Imo State governor, Rochas Okorocha on Thursday, March 29, 2018, vowed that the Imo Catholic Archbishop of Owerri Diocese, Archbishop Anthony Obinna will fail in his alleged plot to install a governor on the platform of the All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA, in the state in 2019.
The governor noted that since the cleric could not succeed in his attempt to make APGA win the governorship election in 2015, he will still loose in 2019 and subsequent attempts.
He also dismissed the Archbishops allegations against his administration as unfounded and malicious.
Archbishop Obinna, an unrepentant critic of the All Progressives Congress, APC, and the Okorocha’s administration, had accused the governor of highhandedness and clampdown on political opponents.
The cleric had also at different occasions preached his preference for APGA as against the governor’s political party, All Progressives Congress.
But the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Mr. Sam Onwuemeodo in a reaction to the Archbishop’s latest attack against the Imo governor, stated that, “we have read the latest accusation by Archbishop Anthony Obinna of the Catholic Diocese of Owerri against Governor Rochas Okorocha, and we shall continue to show our respect for the Archbishop, but one fact remains sacrosanct, he cannot install a governor of APGA extraction in 2019 because he could not also do that in 2015 when he first tried it”.
The statement continued that, “the Archbishop had hidden under his Easter Message Press Conference to continue his onslaught on the governor, Owelle Okorocha and his Rescue Mission Government, making it the tenth time in less than two months the Church leader had descended on the governor and the administration.
“Of all the allegations the Archbishop made against the governor, the most unfortunate, was the one he said that, “Governor Okorocha is the only voice which everyone has to listen to and obey, otherwise, arrests and imprisonments would follow”. This is the height of blackmail.
And we humbly wish to challenge the Archbishop to mention just one person, the governor or government has arrested for any reason including criticizing him, or anybody the governor has imprisoned since he came on board as governor in 201”.
The statement added further that, “where the Archbishop fails to do this, we ask with every sense of politeness that he corrects that false claim and if he deems it worth-doing, apologize to the governor.
“Of all the governors that had governed the State both Military and Civilian, Okorocha stands out to be the most tolerant and accommodating. We stand to be challenged on this assertion.
“The overwhelming love of Imo people for the governor means more to us than the weak voice of the opposition in the State made up of few Politicians”.
According to the statement, “it has become obvious that the Archbishop has intensified his disdain or hatred for APC, President Muhammadu Buhari and Governor Okorocha this time because of the 2019 election. But he should know that most people have become fed up with his repeated unprovoked and unwarranted attacks on the governor and his government using every platform and every event available to him.
“We do not think that the Archbishop should be doing that for the benefit of a particular Political Party or certain Politicians. Our happiness is that majority of the members of his Diocese do not share the same views with him”.
-The Nation
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