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Tag: Okorocha

  • Okorocha’s honour for Zuma

    Okorocha’s honour for Zuma

    •Most disgusting; most unfortunate

    Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo State stunned many Nigerians when on Saturday he unveiled a statue of South African President Jacob Zuma in Owerri, the state capital. The South African president was in the state apparently on the invitation of the governor, ostensibly to “strengthen socio-economic relations and further deepen existing cooperation in the field of education.”

    Dignitaries who welcomed him at the Sam Mbakwe Airport, Owerri, included former President Olusegun Obasanjo; former Jigawa State governor, Saminu Turaki; and Maurice Iwu, former Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission. Apart from addressing some secondary school students and other young people, Governor Okorocha directed a traditional ruler in the state to confer a chieftaincy title ‘Ochiagha of Imo’ (Warlord) on him as well as unveiled his statue in the state capital. He even named a road after him and bestowed on him some other state honours.

    Governor Okorocha is reputed for some policies which are considered weird by many but he does not appear bothered about what people feel once he has made up his mind on what to do. Last year, he declared a three-week holiday from December 19, 2016 to January 10, 2017, to enable the people of the state celebrate the Yuletide and the New Year. He also instituted a four-day working week for civil servants as his own way of reducing the wage bill and allowing the workers to do some other things to augment their pay.

    And now, honour to whom it is not due.

    The governor stirred the hornet’s nest especially over the statue of the visiting South African leader that he erected. All over the world, statues are erected for icons. In this case, President Zuma does not fit the bill. He logs a lot of baggage that disqualifies him from being celebrated the way Governor Okorocha has done. It is therefore not surprising that he has been an object of criticisms since the inglorious event.

    This is a man that is unwanted at home because of his questionable lifestyle. A man that has been found guilty of corruption by the courts in South Africa and has been ordered to refund the $500,000 public money he spent  to expand his private house in order to accommodate his several wives. He  has also  had to battle allegations of rape and infidelity. Indeed, just last Friday, South Africa’s Supreme Court of Appeal ruled that Mr. Zuma must face prosecution over almost 800 charges of corruption relating to an arms deal in the 1990s. Perhaps no other country’s leader in recent times is this notorious.

    How a man with these unenviable record could have found favour in the eye of any right-thinking man, not in the least a governor in the federal republic, is indeed baffling. What point was Governor Okorocha trying to make by asking the South African president to address students with impressionable minds? That corruption is a virtue or what? What lessons can the youths learn from a man with President Zuma’s antecedents? This is a man whose people back home want out of office as early as yesterday because they can no longer stomach the national embarrassment that he is causing them.

    We know Governor Okorocha has under his Rochas Foundation College Africa awarded scholarship to five children each from 55 African countries and the honour to President Zuma could have been the extension of such hands of fellowship. But this is not the best way to Africanise his dream.

    Even if the gestures were diplomatic appeasement to the leader of a country where xenophobia, especially against Nigerians, and particularly Igbo indigenes, is rife, it is not likely to yield much, because President Zuma has lost it at home. Imo State could have found better use for the money spent to give President Zuma the hero’s welcome that he got in the state.

     

  • Zuma, Okorocha sign MoU on free education

    South Africa President Jacob Zuma and Imo State Governor Rocha Okorocha yesterday joined forces to offer quality education to indigent African children at no cost.

    Their foundations, Jacob Zuma Foundation and Rochas Foundation, signed a historic Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on the project.

    The South African President and Founder of the Jacob Zuma Foundation, who was accompanied by his wife and top South African businessmen and government officials, described the signing of the MoU “as beginning of the journey of solving Africa’s problem once and for all”.

    Emphasising the need for education, Zuma insisted education remained the only efficient tool to prepare African children for the task of developing and emancipating the continent.

    According to him: “I am partnering with the Rochas Foundation because we share similar passion to educate poor African children.

    “Maybe my own passion is as a result of my poor background. I wanted to be a teacher or a Pastor or a Lawyer but none of this dream was fulfilled because I did not go to school.

    “So I realised at a young age that education is important to make you as a human being to be to do whatever you wanted to do.

    “So I decided that even though I could not go to school, I must be educated”.

    President Zuma, who recalled his challenges while growing up in his poor neighbourhood, argued freedom from colonialism alone cannot solve the continent’s problems or improve standard of living for Africans.

    Only education, he said, can liberate the continent, stating “Africans are condemned at birth without education”.

    He noted Africa cannot develop without education, stressing “African continent is carrying the burden imposed on it by the colonialists and the only way they can confront such challenges is through education”.

    To pioneer students of the Rochas Foundation College of Africa drawn from 55 African countries, he said: “If I can make it without seeing the walls of any school, you can make it even better because of the quality education you are getting in this Foundation; so make good of the opportunity while you are here”.

    Okorocha, President and Founder of the Rochas Foundation College of Africa, said he was glad that the vision he had 17 years ago had materialized.

    He informed the colleges have 15,000 students across the nation and over 4,000 graduates in the different fields.

    Okorocha said: “As it stands today, I have dedicated 75 percent of my wealth to charity from all my income and whatever I make in my life as a successful businessman 75 percent of it will go to charity.

    “I have equally dedicated certain assets of mine not to be inherited by my children even when I am no more those assets have been willed to Rochas Foundation for ever.”

    He added: ”Every child here is a story. Of recent we have children from Guinea and Sierra Leone whose parents and relatives all died of Ebola and they were left alone in this world, these children we are now giving hope again to live.

    “These ones will go nowhere anymore until they finish their universities and then we shall send them back to their countries where they will contribute to the economic development.”

  • Imo 2019: Okorocha’s legacies and APC’s chances

    Imo 2019: Okorocha’s legacies and APC’s chances

    As political forces re-align ahead of the 2019 election, Imo is one of the states where the opposition, in a bid to oust the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), have been loud and critical. But Associate Editor, Sam Egburonu, reports that Governor Rochas Okorocha, who just celebrated his 55th birthday, and the APC believe the party will retain the state because of his performance and populist style.

    BY 2019, when the next governorship election will hold in Imo State, Governor RochasOkorocha would have completed his second term in office and as such would not contest for the office. But given the stunning transformational projects he has executedin the South-East state within the last seven years andhis sheer dynamism as a politician, he has become one governor Ndi-Imo will never forget in a hurry.

    Besides his achievements in area of infrastructural development,Okorocha would also be remembered as a governor who has never been spared by his opponents. As a result, he has contended with so many controversies and allegations that listeners, who have not visited the state in the last three years to see things themselves, may not believe it when they read of his astounding legacies.

    In fact, whenever Okorocha, in his usual jocular manner, says he has done over 1000 projects in Imo State, an outsider, who has heard the many critical views of the governor’s opponents, is most likely to dismiss the claim as a blatant lie of a colourful politician, trying to deceive people with his uncommon aura and oratory.

    So, deliberately or coincidentally, the Imo State governor has emerged as one of the most misunderstood and criticized governors of his time.

    Perhaps to correct the impression once and for all,Okorocha opened up during his 55th birthday anniversary and made a display of some of the projects he has executed. He told The Nation that one of his faults may be his refusal so far in commissioning or celebrating his projects.

    It would be recalled that amidst criticisms earlier in 2016, the governor had said he was focused and could not be distracted.  Between then and now, Okorocha, who was accused of having numerous uncompleted projects, have made unbelievable efforts to further shame his critics. Amongst the over 1000major projects he is proud to bequeath include“the construction of Ochiedike Dialysis Centre, provision of free education from primary to tertiary education, reduction of poverty rate in the state, construction of Imo International Conference Centre (IICC), construction of Heroes Square, the IkembaOjukwu Centre, a brand new Government House, completion of former Ahiajoku Convention Centre, now Imo Trade and Investment Centre and construction of many flyover bridges in Owerri, etc.” Besides these, The Nation observed that Okorocha has embarked on an ambitious and breathtaking beautification of New Owerri Metropolis.

