Abia LP Asks FG, Security Agencies to End Intimidation of Opposition

Emmanuel Ugwu-Nwogo in Umuahia

The Labour Party, Abia State, has challenged the federal government and security agencies to urgently end alleged intimidation of the opposition parties by the state government.

The Coordinator of the Alex Otti Campaign Council, Hon. Iheanacho Obioma made the call at a news conference he addressed in Umuahia, the Abia State capital at the weekend.

At the conference, the coordinator lamented the continuation of unrestrained and unprovoked attacks on LP and its candidates.

Obioma therefore, challenged the federal government, Nigeria Police, Department of State Service and indeed all law enforcement agencies to call the Abia State Government to order before they set the state on fire.

In its latest acts of Intimidation and provocation, Obioma explained that the state government has sent its agents to arrest a chieftain of LP, Dr. Elder Nwaigburu for resisting the destruction of the party’s billboard at Isiala Ngwa South Local Government.

He said: “Nwaigburu was arrested on Thursday “after he and other party faithful prevented them from carrying out another act of destruction of our billboard.

“LP was crying out once again to enable all law abiding citizens lend their voices against these acts that are capable of causing avoidable unrest in the state.

He said that the opposition party’s state leadership had previously petitioned both the State Police Command and the Department of State Service when we realised that the PDP and Abia State government were not ready to give peace a chance.”

“While the DSS intervened and cautioned the General Manager of Abia State Signage and Advertising Agency, Mr. Anthony Otuonye, who was being used to perpetrate these acts of violence, the Police in the state also got involved,” he said.

After destroying our gigantic billboard located around Umuikaa junction at the Aba-Port Harcourt Expressway, Obioma said the government and its agents “have gone a step further and arrested an LP chieftain for trying to prevent more destruction of billboards.

“Abia state government has not been able to establish any single lawful reason for the destruction of our campaign billboards, except that our presence in the election contest in Abia has thrown the failed government into a panic mode, hence the resort to violence.

“The state government should without delay release a chieftain of our party they illegally arrested. The government will have no justifiable reasons to resort to violence if its false claims of excellent performance were true.

“The energies and resources being wasted against Labour Party and her candidates should be deployed in taking care of Abia workers and pensioners most of whom are owed up to 45 months pension and salary arrears,” he said.

Obioma warned that the LP and its candidates would not hesitate to prevail on the federal government to declare a state of emergency in Abia if this trend continues as the safety of lives and property of our people are of paramount importance to us.