The Member representing Yala II State Constituency in the Cross River State House of Assembly, Hon. (Dr) Martins Achadu, has dismissed allegations that he received salaries simultaneously as a legislator and an employee of the University of Calabar (UNICAL).
In a Press Statement on Thursday, July 16, 2026, Dr Achadu described the claims as misleading and contrary to documented facts. This was a response to a petition reportedly submitted to the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) by a group known as the Global People’s Right and Values Observation Network.
Dr Achadu said he resigned his appointment with the University before contesting the 2023 State House of Assembly election. According to the lawmaker, he was employed by the University of Calabar on May 4, 2020 and resigned on March 25, 2022, after serving for about 20 months without receiving salaries for the period.
He explained that he unexpectedly began receiving salary payments from the University in December 2024 nearly three years after his resignation with the payments continuing until December 2025 due to what he described as an administrative error.
Achadu said that upon discovering the payments, he formally notified the University Management and requested that the salaries be stopped and asked the institution to provide an account into which he could refund the money. He further disclosed that the University acknowledged his voluntary disclosure and commended him for bringing the error to its attention.
“The University appreciates your patriotic disposition and voluntary disclosure of this matter,” he quoted from one of the institution’s correspondences. The legislator maintained that the salary payments have since been discontinued and that he has refunded all the monies paid into his account despite the University’s outstanding salary arrears owed to him for the 20 months he served before resigning.
He added that the University has also issued him a clearance confirming that his resignation took effect on March 25, 2022.
Achadu urged his constituents and members of the public to disregard the allegations contained in the petition which is as an attempt to tarnish his reputation. He said relevant correspondences between him and the University of Calabar have been made available to substantiate his claims.
See the documents below:
