Press Release
The attention of Abia PDP has been drawn to a video in circulation on social media wherein a man wearing the campaign T-shirt of our guber candidate, Sir Okey Ahiwe appeared to be calling some individuals to resort to violence during the forthcoming governorship election.
The Abia PDP condemns the inciting video in its totality and hereby distances herself from such unruly behaviour. We state in very clear terms that individuals involved were acting on their own accord and not on the authority of the Party or our guber candidate, Sir Okey Ahiwe.
The peaceful character of PDP under the leadership of our Abia State governor, His Excellency Dr. Okezie Victor Ikpeazu and the State Chairman of the Party, Rt. Hon. Dr. Alwell Asiforo Okere is known to all and they will not for any reason resort to such acts of desperation just to win an election.
Similarly, our guber candidate, Sir Okey Ahiwe, a Knight of the Church, is a man of peace who will not for any reason torpedo the peace that has existed in this State after having signed a Peace Accord just last week.
It is the peaceful disposition of the leadership in the State that has seen Abia State as one of the five most peaceful States in Nigeria and the most peaceful in the South East even when insecurity has enveloped sister-states and turned them into theatres of war in peacetime.
We are proud that the peace in Abia State has been sustained overtime to the point that the United States Information Service, USIS, has never included Abia State against its Travel Advisory to its citizens. It is therefore unimaginable that the Party will resort to violence to achieve victory in an election it knows clearly that it will win in a free and fair conduct.
Unfortunately, it is the drowning opposition, especially the Labour Party and her candidates who know that failure stares them in the face, that are in the habit of inciting the masses to take to violence because it is clear to it that the Obidient wave that granted it a flash-in-the-pan victory in the Presidential and National Assembly election has eminently disappeared and the electorate clearly understand that Peter Obi is not contesting a governorship election.
Last week, we raised an alarm and warned about criminal plots by the Labour Party and the APC to import thugs in military uniforms to rig the elections in Abia State and subsequently called on our diligent security agencies to raise the alert levels which they did and further revelations of the dastardly acts of the opposition are coming to the fore.
Beyond voicing very inciting words to instigate the electorate, the Labour Party guber candidate has employed proxies who are raising tension in the State by publishing materials that are capable of disturbing the peace in the State. In the last 24 hours, one of his proxies who goes by the name, “Great Imo Jonathan” wrote and published the following lines which were shared by other operatives including those working directly with Alex Otti:
“Again I warn you; organise your own security and don’t depend on any Government security. Tell our youths within polling units to prepare themselves and fortify themselves with anything they can use to defend themselves and the people in their communities and also ensure that no idiot who comes with violence or to disrupt elections in their immediate vicinity goes home alive.
“Stop preaching peace, INEC does not believe in the rule of law and police have been deliberately configured not to defend Nigerian citizens. If you have to get external help to secure your people please do it without hesitation and know peace. Because you are dealing with vultures who don’t understand decency.
“Don’t go into this election thinking the government cares about anybody. To liberate your people you must prepare for a kind of war. Don’t just prepare for any eventualities, trail those criminals that have messed your state up, follow every of their moves and ensure that their activities and those of their stupid cronies who are not bothered about the welfare, progress and development of their own state and people are closely monitored.
“Don’t be afraid of them. If you were before, get off your fear and face them frontally because either way they have killed the people already, they too can taste death.
“Man dies but once and if it is for the good of society oh hallelujah. But if anyone has to go this time it has to be those who have made the lives of our people hell. It is a righteous thing to do if we must take their dirty knees off our people’s neck. So they have to be monitored, followed, watched and dealt with if they attempt to harm our people.”
These words are nothing but an outright declaration of war against the government and the good people of Abia State.
It is surprising that Mr. Alex Otti who a few weeks ago said that he did not pursue his 2019 loss to the PDP because he did not want to spill the blood of innocent citizens would suddenly call the same people he wants to govern to arms either directly through his very toxic interviews on national television or through proxies acting on his behalf.
Beyond displaying an inconsistent character, it is also an open show of desperation and highly condemnable for the Labour Party and its candidate to resort to this level of subterfuge just to grab power.
Relying on this pattern of recklessness, it will not be out of place to think that the man in the video in circulation could actually be working for the Labour Party as a decoy to paint a peaceful PDP bad in the eyes of the public and reduce its electoral chances.
The PDP and the government it serves will not allow political desperadoes who are ready to spill the blood of citizens to get to office and we call on those involved in such dastardly acts to desist from stoking tension in the State because it will certainly consume them.
We make it clear to the opposition Parties that our guber candidate, Sir Okey Ahiwe will not be distracted in his mission to give the good people of Abia the best they deserve. Those who are planning such should better perish the thought because it will not work.
Again, while we condemn the said video, we are happy to inform the good citizens of Abia that the security agencies are in full swing to identify those behind the unruly act, their sponsors and bring them to justice.
Ahead of the March 18, 2023 governorship election, we call on the good people of Abia State to remain resolute, steadfast and determined in our resolve to build an Abia of our collective dream by voting for the guber candidate of the PDP and other PDP candidates.
We call on Abians to maintain the peace that has become the enviable trademark of Abia State in the comity of States.
*PDP – Power to the People!*
Signed
*Hon. Elder Abraham Amah*
*Abia PDP Vice Chairman/Acting State Publicity Secretary*
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