Wike Was Aware Rivers Legacy Aircraft Was In Germany For Repairs – Ex-Commissioner

A former Commissioner for Transport in Rivers State has faulted the claims by Governor Nyesom Wike that he discovered an abandoned aircraft in Germany.

Wike had on Tuesday announced the discovery of a Legend 600 aircraft allegedly abandoned in Germany since 2012 without any documentation by his predecessor Rt. Hon. Rotimi Amaechi.

But Tolofari George, who was the commissioner of transport under the Amaechi administration, said the state’s asset were properly documented in the 2015 handover note to the current administration of Wike.

The former commissioner said the aircraft was flown to Germany for repairs and sales after the state acquired a new one since it could not maintain two.

He said the aircraft was still in Germany when they handed over to the Wike administration, which he said was also contained in the handover note by the state’s ministry of transport.

The former commissioner said the claims by the state governor was aimed at maligning Amaechi, who is now the minister of transport.

In his words: “When we got the new aircraft that the current government is using now, the older Legacy aircraft was sent to Germany for repairs and refurbishment and then to be sold to generate revenue for critical infrastructural projects in the state. To the previous administration, there was no economic sense to keep and maintain two state planes. The cost was just too prohibitive, so the plan was to sell off the older Legacy plane.

“The plane was still in Germany at the time we handed over to the incoming administration. Everything was in the handover notes of the ministry of transport.

“We can now all see that the issue is purely political and vindictive, hurling false allegations on the previous administration.

“That the Legacy aircraft was in RUAG, Germany was written in my handover notes that is in the custody of the Rivers state government”.