Imo: Government Accuses Onyeagucha Of Lawlessness

By Adesina Soyooye

The Imo State Government has accused the Secretary to  the Imo State Government under the short-lived Governor Emeka Ihedioha’s Administration of lawlessness.

Onyeagucha is, also, the Senatorial Candidate, Imo East, of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in the oncoming 2023 Senatorial election.

The Government and Onyeagucha have been wrangling for days over the sealing of Onyeagucha’s Campaign office, located at No 3, Ihugba Street, Owerri,  by a Government Agency over a breach of the laws concerning buildings and their reconstruction in the State.

Onyeagucha and the PDP had descended heavily on the Government and the Imo State Governor, Senator Hope Uzodinma. They accused the Governor of high handedness and of deliberately persecuting members of the opposition.

But the  Government has dismissed the  attacks  by those it called  some uninformed and misguided elements over the lawful action of Owerri Capital Development Authority (OCDA), against Uche Onyeagocha’s lawlessness, as swimming in ignorance.

It described the attacks  as uninformed, unwarranted and seditious.

Reacting to a statement credited to an unknown and unregistered group, brandishing the name of Owerri League of Patriots, which made false allegations against the Government on the Onyeagucha issue, the Government also warned the  group to be mindful of its unbridled support for Onyeagucha’s illegal action, “because those who support illegality are guilty of promoting lawlessness”

A statement in Owerri on Sunday by the Imo State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Hon Declan Emelumba  said: “For the purposes of clarification,  Chief Uche Onyeagucha embarked on expansion of an old building which required him to obtain a written permission from OCDA.

“Typical of him, he not only refused to apply for the permission, but went ahead, in his illegal expansion project, to block drainages,thus inflicting untold hardship on residents of the street. The OCDA had to do the needful by sealing the compound. ”

The Commissioner further noted:  “Onyeagucha”s action is a clear manifestation of his disrespect for constituted authority carried too far. Those supporting his reckless and illegal affront on the Government should take notice that they are guilty of promoting lawlessness.”

The statement made it clear that since Onyeagucha is not above the law,  all relevant processes pertaining to erecting a new  building or reconstruction of old  buildings must be followed strictly, adding that failure to do so would attract necessary sanctions.

The Commissioner said that it was a shame that a group claiming to be made up of patriots could lend itself to cheap manipulation for propaganda and display of crass  ignorance of extant laws of the state, and added:

“No amount of blackmail,lies, propaganda or even display of outright disrespect to constituted authority will dissuade government from applying the rules to the letter.”