Embattled chairmen of some local government areas in Benue State expected to appear before the house of assembly ad hoc committee investigating financial misappropriations in all the 23 local councils of the state failed to show up.
The 23 council chairmen were earlier suspended by the state government to pave the way for their probe by the house.
The assembly had drawn a timetable to quiz at least three of the chairmen on a daily basis.
But the suspended chairmen of Guma LGA, Michael Uba; his counterpart from Katsina Ala, Alfred Atera, and Gboko’s Isaac Mtom on Tuesday failed to appear before the committee.
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Our correspondent reports that only treasurers of the respective councils showed up to be grilled after the Peter Ipusu-led three-man panel waited for several hours for the three council chairmen, who did not turn up as scheduled.
Ipusu’s led committee nevertheless received financial documents from treasurers of the councils as they took their turns to explain incomes and expenditures between June, 2022 and June 2023.
The treasurer of Guma LGA, Charles Iordye, thereafter told journalists that he tendered all the bank statements and financial records as requested by the committee.
Meanwhile, the chairman of the panel said his committee has commenced its investigation in earnest with an opportunity for the suspended chairmen to clear any doubts about their councils’ financial irregularities within the period under review.
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