The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Imo State, has cried out over what it described as violent attacks on its members.
In a press conference at its state secretariat in Owerri, Friday, state Publicity Secretary of the party, Collins Opurozor, said PDP members in Imo have become endangered species.
The party recounted attacks on its members in the recent past and alleged that there is a plot to whisk away the most prominent among them, in the build up to the general elections.
PDP wondered why no arrest has been made in connection to the attacks on its members and expressed loss of confidence that it will be allowed a neutral and fair atmosphere to engage in contest in the forthcoming election.
“In the last one week, the Chairman of our Party in Ogbaku Ward in Mbaitoli LGA has been shot by gunmen who laid ambush around his residence and opened fire at him upon his return in the evening. A Judge has been dragged out of the courtroom and slaughtered like a goat. Another court building has been razed. The member representing Orlu State Constituency in the House of Assembly, who also is the candidate of our party for that constituency, has had his house burnt down. All these happened just in the past one week.
“For the third time in less than two months, there was another armed attack on February 7, 2023, at the residence of our candidate for Ideato Federal Constituency, Barr. Ikenga Imo Ugochinyere.
“Recall that on December 23, 2022, the convoy of Ikenga Imo Ugochinyere was attacked in Ideato as he returned home from Abuja, and he narrowly escaped death. When this happened, we took appropriate steps to ensure that justice was done. We wrote the security agencies. But to our shock, no arrest has been effected till date. We are not even certain if the authorities ever opened an investigation into that matter.
“On January 14, 2023, Ikenga’s residence in Umukegwu-Akokwa witnessed a bloody attack that left three persons, including his uncle, dead, about thirty-two vehicles burnt to ashes and buildings levelled to the ground with explosive devices. In the aftermath of that, we wrote the security agencies again, took a protest to the Commissioner of Police in the state and called off all political activities to draw attention to the infamy and get the authorities to act. But till this day, we are not aware if that attack, in which innocent Imo citizens were murdered, was ever investigated. And no arrest has been made. Not even a single statement has been issued by any of the security agencies in the state about that attack.
“Yet again, on February 7, 2023, the terrorists who, according to eyewitnesses, rode in a convoy of vehicles that included an armoured personnel carrier, returned to the very same residence of Ikenga Imo Ugochinyere with even more audacity, all in the desperation to kill our candidate.
“It is unacceptable and reprehensible that till this moment, no security agency in Imo State has reacted to these attacks.
“About seven days ago, a lady conveying campaign materials of our candidate, Ikenga Imo Ugochinyere, was intercepted at the airport and arrested along with the airport taxi driver on accusation of being in possession of INEC materials. They are still in the dungeon of the Imo State Police Command.
“It is now clear that PDP members and candidates are generally endangered in Imo State, and the current security leadership in the state cannot provide a neural and fair atmosphere for a democratic electoral contest to take place. Already, our party has intercepted intelligence about a plot to whisk away most prominent leaders, members and candidates of the party ahead of the elections.
“In view of that, we demand the immediate redeployment of all heads of security agencies in Imo State.
“Further, the Federal Government should establish an independent panel of inquiry to unravel the Imo killings and unearth the real identities of those behind the so-called Unknown Gunmen in the State”, the party submitted.