    Explaining the likely impact of his legacy projects after his tenure, he said: “you cannot come to Imo State now and say you want to abolish free education from primary to university, they will not accept. I have spoilt Imo people, believe me.

    “You cannot come to Imo State and say you want to give them a single lane road when they are now used to eight lane road in the city, they won’t accept it. You cannot come here and tell the children to go to schools where the floors are not tiled, they will not accept because all the schools have been rebuilt.

    “You can no longer take them to those ramshackle hospitals, those shanties they called hospitals because I have built 27 to 200 bed general hospitals. You can no longer tell them those stories. All the infrastructures are there.

    “And you can no longer tell our workers to dress shabbily; they will not, they will want to dress in their suits and tie and white shirts. So, Imo has changed, believe me.”

    Criticisms and allegations

    The physical, human and aesthetic changes notwithstanding, Okorochahas been target of ceaseless criticisms and allegations, the latest of which include the demolition of the popular Ekeukwu market, the killing of young Somtochukwu during the demolition exercise and his open opposition of IPOB long before the other South-Eastgovernors outlawed the organisation in the zone. Okorocha, who initially kept quiet overthe allegations, chose his recent birthday anniversary to set the records straight. His explanations:

    On Ekeukwu market demolition controversy

    “Ekeukwu has been one of the oldest markets from when Owerri was a village. That place was a motor park belonging to the government of Imo State. The structure in question there was a structure put up by the municipal government of Imo State. So, what government has broken down there is its property. But some people have misunderstood the whole exercise.

    When I came in as governor, the first thing I told the people was the need to move Ekeukwu because it constituted the biggest problem in this city. The worst crimes in Imo State took place in Ekeukwu; you couldn’t pass Ekeukwu without having any of your property stolen on an hourly basis. Not only that, Ekeukwu produces the unhealthiest atmosphere with waste within that small enclave and it was no longer good for the city. In fact, the law that no market should be four kilometres close to Government House was also in place. That also affected Ekeukwu.

    So, everybody knew Ekeukwu was going to move. I have had over 20 town hall meetings with the people on Ekeukwu, but they never believed that any governor would have the political will to move Ekeukwu. In Ekeukwu, we had cases of kidnapping. Behind one of the houses, in the process of the demolition exercise, we discovered a house belonging to Professor Adiele’s uncle; there were six cells. That property is yet to be destroyed.

    So, Ekeukwu constituted a major problem, the demolition was a necessity and very important, but nobody believed that any governor could move it. I have done that, and it is in the interest of the people, and I have no personal benefit from this. The place is cleaned up now. The next market I am moving is the Hausa community, and the people are happy.

    We have plans for the place; we want the city to breathe.”

    On the killing of young Somtochukwu in Ekeukwu

    Before we moved in to clear the place, we made it clear that there should be no shoot out. I gave a clear instruction, the Commissioner of Police and Inspector General Police also gave clear instructions. What the police went there with was tear gas in case there was need to use it. Now, when the demolition commenced, we started hearing gun shots.

    The cult members, engaged by some of the indigenes, thinking that was the way to fight the last battle, started shooting. But whatever it is, the fact that the boy died during that event, whatever I say here is no excuse but to mourn him and compensate the parents properly. At the heat of the event, the story was that it was government that ordered the police to shoot him.

    The people started to mourn. Politicians and leaders turned it to politics and went to the graveyard, with women wearing black. I felt that was over dramatization, so we kept quiet. But now, I have made a public statement that every project around there shall be called Somtochukwu project; even the name, Douglas road will be changed to Somto road. The young man deserved it outside other things we have to do. We have to do that to honour that boy because that is the greatest sacrifice anybody can make for Ekeukwu.”

