Information reaching 247ureports.com revealed that the Chief Press Secretary to Gov. Okezie Ikpeazu, Godwin Adindu, was sacked over his inability to coordinate the media team and relate well with journalists which has caused the governor several embarrassments.
Recall that Ikpeazu has yesterday through an announcement by his Chief of Staff, Chief Chijioke Nwakodo, announced the dissolution of his media team, comprising 20 members.
Loading ...Adindu was reported to have been sent on an official assignment to Lagos to meet with online publishers when he was removed from his position. As at the time of filing this report, Adindu was yet to pack his belongings from his office. Sources told 247ureports.com that Adindu’s ‘I too know attitude’ and inability to coordinate the media team were his major undoing as he kept fighting with members of the team.
He is reputed to have made many enemies for the governor through brazen discrimination among journalists practicing in the state. He was always on war path with the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr. Bonnie Iwuoha, who accused Adindu of insubordination. During media briefings by the governor, cash gifts to journalists who attended the programme, will take three days before it gets to them as Adindu keeps some to himself. It is no surprise that journalists in Abia have been in celebration mood since yesterday when the news of Adindu’s sack was made public.
Even publishers of internet based newspapers did not fare better as Adindu reportedly told them that he doesn’t need their services. There is no doubt that Ikpeazu had continue to attract negative publicity from the online newspapers.
The former Chief Press Secretary also treated members of the media team, some of who had served as Chief Press Secretaries before him, as school boys. The situation led to bickering and formation of cliques as the team worked at cross purposes.
Another problem which caused Adindu’s fall was his arrogance and inability to relate well with the personal staff of the governor, especially his Personal Assistant, Enyinnaya Appolos, a journalist, who is rumoured to have eyed the CPS position from day one. Appolos had at several occasions, issued press statements on the governor’s activities, most of which contradicted the ones released by Adindu.
The last straw that broke the carmel’s back for Adindu was Wednesday’s visit to Abia state by Sokoto state Governor, Alhaji Aminu Tambuwal, which was not reported by the media. Some of the journalists, who came to the Government House Press Centre to board vehicles to Aba where Tambuwal was billed to commission road projects, were barred from the trip, leading to a media blackout of the event. This was said to have angered Ikpeazu who decided to wield the big stick.
An impeccable source close to Ikpeazu told our correspondent that Adindu gets a princely N2.5 monthly to run his office and coordinate the team, yet the governor continues to be greeted with negative publicity in the media.
Said the source, “There was no need for Godwin Adindu to under-perform and allow the governor gets too much negative publicity from the media. He was equipped for the job. Instead what we continued to hear was his arrogance and bickering in the media. He caused so much embarrassment to the governor and had to go. That media team needs to be reorganized; it is over bloated, there are lots of people who have no business being there.”
