According to reports, the Imo State government is making frantic efforts and very deliberate media schemes to evade suspicion over the mindless carnage that took place at the residence of Ugochinyere Ikeagwuonu yesterday. This is expected, but sensible Imolites and Nigerians will not take whatever spins they churn out with a pinch of salt, for the following reasons;
1. Governor Uzodimma is the Chief Security Officer of the State and has a responsibility to protect every resident of Imo State. So, when there is a security breach in any part of the State, he is held responsible.
2. Ikenga Ugochinyere had since November 2022 raised an alarm over threats from Governor Uzodimma and even provided evidence of a phone exchange between him and the governor’s closest aide, Chinasa Nwaneri, where he accused the latter of threatening to kill him. The governor did not take any action to punish his aide for harassing an innocent Imo citizen but had seemingly given him a pat on the back by allowing him unfettered access to paraphernalia of State power.
3. Ikenga’s convoy was attacked by hooded gunmen who used an Armoured Personnel Carrier to block his convoy, ransacked the vehicle and allegedly harassed some of his guests who were been conveyed to Owerri after they attended his event. The governor has not explained whom these gunmen are and what Constitutional powers allows a civilian like Chinasa Nwaneri to commandeer a troop of armed men to attempt to abduct a citizen of the State.
4. Ikenga’s predicament started the very day he exposed alleged infractions by the governor and his aides in the voters register, where he accused the governor of importing thousands of fake names into the voters register in his Omuma ward, with an aim to manipulate the 2023 elections. INEC has since confirmed that there were inconsistencies in the voter registration in Omuma.
5. Governor Uzodimma is the only person, at least in that last three months who has shown extrajudicial desperation to harm Ikenga and he has also failed to take any convincing action to bring those accused of being behind nefarious attempts to harm the young man.
6. Governor Uzodimma has not paid the Five Million Naira which Ikenga claimed a court in Abuja awarded in his favour, but the governor had rather, during the pendency of that order attempted to abduct the young man with a team of armed men led by his close aide, Chinasa Nwaneri.
7. As the governor of the State and Chief Security Officer, Governor Uzodimma failed to deploy enough manpower to ensure that the hoodlums or agents who perpetrated that heinous terrorist act in Akokwa were apprehended. If the governor had acted immediately the alarm was raised over attacks on Ikenga’s house, there was no way those gunmen would have escaped.
8. More than twelve hours after the incident the governor is yet to either issue a statement condemning the incident nor visited the scene of the carnage, where at least four Imo sons were killed, many people injured and over One billion Naira worth of properties destroyed. This can be interpreted to mean that the governor is happy with the act and could be celebrating the tragedy that befell his political rival.
9. Ikenga is not the only politician in Ideato or in Akokwa. He is not even the only candidate running for election in these areas, there is no logic that can convince any reasonable person that the murderous agents parading as secessionists and Nnamdi Kanu’s sympathizers could have been behind the violent attack and only targeted Ugochinyere who has been the most outspoken sympathizer of Nnamdi Kanu over the last one year and more.
10. That Chinasa Nwaneri still walks free and enjoys so much influence within the 3R administration even with many horrendous accusations against him of using gunmen, whom we cannot say whether they are security agents or not, to harass innocent citizens and perceived political opponents, clears every doubt that the said Chinasa Nwaneri is doing the bidding of his boss, and enjoys immunity because of his affinity to the governor.
While I cannot categorically say that Governor Uzodimma ordered or was aware of the gunmen who carried out this disheartening atrocity on Ideato’s illustrious son, I will not stop insisting that the governor owes Ndi Akokwa, ndi Ideato, Imolites and indeed, Nigerians, explanations on how and why this happened.
MAY IMO WIN!
