by Jude Atupulazi, Awka
Following the wanton killing of three innocent citizens of the commercial city of Onitsha last week by the group known as Mpiawa Azu, the national chairman of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Chief Sir Victor Umeh, has called on the inspector-general of police, Mohammed Abubakar, to immediately arrest the special adviser to the Anambra State governor on parks and markets, Sylvester Nwobu-Alor, and one Mr. Iko who is the leader of the notorious group.
Umeh while addressing newsmen in Agulu at a public function, frowned at the wanton manner the group had been operating, noting that several appeals he had made to the state governor, Peter Obi, for the proscription of the group had fallen on deaf ears. According to Umeh, the activities of the group had been causing incalculable harm to the people of the state and he used the opportunity to distance his party, APGA, from the menacing group.
He accused Nwobu-Alor of using the group to terrorize innocent citizens in the name of task force and equally accused the governor of shielding Nwobu-Alor. ‘The I-G of police should immediately arrest Nwobu-Alor and Iko for their nefarious activities. We can no longer fold our hands and watch them terrorize the public,’ Umeh stated.
On the purported call for his removal as APGA national chairman as a result of incompetence, Umeh laughed it off and described Nwobu-Alor as suffering from senility. He wondered what an 88-year old man was still doing in Obi’s cabinet and called for his replacement with a young, capable person.
Umeh also wondered where Nwobu-Alor was when he, Umeh, returned Obi for the second time as governor and where he was when he was fighting to save APGA from the grips of its enemies led by Chekwas Okorie. ‘Was I incompetent then? Why is it that after I have secured the party for them and returned Obi for second term they now say I’m incompetent?’ Umeh queried and asserted that no one was capable of removing him as he enjoyed the support of a vast number of APGA faithful.
He also condemned the non-conduct of local government elections by the governor and said that it had affected democracy in the grassroots. He also carpeted Obi for not empowering his party people and said this had been responsible for the poor run of the party in recent elections as party members out of hunger collected money from opponents to work against the party. He accused Obi of killing APGA by his style but assured that they were doing something to save the party. ‘I can assure you that APGA will retain Anambra State in 2014. Nobody can stop us. We will make sure nobody anoints anyone to succeed him but the people. We will bring out a popular person to give us what we want,’ Umeh assured.
He said it was because of his opposition to the non-conduct of council polls that some people were now fighting him because of what they gained from council funds.
