Beyond every other thing, a responsible leader should be more concerned about encouraging peace and averting actions and utterances that may trigger crisis. This is because, no matter how powerful and careless a leader may be, his performance level and even personal comfort must be adversely affected in situations of crisis and any level of anarchy.
In the 24 days of his reign as the governor of Imo State, His Excellency Rt Hon Emeka Ihedioha has taken more actions to provoke crisis than he has taken to encourage peace. He has made it clear through his body language, actions and utterances that anyone connected to his predecessor, politically or in any other way is a target for persecution. In fact, the impression the governor gives is that an Okorocha loyalist is a threat to his government, and therefore must be crushed or forcefully converted to an Ihedioha apologist. He has succeeded in getting some lily-livered Rescue missionaries over to his own side of politics, and has intensified persecution against others who have refused to bulge in their loyalty to the people focused political ideologies which Senator Owelle Rochas Okorocha’s politics represents.
Earlier today, I got a phone call from someone, informing me that some people came into his house and made away with his official vehicle as the LGA Chairman of APC in his local government. One does not need to be told that a political Party has right to own properties outside the government. Going under the pretence of recovering government vehicles to invade houses of Party chieftains to take away an opposition Party’s properties is provocative and capable of plunging the State into avoidable anarchy.
Let me remind the governor that it does not take a thousand people to start off a resistance that may hurt the peace of the State. The standing up of one man against State sponsored suppression of dissent and freedom can trigger an unimaginable level of crisis. No one has the capacity to measure the extent a people can go in defense of their basic freedom.
The new government in Imo State has continued to leave no options open to us than a resort to self-help, especially, since the Commissioner of Police in the Cp Rabiu Ladodo seems to be hands in gloves with the government in suppressing the will of the people and making them feel it is some kind of crime to be out of power.
I was part of a delegation that visited the Commissioner for Police few weeks ago to Lodge a complaint to his office over unwarranted attacks against members of our Party in the State. I was pleased with his assurances to ensure that every law abiding Imolite enjoys the protection of the Police under his watch. This is not the situation in the State. As we speak, Policemen provide cover for the some group of people who recklessly invade the houses of members of our Party, to harass and intimidate them, making away with their private vehicles and other personal valuables, in the pretext of recovering government vehicles and properties.
These policemen and the civilians among them, mostly move about without any authorized search warrant and without having issued any directive urging former government officials to return government properties in their possession.
I do not support anyone illegally keeping government properties without authorization and should anyone be found to have made away with any property belonging to the State Government, such a person should be made to return it. However, there are stipulated ways to go about this and more than 90% of those who have been harassed by the State Government empanelled task force are people who legitimately acquired their vehicles and other properties.
It is important to remind the Imo State governor that a people may endure anything in the world, but when they are eventually pushed to the world, they will have no other option but to fight back, knowing that fighting is the only option left to them.
BY ONWUASOANYA FCC JONES
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