The Akwa Ibom State Governor, Mr Udom Emmanuel has sacked his Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Mr Udo Ekpenyong.

The removal of the Commissioner was announced in a statement issued on Friday in Uyo by the Information and Strategy Commissioner, Mr Charles Udoh.

Udoh, who described the sack of his colleague as minor change in the State Executive Council, said that the removal was with immediate effect.

The Information Commissioner noted that the Governor had expressed appreciation to Ekpenyong for the services he rendered to the state and wished him well in his future endeavour.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Ekpenyong was sworn in as commissioner on December 1, 2016.

Although no official reason was given for Ekpenyong’s sack, but NAN gathered that it might not be unnconnected with an alleged financial impropriety.

It was alleged that the commissioner usually deducted some money from the monthly allocations due to the 31 local government areas in the state.

He was also alleged to have flouted the Governor’s instruction that no current transition chairman should be allowed to contest local government council election held last December 2.

NAN further reports that more than one-third of the elected council chairmen in the state are immediate past transition chairmen. (NAN)