A former chairman of Isa Local Government in Sokoto State, Alhaji Umar Wali, on Monday said he would sue 32 Imams in the area, who accused him of diverting N114 million council fund.

Wali was reacting to a petition signed by 32 Imams of Jumaat mosques and their deputies, who said he diverted the money meant for their allowance while serving as chairman between 2011 and 2014.

He dismissed the claim as ‘baseless, unfounded and evil,’ and vowed to seek redress in court in order to protect his name and integrity.

The former chairman told newsmen in Sokoto that he had already notified his lawyers to file a suit against the Imams.

“It is a blatant lie aimed at tarnishing my image and integrity, now that I am the leading contender for the chairmanship of the local government under the All Progressives Congress (APC).

“The financial records of my administration are clear and available for any scrutiny by all doubting Thomases.

“I am only aware of the N370, 000 I was approving monthly for all the Imams, their deputies and muezzins, and I had never defaulted in paying them throughout my four-year tenure.”

The former chairman urged the petitioners as ‘men of God,’ to uphold their integrity and stop allowing themselves to be used by selfish individuals.

“I intend to clear my name by suing the petitioners. I am already discussing with my lawyers in this direction, as the constitution empowers me with a lot of legal alternatives.”

The 32 Imams and their surbodinates, had on November 6, forwarded a petition against Wali to the Sokoto Zonal Office of the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission and the Sultanate Council.

The petition, signed by Kabiru Tsamiya, alleged that the former chairman diverted the N114 million between 2011 and 2014.

They alleged that the money was approved for them by the state government as allowance, but was never paid.

The petitioners claimed that a monthly allowance of N20,000 was approved for each Imam, N15,000 each for their deputies and N10,000 for muezzins.(NAN)

•Photo shows Gov. Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto State.