From Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja

A staffer of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Emmanuel Okoronkwo, who is attached to Senator Samuel Anyanwu, on Monday, assaulted The Sun Correspondent, covering the activities of the opposition party, Mr. Ndubuisi Orji.

Anyanwu has been embattled since the Court of Appeal, Enugu Division, affirmed his replacement with Sunday Ude-Okoye as national secretary.

The Court of Appeal had on December 20, upheld the judgment of an Enugu  High Court that affirmed Udo-Okoye as Anyanwu’s replacement.

The PDP National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, told Daily Sun that the opposition party would comply with the judgment.

On December 30, Ude-Okoye was at the PDP secretariat to assume office as national secretary in accordance with the judgment of the appellate court.

“The main reason why I am here is to resume office. I am resuming today, the 30th of December in obedience to the Appeal Court in Enugu that sacked the former National secretary and made me the national secretary of PDP.”

However, Anyanwu told Daily Sun, in a telephone interview, that he has appealed the judgment, noting that nobody can send any document to the Independent National Electoral Commission ( INEC), as national secretary, except him.

“I have appealed. Nothing is happening. I have filed a stay. All those things are just social media propaganda. Besides, I have a judgment that nobody in PDP can send anything to  INEC except me.”

Daily Sun gathered that in the aftermath of Udo-Okoye’s visit to the PDP secretariat penultimate Monday, Anyanwu instructed security personnel at the Wadata Plaza not to allow journalists access into the national secretariat until further notice.

Orji, who was at the secretariat to assess the situation, had sought to enter the Wadata Plaza, yesterday afternoon when he was turned back by the security personnel at the gate, who said they had directives not to allow journalists into the secretariat.

They, therefore, requested The Sun Correspondent to call Senator Anyanwu or the Chief Security Officer (CSO), noting that it is only the duo that can authorise his access into the party secretariat. Mr. Orji was walking towards his car when Okoronkwo approached him and started assaulting him. He dealt him several slaps and damaged his mobile phone in the process. However, the security personnel at the gate intervened and restrained Anyanwu’s aide.

As Okoronkwo was being led away, he was threatening to “deal” with The Sun correspondent and any other journalist he finds close to the PDP secretariat. The incident has, however, been reported at the Wuse Division of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) in Abuja.

Efforts to reach Anyanwu over the incident were unsuccessful as he did not take calls to his mobile phone by 12.14 pm and 6.07 pm yesterday.

Meanwhile, the PDP Press Corps, in a statement by its chairman, Samuel Ogidan, yesterday, condemned the assault and charged the police to bring Okoronkwo to justice.

The Press Corps said it believed that the attack was sanctioned by Anyanwu as he had  confirmed to its leadership that he instructed security personnel at the Wadata Plaza, not to allow journalists access into the national secretariat.

“In a fit of rage, Anyanwu’s aide threatened to “deal with” Mr. Orji boasting that nothing would happen because he was acting on the instructions of his principal who gave specific instructions that journalists should be barred from entering the building by any means possible including the use of physical force.

“This suggests that the assault may have been sanctioned by the former National Secretary, raising serious concerns about the party’s position on press freedom. We are to say the least alarmed when we reached out to Senator Anyanwu who confirmed that he gave instructions restricting movement into the Secretariat because the party is on break.

“This, to say the least, confirms our fears of the clear and present danger to our democratically guaranteed rights to keep Nigerians well informed about happenings around them. The right to information and the freedom to report are fundamental to ensuring transparency, accountability, and good governance in any democracy.

“This is even more so that the party has been embroiled in a leadership tussle with a court order confirming Anyanwu’s removal from office. The PDP Press Corps is deeply alarmed by the use of physical force against any human being, not just a journalist.

“The media plays a crucial role in holding leaders accountable and fostering public debate.  Any action that hinders these rights, particularly by individuals within a political party, poses a dangerous threat to democratic processes. While political differences are natural in any human organization, journalists should not become victims of abuse of power by office holders.

“As a first step, the assault on our member has been reported to the Wuse Division of the Nigeria Police Force. We also demand that the person or persons involved in this clear violation of Mr. Orji’s rights be brought to book to show evidence that violence has no place in the Nigeria we are striving to build.

“The PDP Press Corps calls on the party leadership to address this serious incident and take drastic action against Okoronkwo to serve as a deterrent to others. “