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- They’re not police but govt sponsored thugs – LP
- Uzodimma’s administration not run by thugs – govt
From Stanley Uzoaru, Owerri
The Imo State chapter of the Labour Party (LP) was yesterday thrown into confusion over the alleged sealing of the party office in Owerri.
A statement by the National Secretary of the party, Umar Farouk had earlier stated that police sealed the party secretariat located along Wetheral road.
According to the party scribe, the office he said was sealed in connivance with the state government.
The statement read:
“The national leadership of the Labour Party is shocked over the Invasion and Occupation of its Secretariat in Owerri, today, Monday, April 3, 2023, by the agents of Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodinma, including thugs and unauthorised policemen drafted from the government house.
“Such illegal occupation was akin to a similar invasion on the same Secretariat on Wednesday, March 15, 2023.
“Unlike the March invasion, where no reason was given by the state government on why it took such unlawful action against our political party, this time, they said that the action was due to a Court Order.
”But as at the moment, no such Order to our knowledge was given. No Order has been presented to us by the court or their agents. The policemen presently occupying our Secretariat have not even shown us the Order. At the moment, all our officials and staff have been barred from accessing the Secretariat.
“We have contacted the office of the Inspector General of Police (IGP) on the ongoing development in the state, and it has been confirmed that the Force is not aware of any security breach whatsoever in the state to warrant the occupation of our Secretariat.
“The Police have also informed us that it has not detailed any of their officers and men to the Labour Party Secretariat in Imo state; and that the officers may have been drafted from the state House in the state.
“The Labour Party however is not unmindful of the efforts of the Imo State governor, Hope Uzodinma, to hijack the leadership of the Party in Imo State.
“These actions have confirmed the information available to us of plots by the governor to plant some surrogates wearing the garments of aspirants in the party. This game plan, as archaic as it seems, has been detected and punctured, the consequences being the aggression unleashed on the party by the state government.
“The leadership of the Labour is determined to bring the needed changes the people of Imo state have yearned for since the inception of this present dispensation.
“The state has been deprived of good and quality leadership. The resources of the state have been balkanised and liquidated by the administrations in the past. This is in spite of the fact that the state is not lacking in personalities with decent backgrounds and pedigree in services to the state.
“Labour Party is therefore assuring the state that it will field as its governorship candidate, a person with proven integrity in both personal and public life; and with OBidient blood running in his/her veins. No amount of intimidation by Governor Hope Uzodinma and his army of thugs will deter the party from fielding and winning the governorship election.
“We, therefore, call on all the members of the Labour Party and OBidient family in Imo State to be peaceful even in the face of the present provocation as the party will do everything within the books to retrieve our Secretariat from the state security officers and sponsored thugs that are presently occupying our Secretariat.”
However, reacting to the allegation, the state chairman of LP, Festus Onyekwulisi debunked the sealing of the office but maintained rather that thugs sponsored by the state government invaded their premises to disrupt their activities, but he also noted that it was immediately sorted out.
“They were thugs from the state government, they came to our office to disrupt our activities but everything is okay, police did not seal our office”. Onyekwulisi said.
Reacting, the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Oguwike Nwachuku, said that the allegation was unfounded.
The governor’s spokesperson said ” the Labour Party’s allegation is unfounded. They should stop pointing fingers at the wrong place.”
Also reacting, Special Adviser to the governor on Public Communication, Collins Ughala said the party was only making unnecessary accusations. According to him “how can they say the state government sponsored thugs to invade their office, this an administration run by due process, it is not a lawless government, Uzodinma’s administration is not run by thugs if they have an intraparty problem they should sort it out among themselves.”
The state police spokesperson, Henry Okoye, said such never happened in the state.
