Non-Payment of Constituency Allowance Tears Isu Chairman, Councillors Apart
Photo : Hon. Kenneth Ukah, the Executive Chairman, Isu LGA
By Everest Ezihe, Isu
The months-long frosty relationship between the Executive Chairman of Isu Local Government Area of Imo State, Hon. Kenneth Ukah, and members of the council’s legislative arm may be heading for a showdown over alleged non-payment of their constituency allowance.
The councillors are reportedly demanding payment of what they described as their monthly constituency allowance, which, according to a source close to the legislators, has allegedly remained unpaid since their inauguration on October 14, 2024.
The impeccable source, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of victimisation, said the councillors had resolved to confront the issue with the council chairman within this week, following what the source described as repeated reminders to the administration.
According to the source, each councillor is entitled to a monthly constituency allowance of ₦50,000, which would amount to ₦1.2 million per councillor over the 24-month period cited.
The source expressed concern that the councillors’ tenure was gradually approaching its end, raising fears that the alleged outstanding allowances might remain unpaid if urgent steps were not taken.
The source said: “It is no longer hearsay. The councillors of Isu LGA are feeling short-changed, alleging that the Executive Chairman, Hon. Chief Kenneth Ukah, has been taking his entitled monthly security votes of one million naira (#1,000,000) but has bluntly refused to pay the councillors their statutory ₦50,000 monthly constituency allowance since the inception of the legislative year.
“Unfortunately, the Leader of the Council equally gets his monthly security votes of five hundred thousand naira (#500,000) while the constituency allowances of his colleagues remains unpaid.
“It is worrisome because this unsettled allowance has been debated several times by the legislative council, yet the Chairman has allegedly not complied with their demands for payment.”
The source further appealed to the Imo State Government and other stakeholders in Isu LGA to intervene and advise the council chairman to address the issue, warning that failure to do so within the next one week could lead to confrontation between the council’s executive and legislative arms.
As of the time of filing this report, there was no statement from the council chairman or the Isu Local Government Council confirming or denying the allegations, but obviously many of the Councillors are aggrieved over the outstanding allowances.
