…Accuses Senator Anyanwu of intimidation, harassment

From George Onyejiuwa, Owerri

The crisis rocking the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party ( PDP) in the state has deepened as members of the State Working Committee ( SWC) have resigned the positions.

The members of the Party’s SWC who resigned their positions with immediate effect are : Sir Martins Ejiogu ,State Deputy Chairman,
Nze Ray Emeaña, State Secretary,
Comrade Greg G.O.C. Nwadike State Youth Leader, Collins Opurozor ,State Publicity Secretary,
Chief Mrs. Maria Mbakwe ,State Woman Leader, Barr. Josiah Eze,State Treasurer and Barr. Chibuisi Obido ,State Vice Chairman, Orlu Zone.

The erstwhile members of the state Working Committee had accused the National Secretary of the Party and Governorship candidate ,Sen Samuel Anyanwu ( Samdaddy ) of constant intimidation ,harassment and sponsoring attacks against them

They alleged that penultimate Saturday, that armed thugs sponsored by Senator Anyanwu had invaded the Party Secretariat and unleashed violence on members of the State Working Committee , who had also vandalized the state Secretariat smashed all the glasses, beat up security men to a pulp, broke into their offices, and looted everything they could find. ‘This latest attack’ the erstwhile members said was the most brazen and audacious attempt to eliminate them.

They also accused Senator Anyanwu of having sabotaged the electoral fortunes of the party in 2023 general polls by allegedly directing his loyalists to work against the party and its candidates at all levels .

Erstwhile SWC members also pointed out that Senator Anyanwu is not contesting the November 11,2023 Imo state governorship polls as members of the SWC does not know .

Addressing a world Press Conference on Sunday at the State Secretariat , the erstwhile State Publicity Secretary , Mr Collins Opurozor said , “In unequivocal terms, we announce to you that the PDP in Imo State has now been damaged beyond redemption by the National Secretary, Senator Samuel Nnaemeka Anyanwu (Samdadday), and the Party is at last moving irreversibly to its terminus.

A text of the Press conference which read in part stated : “It is necessary we remind you that in the last three years, this Working Committee has built a very strong, formidable and enviable PDP in Imo State. To enable the Party realize its promise of being a truly democratic entity, we envisioned the need to expand the internal democratic space by forming nearly five thousand chapters across all the polling units in the State. We took the Party to the people, and that made us the darling of Imo people. We accomplished this task despite our lean resources as an opposition. No other political party has attained this feat in Nigeria.

When the Rt. Hon. Emeka Ihedioha held sway as Leader of the Party, we saw a robust, vibrant, inclusive and functional political party system. Every success recorded by Imo PDP is owed to the ingenuity, resources and outstanding leadership of former Governor Ihedioha. Conversely, all the maladies that have lately befallen us are squarely the making of Samdadday. And the unjust imposition of Samdadday on us as governorship candidate by the Ayu-led National Working Committee is the second most cruel occurrence in history after Cain murdered Abel.

But, since Senator Anyanwu became the National Secretary of the Party, he has never relented in deploying the powers of his office to fight members of this Working Committee and intimidate even ordinary members of the Party. Endless strife, mindless wars and erosion of all democratic values and principles have now defined and defiled Imo PDP.

How do we explain to generations yet unborn that it was under our watch that one man became the National Secretary and governorship candidate, and also single-handedly chose a deputy governorship candidate for himself? Collegiality, stakeholding and consultations have all taken flight from Imo PDP.

Last Saturday, armed thugs sponsored by Senator Anyanwu invaded the Party Secretariat and unleashed violence on us. They vandalized our building, smashed all the glasses, beat our security men to a pulp, broke into our offices, and looted everything they could find. This latest attack was the most brazen and audacious attempt to eliminate us. It is curious that the so-called function which Senator Anyanwu claims to have brought him and his thugs to the Party Secretariat was totally unknown to us as SWC members.

Continuing , “Gentlemen of the Press, it is heartbreaking to inform you that some of us in the State Working Committee have severally escaped assassination attempts because of the wicked lies which our National Secretary sold to his violent supporters, that we misappropriated Party funds.

Yet, it was he, Senator Anyanwu, that sent his aides from Abuja to steal the materials for last year’s congresses of the Party, thereby creating a stalemate that gulped all our resources through multiple and controversial exercises and the appeasement of multiple stakeholders so as to save the Party from not fielding candidates for the 2023 elections.

This is the reason that, in the aftermath of Senator Anyanwu’s emergence as governorship candidate, hundreds of senior members of the Party have dumped the PDP. Four serving Federal lawmakers also dumped the Party along with thousands of their supporters in a single day. Those who stayed back have completely lost morale, only looking up to us for direction. And the moment has come.

To be very clear, Senator Anyanwu is not running for governorship in November. If he claims to be running, it is not to our knowledge as members of the State Working Committee. The Party does not know what his program looks like. That is if he has any. Governorship campaigns have started, yet the Party does not also know if there is anything like a campaign council. ”

Adding , “In view of the forgoing and many other shocking discoveries which will soon be made public, we, the undersigned members of the Imo State Working Committee of the PDP, have resolved to resign our various positions in the Party and dump the Party en masse.

We have today opened the floodgate of resignations and defections, and in the next couple of weeks, there will be only Senator Anyanwu left in the Party.” He stated .