    On his opposition of IPOB’s style

    “On the issue of IPOB, whether we want to believe it or not, IPOB is not good for the South-East and it is not the best way for us to complain about marginalisation to the Federal Republic of Nigeria. There are better ways; the IPOB way is too primitive. If IPOB must do a thing like that, it should have changed the name and fought the way Ijaw youths fought, Arewa youths fought, and they would have made more impact.

    Reacting, Dr. Chukwuemeka Uzoukwu, an APC member in Okigwe, told The Nation, “the governor’s opponents have refused to see anything good in his transformational efforts just because they are interested in taking over Douglas House in 2019, but as you can see, the OwelleOkorocha-led APC government in Imo here has provided so much infrastructural development that only an ingrate will deny them re-election in 2019.”

    APC’s chances in 2019

    As the various political parties prepare for the next elections in 2019, the opposition parties in the state are poised for a grand battle. “The controversies surrounding Okorocha’s APC government, including the reported disagreement in the party over zoning and over Okorocha’s successor,” according to Chief Uzodinma Ihemere, an All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) member,“will work against APC in 2019.” He said “Okorocha may have embarked on some physical development we can’t deny, but good governance goes beyond that.”

    But The Nation gathered that APCwill anchor its campaign for the 2019 elections on the performance of Okorocha’s government. “Our party is proud to say that Okorocha’s visible achievements are reasons enough to ask the people to elect another APC candidate to continue the good work. Every other thing critics are saying today is mere politics. Imo has never seen it this way since the days of Chief SamuelOnunakaMbakwe. Also, no mother or father, who is enjoying free education of his or her children, will risk voting for another party now. So, we are confident,” said Chief Nkemdinma Nwulu in Owerri.

  • Okorocha: We’re waxing strong despite challenges

    Okorocha: We’re waxing strong despite challenges

    Imo State Governor Rochas Okorocha yesterday stated that the nation is “waxing strong despite certain challenges”.

    In an Independence message by his Chief Press Secretary, Sam Onwuemeodo, Okorocha assured that with the “sound policies of the current administration, such challenges will soon be things of the past”.

    He said: “This is not the period to discuss the country’s shortcomings but a time to discuss the successes of the Country at 57 and what must be done to move the nation forward.”

    He noted the nation needs to persevere at the moment with unity of purpose.

    The governor urged Nigerians to pray for the nation and its leaders, especially President Muhammadu Buhari.

     

  • Kanu is on his own – Okorocha

    Kanu is on his own – Okorocha

    Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo State, yesterday urged the Federal Government and citizens to treat the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, as an individual whose views do not represent those  of the generality of  Igbo.

    No reasonable Igbo man, the governor said, “would support secession or division of the country.”

    Okorocha who spoke at the new Yam festival organised by the

    State Council of Traditional Rulers said that “everyone that loves Ndigbo has condemned the activities of IPOB.”

    The Ooni of Ife, His Majesty Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, who attended the function said he would not condemn the IPOB elements but would rather ask that they be made to channel their energy positively.

    Okorocha said: “I can see that the unity of Nigeria is today dramatised in the land of Imo State. I say so because growing up as a child, I never knew where I came from because I found myself somewhere in Plateau State as a little boy and the only language I could speak was the Hausa language and I had no choice because that was where I was brought up.

    “So, I grew up being born an Igbo man, but was reared in the North and was made financially buoyant in the South-West. So I have declared myself that in no way should I be found as a tribalised Nigerian. I will remain detribalised as long as Igbo gave me parentage and childhood, as long as North reared and nurtured me and for as long as Southwest empowered me. My community and my identity is Nigeria.

    “The Igbo business men have more real estates and more properties and assets outside Igbo land than in Igbo land. So, I want to dissociate Igbo from this very thing that Igbo want to go for secession. A man that wants to go for secession cannot build mansions in Lagos, Kano, Plateau and the rest of the states.

