By Chuks Eke
Stakeholders of Electronics Dealers Association, Onitsha, Anambra State have warned Chief Donatus Obi, the State Government appointed Revenue Collector in the market and his cohorts to refrain from shortchanging the state Government of Anambra State.
Members of Board of Trustees (BoT), and some major stakeholders stated this in a media briefing to make clarifications over the allegations Obi leveled against one of the major stakeholders of the market, Mr. Ifechukwu Anozie, who is popularly referred to as the voice of the people.
Speaking to newsmen, Anozie (Voice of the people) lamented that Obi accused him of disturbing the peace of the market and at the same time stopping him ( Obi) and his men from collecting Internally Generated Revenue, IGR for the state government.
Anozie however, described that the allegations as unfounded, stated that it was because he wanted to expose Obi and his gang who he said were only directed by the Anambra State Government to collect Tax and Development levies pending the determinations of the court case and not to run the affairs of the market that prompted Obi to levy such baseless allegations against his person.
Anozie equally accused Obi and his gang of shortchanging the Anambra State Government, alleging that they were not remitting the actual money they collected from traders to government.
Immediate past elected administration collected from over 3,700 shops, 400 attachments and more than 80 plazas which he said they were supposed to be remitting over N15 million annually to the state government, but he said they have been remitting only between N5 million and N4 million as against Obi’s lower remittances.
He further alleged that Obi has his personal receipts as against the Instruction of the Anambra State Government, stressing that Obi is not a BoT member, as such the Constitution of the market does not allow him to pilot the affairs of Electronics Dealers Associations in absence of a duly elected chairman.
Anozie gave the names of the BOT members as Benjamin Anyanwu, Dona Onyiloha, Nnameka Nwanna, Philip Iheanacho, Simon Nwankwo, Gunis and Gozac Emperium.
He called on Anambra State Government to investigate whatever he said to find out the truth.
“Mr Donatus Obi knew I am saying nothing but the truth. That is why he is looking for every possible means to accuse me wrongly. He doesn’t want to be sincere with Anambra State Government. Secondly, going by our constitution, he is not qualified to rule Electronics Dealers Association Market Onitsha. Traders will bear me witness that I have told them severally to go and pay their Taxes and Development levies promptly”.
Another stakeholder, Mr. Chinedu Ochife, who spoke in tandem with Mr Anozie said Mr Obi was collecting and EDAO dues with the receipt of the Union instead of the Tax and Development levies as directed by the Anambra State Government, alleging that Obi and thugs beat up our customers on daily basis.
Mr Ochife noted that the actions of these people drive away customers from Anambra State, and called on Anambra State Government to quickly intervene.
