…as Youths, police foil attempt to stop protest
The patron of Imo Concerned Citizens Forum, Charles Oputa, popularly known as Charly boy, on Wednesday during a protest in Owerri, the Imo State capital said, “As a little boy, a ten-year-old boy, my father, who was once in charge of the Supreme Court once said that the Supreme Court can make mistakes. We admit that the Supreme Court has made a mistake. They should correct themselves.”
This is as an attempt by the some hoodlums suspected to be supporters of the All Progressives Congress in Imo State to stop the ongoing protest against the removal of Emeka Ihedioha by the Supreme Court was on Wednesday foiled by angry youths and security agents.
Thousands of supporters of Emeka Ihedioha had converged at the ancestral ground of Owerri, Ugwu Ekwema on Egbu road, before 10am to continue with the protest against the removal of the former deputy speakerof the House of Representatives as the governor of Imo State.
At the resumed protest on Wednesday, the hoodlums attempted to block the march of the Ihedioha supporters by setting up tyres as burn fires.
They were however overpowered by the protesting youths and security agents, who chased them away from the road to enable the protest continue unhindered.
The protesters, were led by fiery critic, Charles Oputa popularly called Charley Boy, under the auspices of Imo Concerned Citizens (ICC) who demanded the restoration of Ihedioha as the governor of Imo State.
Oputa told the teeming members of Imo Concerned Citizens (ICC) that the protest was for the good of Imo State and her people.
Oputa, who claimed to be the father of frustrated Nigerians said Imo people are angry at the ouster of Ihedioha, even as he maintained that the stupidity of the people was over.
He said “Everyone here is angry at the removal of Ihedioha. What we are doing here is not about a person but for the good of Imo people. Our stupidity is enough and we must realise that we the people are the real government while office holders are our servants. But because of lack of understanding, we have them think they are in charge”.
Further he said “We are here because of the progress of Imo, especially the youths who have people like me. The supreme court judges made a mistake and what we are doing here is to say there has been a miscarriage of justice. We are pleading with the justices that they should please reverse themselves on Imo”.
According to Charley Boy who is son to revered Supreme Court judge, late Justice Charles Oputa, his father always told him that wherever he sees injustice, he should rise up and address it because if one does not, it will come back to fight you, adding that the learned jurist told him that the apex court can make mistake but that it should correct itself immediately.
He lamented at what he described as so much injustice in the country saying ” There is so much injustice in Nigeria. I know that part of government’s job is to protect citizens but what we see is systematic endemic injustice and we will stand together to fight it wherever we see it”.
The showbiz crooner said Imo for eight years was bedeviled with bad leadership adding that Ihedioha helped to put the State in right reckoning, saying the supreme court should immediately restore the choice of the people.
Earlier, one of the leaders of the Imo Concerned Citizens, Engr Kingsley Onwubiko said Imo people are angry at the supreme court for the removal of Ihedioha, who according to him is “Our liberator, a man who came and removed foolishness from our state. We beg the apex court to give us back the man Imo people voted for”.