    “I think we should single out this act of this young man from the rest of Nigerians. My worry again stands strongly on the fact that today, the issue of IPOB is being politicised. Today, most of them that never worked with the Buhari-led government are using this as an opportunity to fight the federal government. Call those people to order. It’s not far-fetched who these people are. Some of them are busy visiting Kanu’s house and encouraging him. Those people should make a rethink, because they are not doing this nation any good.”

  • No reasonable Igboman will support secession-Okorocha

    No reasonable Igboman will support secession-Okorocha

    Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo State has said that no reasonable Igboman would support secession or division of the country.

    According to him, the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) , Nnamdi Kanu should be treated as a single individual because reasonable Igbo people have condemned the group in all ramifications.           

    Governor Okorocha spoke on Saturday, September in Owerri at the new Yam festival organized by the State Council of Traditional Rulers headed by HRM Eze Samuel Ohiri.

    “Everyone has condemned IPOB in all ramifications and I say that whatever that young man is doing does not have the support of any of us. He should be picked up and treated as a single individual. No reasonable Igbo man is asking for secession. No reasonable Igbo man will support the division of this country.

    “I want to remind all Nigerians that Igbos are the people that fought the last war and if there was anyone so badly affected by that war is the Igbos. After the war, the 1st group of people to run to different ethnic groups and all other tribes for purpose of economic development was the Igbos.

    “The Igbos today in their thousands are in Kano, the Igbos today in their thousands are in Lagos, in Plateau and in all nooks and crannies of this country. And wherever you find them, they behave as if they are the owners of the land, even in most cases; they have Ezes in the communities where they find themselves, showing that they believe in the unity of this country. 

    “The Igbos business men have more real estates and more properties and assets outside Igbo land than in Igbo land. So, I want to dissociate Igbos from this very thing that Igbos want to go for secession. A man that wants to go for secession cannot build mansions in Lagos, Kano, Plateau and the rest of the States.

    “I think we should single out this act of this young man from the rest of Nigerians. My worry again stands strongly on the fact that today, the issue of IPOB is being politicized. Today, most of them that never worked with the Buhari-led government are using this as an opportunity to fight the Federal Government. Call those people to order. It’s not far-fetched who these people are. Some of them are busy visiting Kanu’s house and encouraging him. Those people should make a rethink, because they are not doing this nation any good.”

  • Okorocha: Charly Boy recruited to fight me, APC

    Okorocha: Charly Boy recruited to fight me, APC

    Imo State Governor Rochas Okorocha yesterday said entertainer and rights activist, Mr Charles Oputa (aka Charly Boy), was recruited in 2014 by his political opponents to fight his administration and the All Progressives Congress (APC).

    The governor, who was reacting to a recent meeting convened by Charly Boy and the State Chairman of the Nigeria Bar Association (NBA), Lawrence Nwaekaeti, to review suspected cases of rights abuses in the state, said the activist continued to act the script handed to him by his paymasters since 2014.

    He said Charly Boy first attacked him that year during the burial of his father, Justice Chukwudifu Oputa.

    Okorocha said the controversial activist had deceived respectable and renowned activists, like Prof Chidi Odinkalu and others, to come to Imo State over the relocation of the Owerri Market while he continued with his “unwarranted attacks” against his administration.

    In a statement by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Sam Onwuemeodo, the governor said: “Our attention has been drawn to the meeting presided over by Charles Oputa (aka Charly Boy) and the Chairman of Owerri branch of the Nigeria Bar Association NBA, Mr. Lawrence Nwakaeti, on September 9 at the Bar Centre, High Court oremises in Owerri and the publications on the outcome of the meeting.

    “We want to respond by first alluding that Charles Oputa (aka Charly Boy) was recruited since 2014 by opponents of the Rescue Mission Government in the state against Governor Okorocha and the APC. He used his father’s burial service at Oguta to launch his war against the governor after he had collected money from the government for the same father’s burial. And he has continued the unprovoked and unwarranted war.”

