APC Cautions Okorocha Over Attack On Party

By Akinwale Kasali

Governor Rochas Owelle Okorocha is presently swimming in trouble waters with the National Working Committee of the All Progressives Congress over several verbal attacks on party leaders.

Okorocha, who was once the ‘beautiful bride’ and a party faithful of the ruling party few years back. But, Okorocha is presently on the bad books of the party as he has began ruffling feathers with the powers that be in the party.

The party advised the governor to work with the party leadership in his state instead of making libellous attacks on the APC and its leadership.

The National Publicity Secretary of the APC, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, issued the warning in a statement he signed in Abuja, on Wednesday.

According to him, Okorocha has made it a habit of making libellous attacks on the party and its leaders on a daily basis.

Abdullahi said, “Hardly a day passes by without Governor Okorocha verbally assaulting our National Chairman, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, and other party leaders over the recently concluded congresses in Imo State.”

He cited an example of an advertorial published in a national daily titled: “Let the Truth Speak for itself.”

Abdullahi said the advertorial “was signed by a known associate of Governor Okorocha, one Ireagwu Obioma, who styles himself as ‘Acting Secretary, Imo APC.”

The party spokesperson noted that a number of false claims were made against the party in the said publication.

The statement partly read: “The import of the allegations was that the party was aware of a court order preventing it from conducting the Imo State congress following the receipt of a copy of the so-called court injunction, which directed it to maintain status quo.

“But nothing can be further from the truth. Even the published documents in the advertorial do not support this position and in fact expose a lie in the governor’s version of events, that the party was duly served and prevented from going ahead with the congress in Imo state.”

Okorocha’s crisis began when he imposed his son in law on the party members in the state to succeed him when he leaves office in 2019. This however led to issues in the state APC leading to attacks and counter attacks from the governor and his perceived enemies in the party.