The Cross River State Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure, Mr Pius Edet, has refuted reports credited to him alleging that the immediate-past governor, Prof Ben Ayade, left empty treasury and dilapidated infrastructure.

Edet, who spoke with journalists on Friday concerning activities of his ministry and the ongoing road rehabilitation and constructions in Calabar, said, “There was no time in the course of my press briefing that I made reference to former Governor Ben Ayade or his administration.

“I had made it clear to reporters that His Excellency, Governor Bassey Otu was committed to giving the state capital a face-lift, despite paucity of funds, because Calabar remains the face of Cross River as well as Nigeria’s tourism hub.”

The Works Commissioner said he could not have spoken about the financial situation of the state “when I am neither the Commissioner of Finance, the Commissioner for Information nor the Special Adviser on Media and Publicity.

“I must state very clearly that I have a lot of respect for the former governor, Prof Ben Ayade, who made me a commissioner during the final year of his administration.

“I still owe him a debt of gratitude, even as he remains one of my benefactors.”

Edet continued, “The report was totally untrue and a deliberate act of mischief. For iteration and for emphasis, I did not say what was wrongly imputed to me in the news report about the former governor and his administration.

“If anything, I was also part of that administration.

“It is imperative, therefore, to clarify and state that at no point did I mention the former governor’s name or refer to the state’s treasury.

“My remarks during the interview were strictly on matters pertaining to my ministry, where I revealed the dire financial challenges the ministry was facing , owing to the general economic crunch in the country.

“As Commissioner for Works, I am not competent to speak on the financial status of the state or its treasury.”

Edet maintained that “the attempt to tar the past administration of Governor Ben Ayade, under which I served as Commissioner for Technology, is ostensibly aimed at sowing a seed of discord between the former governor and his successor, Senator Bassey Otu.

“It is outright mischief and we condemn such actions in the strongest possible terms.”

While urging that the report be disregarded, Edet said he remains committed to assisting Governor Bassey Otu provide quality infrastructural development to the people of the state.