Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Rivers State has distanced itself from allegations by the governorship candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Senator Magnus Abe that he was attacked by some PDP members.
Abe, on Monday, alleged that he was attacked in Oyigbo Local Government by suspected thugs belonging to the PDP.
But the party in a statement by the Director of Publicity, PDP Campaign Council, Mr. Ogbonna Nwuke, dismissed the claims, saying its members had no hand in Abe’s travails.
He said: “The PDP has a great following in Oyigbo Local Government. We have strong presence everywhere, even in Abe’s backyard.
“It is strange that the senator will accuse us of something heinous. How can Abe accuse us of thuggery? Did Abe have a discussion with the said thugs?
“So, how did he come to the conclusion that the attack he suffered, if it is indeed true, came from the PDP? The SDP candidate is claiming that the aide of the state Chairman of the PDP, Desmond Akawor, led the group.
“It is absolutely impossible to imagine that a top aide of the chairman of our great party could have led such an operation. The assertion by the SDP is obviously illogical. We can only conclude that Abe’s claims are unfounded. They are claims that are rather founded on falsehood.”
Nwuke said Abe had over the years made many enemies for himself in the state, recalling that in 2019, he (Abe) stopped APC from contesting elections in Rivers.
He said: “In doing so, Abe killed so many dreams, frustrated the aspirations of several people, including candidates raised on the platform of his former party.
“Abe or people around him have gone ahead in 2022 to win a major victory in court, which has shut out APC once again. Abe should not pretend that he does not have serious enemies, who will like to get even. Any of those persons can attack him, and pretend while doing so, to belong to some other parties, including PDP.
“We urge the SDP candidate to leave the PDP alone. We have no hand in what has allegedly happened to him.
“While we admit that the lesser political parties are working hard to tarnish the image of our great party, we urge the senator to think deeply about the kind of thing he says. We condemn thuggery in the strongest terms. In fact, we consider it an insult that Abe is trying to call out the PDP in this manner.
“It has become commonplace for people who cannot afford to print decent posters, let alone paste such posters on street corners, to blame their inabilities on the PDP.
“We are a great party; we are offering quality and sustainable infrastructure, which are impacting positively on the growth of our state and the well-being of the people through the unrelenting effort and able leadership of Governor Nyesom Wike.
“The PDP pledges this day it will not sponsor thuggery. We will continue to focus on issues. We urge our opponents to focus on issues like we are doing in the field.”