    The statement added: “The governor did the road to Oputa’s house, built a court complex named after the late jurist, Justice Chukwudifu Oputa… But before the burial, they told him that someone had directed that he should not allow Governor Okorocha to talk at the burial service, not minding that protocol demanded that the governor should talk.

    “Acting on the script given to him, Charly Boy snatched the microphone from a sitting governor, who came to honour his late father and who also gave money for the burial. He did that to satisfy Governor Okorocha’s opponents and see whether (or not) that could help them in the 2015 election. Up till now, Charly Boy has not cared to apologise to the governor, in spite of the general outcry his action attracted then.

    “But he has continued the war with his coming to Owerri at the weekend to insult Governor Okorocha as part of the script. He deceived some notable rights activists, like Prof. Chidi Odinkalu, into coming to Owerri on the relocation of Ekeukwu Market without such innocent figures knowing he was recruited since 2014 against Governor Okorocha. He looks for every opportunity to malign the governor.

    “He was also recruited this year against President Mohammadu Buhari. To carry out the assignment, he came up with the so-called: OurMumuDonDo. He was calling for the resignation of President Buhari because he was sick as if President Buhari was the first President to be sick in the country.

    “It is also important to ask Charly Boy where he was for the 16 years the previous administrations mismanaged the fortunes of this country. And they have so greatly empowered him that today, he moves in a lengthy convoy with no fewer than 15 assorted Jeeps with an avalanche of security aides who look overfed.”

  • Okorocha to police: fish out killers of Imo Catholic priest

    Imo State Governor Rochas Okorocha yesterday directed Police Commissioner Chris Ezike to bring those responsible for the killing of a Catholic priest, Rev. Cyracus Onunkwo, to justice.

    The governor, who described the killing as “senseless and wicked,” urged the police to ensure that those behind the killing are apprehended and made to face the full wrath of the law.

    He regretted that “such a heinous crime could still happen in the state when everyone has been celebrating the feat achieved by the government in the area of security”.

    Okorocha wondered why “human beings, created by God, would throw caution to the wind and not only kidnap an ordain man of God but went ahead to assassinate him”.

    The governor described those behind the act as “elements from the pit of hell”.

    He assured the people that the government would work with the police to apprehend the culprits and punish them.

    Okorocha condoled with the bishop and other priests of the Orlu Diocese of the Catholic Church where the late Onunkwo was serving.

    The governor also commiserated with the family of the cleric and prayed God to grant them the fortitude to bear the loss.

  • Okorocha bans Keke from Owerri roads

    Okorocha bans Keke from Owerri roads

    The Imo State government yesterday banned tricycles, popularly called Keke, from operating in Owerri, the state capital.

    The ban takes effect from September 5.

    Governor Rochas Okorocha, who announced the ban at the inauguration of the state’s taxi scheme, said only the taxis will be allowed to operate in the capital city.

    He said: “For that reason, we have shared about 2,000 Volkswagen Passat wagon cars to the Keke operators on Wednesday to enable them comply with the directive. Balloting was conducted at the Hero’s Square, for the beneficiaries.”

    Okorocha noted that “the second batch of beneficiaries will get theirs in October while the third batch will have their own in December”.

    He added: “Keke operators would no longer be expected to operate on the major roads of Douglas, Wetheral, Bank Road, Orlu Road and other designated roads.”

    Addressing the Keke operators, Okorocha said: “Few years ago when the Keke people gave me a very resounding support, I promised that I will change you from three-legged to four-legged. For that reason, today marks the beginning of the movement from tricycle to a full car.

    “Now, government has made provision for 2,000 taxis to enable all of you have one taxi each. This is done to give you comfort and make your life prosperous. I would not have been happy if I completed this tenure without fulfilling my promise.

