Imo By-election: Police Invite PDP Candidate Over Threat To Peace

By Charles Igbo

The Imo State Police Commissioner has invited the candidate of the Peoples  Democratic Party, PDP,  in the House of Assembly Bye-election, Emeka Jeff Nwachukwu, to a meeting with him.

Also invited is the State Chairman of the Party, Chief Charles Ugwu.

The meeting scheduled for Thursday, February 24, 2022, according to the Police invitation is,  “in respect of an alleged threat to breach of peace towards the forthcoming Ngor-Okpala State Constituency Bye-election.”

The election is scheduled to hold on Saturday, February 26, 2022. It is to fill the seat declared vacant by the State House of Assembly over the continous absence of its occupant, Toochi Okereke. He has not attended any plenary since 2021, and has made no contact with the Leadership of the Assembly. For two years and counting, his Constituency has been without any representation.

It is not known if the candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, and his Chairman were also invited by the Police, but the tension in the State over the bye-election is so thick that a sharp knife would be needed to cut through it. The lies and blackmail from, especially, the two main political parties in the State, APC and PDP, are unprecedented.

In the main, the Election is seen as a contest between Governor Hope Uzodimma and the Rt. Hon. Emeka Ihedioha, his predecessor in office, who was sacked by the Supreme Court.

The former occupant of the Ngor-Okpala State Constituency, Okereke, is not only PDP, but is said to be a cousin to Ihedioha whose maternal home is Ngor-Okpala.

This will be the second time, since Ihedioha was removed from office, that he and Uzodimma would clash in an election. The first was at the Okigwe Senatorial seat. Uzodinma won. Ihedioha would, this time, be seeking to make it a draw, while Uzodinma would want to prove that he is the Governor, and in charge.

The invitation from the Police, addressed to the Imo PDP Chairman, with attention to candidate Nwachukwu, reads as follows:

“The Command is in receipt of threat to breach of peace towards the forthcoming Ngor-Okpala State Constituency bye-election scheduled to hold on Saturday 26/02/2022 in the State.

“The Commissioner of Police Imo State requests to have a meeting with you and Party’s candidate tomorrow, (Today) Thursday, by 12.00hrs through the officer in-charge, State Intelligence Bureau (SIB, State Headquarters Owerri.

“Accept the warmest regards from the Bureau, please.”

It was signed by the Officer-in-charge of SIB, CSP Ekemere Michael.

At the time of writing this, the meeting was still was on-going.