- Why Aisha Buhari shunned Imo APC rally
By Simeon Ebegbulam
The South East Women and Youths rally of the All Progressives Congress (APC) may have come and gone but the incidents that played out at the Dan Anyiam stadium Owerri last Saturday where several persons sustained gunshot injuries are still very fresh on the lips of Imo citizens. The occasion which witnessed the presence of women and youths from the five states of the South East was well attended and colorful following the mobilization done by the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state, Senator Hope Uzodinma, but that beautiful occasion was almost marred with violence due to the presence of the candidate of the Action Alliance (AA), Mr Uche Nwosu at the APC rally on the directive of his father in-law and governor of Imo State, Owelle Rochas Okorocha.
Prior to the Saturday event, the focus was how the camps loyal to Senator Uzodinma and those of Governor Rochas were going to handle the event particularly when it was earlier rumoured that the governor had insisted that Uche Nwosu would be at the event. But the leadership of the APC led by its caretaker chairman, Prince Marcelenus O.Nlemigbo, warned against allowing Nwosu to attend the rally since it was an APC affair. They argued that Nwosu who is now the candidate of the Action Alliance (AA) had no business being at the stadium.
As a matter of fact, Saturday Vanguard learnt that it was as a result of this that made the first lady to change her mind not to attend the rally and therefore sent the wife of the Vice President, Dolapo Osinbajo to represent her. It was gathered that the first lady was under pressure from Governor Rochas to come and campaign for Nwosu who the governor was strongly backing, but the first lady was said to have kicked against it since it would be against the ongoing campaign of the APC and President Muhammadu Buhari to campaign for all APC candidates. And one could see the disappointment on the face of Governor Okorocha at the airport where he went to welcome the wife of the president, only to see Mrs Osinbajo strolling out from the Presidential aircraft.
Okorocha
Despite the fact that the APC governorship candidate, Senator Uzodinma, spent his resources in mobilizing women and youths across the South East for the rally, the plot by the governor’s camp was to shut him and his supporters out of the event. The Master of Ceremony said to be an employee of the Imo state government refused to acknowledge the presence of Uzodinma’s supporters including Senator Ben Uwajumogu, who had a running battle with some of the state government officials before he was recognized. The tension actually started that Saturday morning when supporters of Uzodinma went to paste his posters at the stadium. The governor’s supporters however tore the posters and flooded the stadium with those of Uche Nwosu. That angered Uzodinma’s supporters which resulted to free for all between the two groups at the stadium that early morning. Three persons were said to have been rushed to the hospital after the bloody fight. The APC members were only able to paste Uzodinma’s posters after they succeeded in subduing the state government forces.
However, when the event kicked off, policemen and officials of the state government tried to stop Senator Uzodinma from entering the stadium but the Senator’s security operatives over powered them and forced the gate of the stadium open to allow the senator who is the APC candidate to enter the stadium. His arrival received thunderous ovation from the women at the stadium who had observed the futile efforts made by the state government to ridicule him. The Senator who looked unperturbed went round the stadium to welcome the crowd to the chagrin of the state government. Rather than the MC to recognize the presence of Uzodinma, he was busy singing the praises of Uche Nwosu, whose presence at the stadium the APC members protested against, describing it as provocative. It took the intervention of APC leaders from Abuja to compel the MC to recognize Senator Uzodinma, which was received with a loud ovation from the crowd.
National Women leader of the APC, Hajia Salamatu Baiwa, who welcomed the women, urged them to campaign in all the nooks and crannies of the South East to ensure victory for President Buhari and all APC candidates including the governorship candidate of the party in Imo State, Senator Uzodinma. Others also spoke along that line. But the atmosphere became more charged when the wife of the governor, Mrs Nkechi Okorocha came to the podium to speak. While she acknowledged everybody, she deliberately ignored Uzodinma. But the APC supporters remained resolute entertaining the public with their songs of Hope. It was at that point that pandemonium broke when security operatives started shooting sporadically to forestall the looming fight between APC members and supporters of Governor Okorocha. The tension in the stadium heightened when Governor Okorocha stepped out to deliver his address, as he started by hitting hard at the leadership of the APC accusing them of unfairness for their failure to give the ticket of the party to his son in-law Uche Nwosu. As if that was not enough, Okorocha who is the APC candidate for the senatorial seat in Orlu zone, called on Imo people to vote for his son in-law Nwosu, rather than Uzodinma of the APC.
Reacting to the violence witnessed at the venue, Okorocha said “the politicians who believed they must win at all cost were responsible for the violence. They engaged youths from other parts of this county to come and create problem. Those few youths making this trouble were definitely not the youths of Imo state.
I want to say to all of you that my youths are well behaved, well cultured. Let me also inform you that by standing here, I was the same lonely voice in 2015 who stood up for Buhari when nobody believed in him. Madam first lady, and others let me say this again, this time around, what my wife has done today is to show you that Buhari is on ground in Imo State and he will win. Don’t waste your time in Imo state, victory for Buhari here is signed, sealed and delivered. Let me also inform you that we have also consulted with other political parties, especially those who have very weak presidential candidates or those who don’t have at all, the leading party in this regard is the Action Alliance, led by Ugwumba Uche Nwosu.
I want to tell you that Ugwumba Nwosu is APC in spirit and AA in person. He is still one of you, he is only using that platform to correct the injustice that was done to Imo people. The APC treated Imo very badly but if not for the love I have for Buhari, there would have been a different story in this state. And let me inform you Madam First lady, don’t be deceived, don’t waste your time, Ugwumba Nwosu is AA and he will win the governorship. This is not anti-party, it is called alliance”.
Okorocha’s comments drew the anger of the APC women who then started leaving the stadium. But wife of the Vice President, Mrs Osinbajo, who spoke after the governor, punctured Okorocha’s comment, calling on all the women and youths to vote all APC candidates. Mrs Osinbajo who also reacted to the violence witnessed in the stadium, urged the crowd to eschew violence ahead the election, reminding the women of their role to check the excesses of their children at home. Senator Uzodinma, who was calm and smiling throughout the event described Okorocha’s comments as childish and accused the governor of “playing god”. The APC governorship candidate who spoke while unveiling his 5-Point manifesto to the public, said that “there is an adage which says that when a mad man runs away with your clothes while you are taking your bath and you decide to pursue the mad man naked, people will regard both of you as mad men. So that is why you saw me smiling at Okorocha who has lost his sense of reasoning due to his inordinate ambition to make Uche Nwosu his son-in-law governor. He spoke as an emperor that he is but Imo state people will tell him that power belongs to God and not him. The whole world has seen how power drunk he is, using the paraphernalia of office to intimidate the same APC people who made him governor. He is now dining and wining with AA members and PDP leaders and yet he claimed he was supporting President Buhari. You can see the way and manner he ran his mouth against our party but I believe the party leadership knows what to do, so I am not bothered. By the special grace of God, Imo people have accepted me while they have rejected Rochas and his family. With their support and the grace of God Almighty, I will win the election and that will be the end of Okorocha’s family business in Imo State Government House”.
Meanwhile, the Imo state APC had called on the governor and seven others to appear before it and defend themselves against allegations of anti-party activities leveled against them or be suspended from the party. In a statement by the Imo State Elders Council, it declared that“ Uzodinma’s is the candidate of Imo state people and not APC alone, so Okorocha is wasting his time fighting Uzodinma. Imo people have made up their mind to support Hope and no amount on intimidation will stop us. Okorocha has turned our state to a family estate but God brought Uzodinma to save us from his hands and our people can never return to Egypt”.