that the Consultants to the best of our knowledge lacks the competence and capacity to execute the job. More disturbing is the fact that the Consultants could not be found at their acclaimed office address.
“The form use for the exercise does not show the author, address and where it should be submitted. The letter conveying the exercise which was neither dated nor signed
emanated from the pseudo consultants and not the Chief Registrar and it came with the directive to pay the sum of N10,000 each to the account if FCT ARDS IGR account and another N10,000 to Professional Cooperative Consult Cooperative Soviet Limited.
“And the threat, intimidation and harassment from both accused to deregister any cooperative society that failed to comply with the recertification exercise through text messages is disturbing and unlawful. Moreso, new cooperative societies that failed to pay the recertification fee even when it is clear that only registered cooperatives can be recertified is sabotaging the ease if doing business policy of the government”.
He said the reaction of the Secretary when visited for the resolution of the problem confirmed that there was official collaboration to default the cooperatives, as Hon Ifeanichukwu, described the farmers as ‘Rats and Truants’. While the letter to the FCT Minister, has not received the need response.
Mr Atama said the exercise is self serving and not in the interest if the masses who through the Cooperative model are meeting their needs.
All efforts to get both accused response to the allegations proved abortive as none answered their calls.
