Imo State governor, Rochas Okorocha, has advised the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Adams Oshiomole; governorship candidate of the APC in the state, Senator Hope Uzodinma as well as their media aides to stop misquoting President Muhammadu Buhari’s position on who the electorate should vote for in the governorship election.
The president had at a rally in Owerri thrown open his support for any candidate that would ensure true cohesion in the country, while urging the people of the state to vote for any candidate of their choice.
The rally which held last week Tuesday at Dan Anyiam Stadium, Owerri, was attended by the supporters of the Action Alliance governorship candidate, Uche Nwosu, and the supporters of the APC governorship candidate, Uzodinma.
However, Governor Okorocha has claimed that Oshiomhole and Uzodinma have been having sleepless nights over the president’s comment. He said that was the reason for their “relentless efforts to inject virus into the president’s innocent speech at the Owerri rally.”
Governor Okorocha who stated this in a press statement he issued through his Chief Press Secretary, Sam Onwuemeodo, said: “At the rally, the president told APC members in the state to vote for the governorship candidate of their choice. This statement from the people’s president himself was well reported by both the electronic, print and social media. There was nothing ambiguous about what the president said.
“Again, it was when the president had ended his speech and was about to return to his seat that Mr Oshiomhole reminded him that he was expected to handover the party’s flag to his preferred governorship candidate, Chief Uzodinma and the president turned and said ‘ok, take the flag.’ This, ‘ok, take the flag’ speaks volumes.
“Since then, the handlers of Oshiomhole and Uzodinma have been planting and sponsoring stories to see how they could reduce the devastating effects of the president’s speech on the side of Uzodinma and his ambition. They have not succeeded and won’t succeed.
“In case some people have forgotten, President Buhari is not the first president who has told Imo people especially members of his own political party not to vote for the governorship candidate of his party for certain obvious reasons.
“Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, when he was president, also did the same thing in Imo in 2007.
“Obasanjo was equally on campaign rally for the late Yar’dua. And he told PDP members in the state not to vote for the party’s governorship candidate. And they obeyed that directive at the appropriate time. The reason for which Obasanjo told Imo PDP members not to vote for the party’s governorship candidate would be a child’s play if compared with the reasons President Buhari told APC members in Imo to vote for the governorship candidate of their choice no matter the political party the person belongs.
“You hardly can see anybody in this country who has not read or seen or heard about the disturbing or worrisome cases the APC governorship candidate in Imo is involved in, with one being the same case for which the Chief Justice of the Federation has been suspended and being put on trial. He is also among those banned from travelling outside the country.
Chief Uzodinma should face his numerous trials including those on non-declaration of assets, issuance of dud cheque, failed contract, etal. We cannot reward him or encourage him to skip these trials with the governorship of the state. God would forbid that. Imo people cannot do that.
“The President had hit the nail on the head in Owerri. And the efforts by Oshiomhole and Uzodinma’s media couriers towards reducing the weight of what the president said, have become, to say the least, efforts in futility because Nigerians are not daft but intelligent people,” Governor Okorocha’s statement concludes.