Imo govt. denies ownership of blog 5yrs after running site

Governor Rochas Okorocha

Imo state government has denied ownership of an online platform,  www.imostategovernment.blogspot.com after running the site for over five years. The said blog which was launched in 2012 by the ICT unit of the Imo state Government House was used to publish all the state government’s activities until mid-October 2016.

              Reacting to questions from the Eastern News correspondent via telephone, the Special Adviser to Governor Okorocha on ICT, Mr. IK Ogbonna denied knowledge of the said platform, adding that he is not aware that the State government owns a blog. Said he; “I am not aware that there is an official blog for the Imo State Government. The blog you mentioned may be one of those blogs run by friends of the government”

           When contacted, ICT Editor for the Imo State Government House, Mr. Anthony Ebere Inyama, insisted that the platform belongs to the State Government.   Said he; “I created the blog (www.imostategovernment.blogspot.com) with approval by my unit Head, Mr Matthew Obono, in 2012 and since then, it has been used to publish news of all government’s activities and programmes until October last year”.

Mr Inyama said he stopped publishing on the site because he is being owed six months arrears of salary by the state government. Efforts to get further information from him proved abortive as he refused to disclose the reasons why he is being owed.

 Earlier, our correspondent obtained a copy of an official letter signed by the Deputy Chief of  Staff to Governor Okorocha, Mrs. Ogechi Ololo, and addressed to the Speaker of the Imo State House of Assembly. In that letter dated 16^th April 2016, Mrs. Ololo referred to Mr. Anthony Inyama as the ICT Editor for the Imo State Government House and asked the Speaker to assist him (Mr. Inyama) to collect certain information from the House of Assembly for publication on the State Government Website (www.imostate.gov.ng).

 Commenting on the issue via Facebook message, an Imo-born Pharmacist based in the United States of America and daughter of the late Eze Alexius Anumaku Njamanze, Princess Stella Njamanze-Neboh  had this to say “ I frequently visit the Imo State Government Blog and I appreciate the operator for keeping us informed of what is going on in our state, Imo. I love his services. I was a strong supporter of Governor Okorocha but have become a critic with his priorities in Imo State. I think the Governor is surrounded by bad advisers and they are killing his reputation both at home and abroad. He reminds me of President Trump. They are patriots but are misled by advisers. The Governor needs to pay and take care of our citizens especially our retired elders. If he took care of the needs of his people, no one will criticize him even when he makes an honest mistake.

He needs to get rid of his selfish, greedy and corrupt aides. If people don’t get paid, then they don’t work for free. The governor can do better and I wish him well”

              A cross section of students who responded to questions from our correspondent expressed surprise that the State Government has abandoned the only platform that contains information on all Governor Okorocha’s official engagements between 2011 and 2016. A student of History and International studies at the Imo State University, Owerri, Mr. Kelechi Ogwo .had this to say; “ I do not believe that the State Governor will support the idea to abandon the site because that blog is like a mirror through which the governor sees himself. It will be counter-productive if the blog is abandoned because it already has thousands of followers on Facebook. Secondly, news and photos of all the state government’s activities from Governor Okorocha’s 1^st year in office in 2011 till October last year are contained in the blog but are missing in the state government website.

               Another student, Miss Promise Chiemenam, said that it will be unfair to Governor Okorocha if his achievements in office are swept under the carpet by his aides. Said she; “The website of any state government is supposed to be a point of contact between the government and the people wherein the government displays all its achievements in office. But the present status of the Imo State Government website makes one to wonder if the state government has a functioning ICT unit. The website contains very little or no information on Governor Okorocha’s activities throughout the six years he has governed Imo State. I don’t understand their reason for abandoning the blog because all the vital information that are lacking in the website are contained in the blog”.