    “For the purpose of clarity, this is government’s empowerment scheme for the masses is to reduce pains in your families and bring comfort. Keke has served us well in Imo State. I want to thank you for serving us well. But as Imo State is developing and getting better with good roads and a lot of infrastructural developments. Keke can no longer be the appropriate means of transportation within the Owerri city. This is why we are moving from Keke to car…”

  • Imo ‘leaders’ to Okorocha: resign or be impeached

    Imo ‘leaders’ to Okorocha: resign or be impeached

    •Govt: prove your allegation

    Some concerned Imo State leaders in Abuja, under the auspices of Concerned Imo State Leaders (CISL), yesterday urged Governor Rochas Okorocha to resign because of what they called “clearly established leadership incompetence and serial blunder on the most elementary duties of governance”.

    Addressing reporters in Abuja, the group also advised the House of Assembly to invoke the impeachment clause to unseat the governor, if he fails to resign over his alleged disregard for court order and the recent demolition of the Ekeukwu Market in Owerri, the state capital.

    CISL’s spokesman Sam Obaji accused the Okorocha administration of embarking on an unlawful, reckless and unprofitable demolition of the market.

    The group said four people, including a 10-year-old boy, Somtochukwu Igboanusi, were killed and several others injured during the market demolition.

    They said: “As leaders in Imo State from various zones and across different political party lines, we are pained that at this time government should focus all resources and …alleviate economy hardship and youth unemployment, the government in Imo State is sending struggling families to severe poverty and misery through irresponsible governance.

    “By refusing counsel, rejecting court injunctions and going ahead to carry out the demolition of a market that has been in existence before Independence in 1960, the Imo State government has provoked the people and threatened the peace of the state.

    “As Chief Security Officer (CSO) of the state, the governor ought to have realised that such wanton and reckless disregard for the sensibilities and interest of the people in a democracy poses a grave challenge to national security at a time the Federal Government is concerned about insecurity across the country.

    “As leaders of Imo State, we would ordinarily support any well-conceived urban renewal project in the state as we know the economic growth spill-offs of properly executed infrastructural development in the state. But what we are witnessing in Imo State is a self-interested and uncoordinated urban renewal project that consists largely of demolition of private properties and transfer of recovered plots of land to cronies for private development.

    “The fact is that the present demolition was carried out in reckless violation of a clear court order of Justice S. I. Okpara, restraining the Imo State government from demolition of the market until determination of the suit filed by the stall owners.

    “In as much as it is the priority of government to determine the direction of urban renewal, we believe that a responsive and responsible government would undertake a process that minimises hardship and disruption to economic and social life of the citizens.

    “We are very angry at this uncivilised, reckless, thoughtless and disrespectful model of governance and warned that henceforth, we will be out to fight the governor to stop him from further destroying life and livelihood in Imo State.”

    The government urged Nigerians to investigate the purported killing of the 10-year-old boy during the demolition.

    It said only a thorough investigation would bring out the truth.

    The government challenged those behind the rumoured killing of the boy to tell the world where the incident took place.

    It said those with 2019 ambition were behind the rumoured killing, adding that such persons were leveraging on the relocation of market to cause trouble in the state.

    In a statement in Owerri, the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Sam Onwuemeodo, dismissed the calls for the governor to resign.

    The statement reads: “We want to reiterate our demand that the reported death of a boy should be thoroughly investigated for the public to know the particular area the incident took place and the circumstances surrounding the reported death to reveal whether the whole story has anything to do with the movement of Ekeukwu Owerri Market or not.

    “Again, now that the relocation has been completed, it is also left for those behind the rumours of killings, with some quoting six, some quoting five and some quoting three, to tell their audience where the bodies of the rumoured dead persons are deposited and where their families can be located so that interested Nigerians can go into investigation on their own to ascertain whose claim should be believed.

    “Unfortunately, some people have taken such wicked rumours wholesale. We are challenging those behind the claims to come forward to authenticate their claims. That is the way to unearth the truth. And where they fail to do that, they should cover their faces in shame.”