Port Harcourt's First Son, Duncan Mighty, is not a happy man at the moment as he is running from pillar to post to persuade the governor of Rivers State, Rotimi Amaechi to pay up a debt he is owing the musician, a whopping N50 million, all to no avail.
The hip hop singer is not happy that the governor whom he placed on a very high pedestal of respect and integrity should stoop so low as to owe him that amount and make him look like a traitor and saboteur to some of his colleagues in the entertainment industry, who thinks he has collected and pocketed the money.
In a sorrowful mail made available to Pulse.ng, Duncan Mightylamented how he single handedly organized a youth endorsement event for the governor inn 2011 where he took some top entertainers to Port Harcourt like Wande Coal and the Mo-Hits crew, Flavour, Banky W, MI, Ice Prince, Timaya, I Go Die, I Go Save, Terry G, Dj Jimmy Jatt, Jessy Jags, and a host of others.
Duncan Mighty went further to say that the cost for hosting the event was agreed at N50 million naira but that at the end of the program, and till date, the governor has not deemed it fit to pay up his debt.
Here is an extract from what he wrote in the mail:
It is on record that on the 30th of March, 2011, I, Mr. Okechukwu Duncan Mighty, single handedly organized a Celebrity Youth Endorsement Concert in Port Harcourt, where I successfully endorsed over 18,000 youths who are eligible voters for the Governor, Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi
During the organization of the event under the express approval of the Governor of Rivers State and his cabinet, he gave me the sum of Ten Million Naira through the then secretary to the state govt., Senator Magnus Abe, which totally went into the project.
The Governor also gave me his word that the balance of Fifty Million Naira will be paid to me as soon as possible.
In pursuit of the said project, I thereafter raised funds through different sources, including personal savings, loans and credit facilities, acquired operational vehicles and branded them for the project, procured several souvenirs, printed many publicity materials, paid for venues, engaged musicians from different parts of the country, undertook logistics such as flight/accommodation/transportation and welfare.
The project was concluded as scheduled and the results were achieved, but since then, it has become almost impossible to have an audience with the governor so as to get my balance.
I also visited the Government House on several occasions, and all efforts to get my money proved abortive.
However, the last straw that broke the camel's back was when the governor systematically started avoiding my calls and personal visits in a bid to deprive me of the balance of the money for a job which I successfully executed.
It is also on record that I have not charged the Rivers State Government a single dime of my professional appearance fee, due to my personal reason/resolve to give back to the society which made me, starting from the government of Rivers State as a mark of honor and respect.
The rumor mills have it that the Governor of Rivers State has given me juicy contracts including all manner of flashy cars, but I stand here today to debunk such tales, because I have not received as much as a bicycle spoke from Governor Amaechi.
My love for the Ikwerre ethnic nationality, the Niger Delta project and the Nigerian dream has seen me working for virtually everything I own today because there is dignity in labour, hence I can never resort to cheap blackmail or character assassination of any person, group or association; therefore, I stand to make this declaration that all I am asking for is the payment of my money, thus, this should not be seen as apolitical campaign of any sort.
Permit me to bring to your notice, the fact that many of his personal aids and security details have come to me severally, soliciting for financial assistance which I have usually offered them without any hesitation, not knowing that they all have the notion that their boss, Governor Amaechi has been favoring me through contracts, meanwhile this is not also true.
I have tried frantically on several occasions to meet with the Governor one on one so as to resolve this issue but all to no avail.
Most recently, I was invited to a dinner between the Actors Guild of Nigeria, (AGN), and the Governor of Rivers State. Immediately after my performance at the said event inside Government House, I ran after the Governor to demand for my money in my usual way, but to my utmost bewilderment, the Governor unequivocally told me point blank that I should remember that when we did that transaction, he was still working with his former chief of staff, Hon. Nyesom Wike, who is now the Minister of State for Education. This is exactly what prompted me to take this decision of writing this article in order to recover the money which I worked to earn.
This issue also led to the problem that transpired on Friday, the 23rd of May, 2014, when I got to the Government House gate at 8 am, one of the security details named Mr. Jude, rudely ordered me to park my car outside the gate, a situation which led to a scuffle and heated argument between me and the said security officer, as a result of this, I subsequently held a meeting with my staff on the way forward concerning this same issue after which we agreed that we should channel the ongoing matter through the Office of the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Mr David Iyofor.
This we did and the CPS, after hearing the story, promised to help contact the governor who happens to be his boss, but to my chagrin, the Chief Press Secretary rather stopped taking my calls up till this moment.
Prior to this time, I have not played any event for the commissioners and other cabinet members due to the fact that they thought they couldn't afford to pay my appearance fee because I was the governor's favorite, hence will be unaffordable to them; a predicament that I have also managed to live with, while my friends, family members, staff and fans, have all concluded that I have betrayed them by going behind to collect huge sums of money for events at the Government House without giving them their own.
Can someone tell Gov. Amechi to pay up his debt?
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