Abia PDP Condemns Protest By Labour Party in Umuahia, describes it as irresponsible demonstration

Steve Unegbu

The Abia PDP has condemned the protest by Members of the Labour Party in Umuahia yesterday, following the Court of Appeal ruling on the Abia Central Senatorial election which removed Darlington Nwokeocha of the Labour Party and restored the mandate of Col. Austin Akobundu of the PDP.

In a press conference organized by the Abia PDP at the party State Secretariat Umuahia on Tuesday, the party Vice Chairman and State Publicity Secretary Hon.Elder Abraham, said Abia PDP had received intelligence reports that the Labour Party had mobilised its members in Ikwuano LGA,the home LGA of Senator-elect Col.Akobundu and across the State to embark on an -unheard-of-march to protest the judgement of a court of competent and final jurisdiction and alerted the security agencies to stop the protest and forestall the breakdown of law and order in the State.

Continuing,he said,” Despite our warnings,we are surprised that the Labour Party did not heed our advice and went ahead with the ill-advised protest which is not only unconscionably but also nonsensical and laughable given that the Court of Appeal would never bow to such a hilarious arm twisting and reverse itself

“The resort to such infantile tactic is very unintelligent and speaks to the Calibre of people who populate the Labour Party had the gradual descent of Abia to the most absurd level of indecency under the watch of Alex Otti and the Labour Party”

The press Conference which had in attendance the PDP State working committee ,the State Exco,LGA Exco among others accused Abia State Government of being the brain behind the protest and had budgeted millions of Naira as well as planned to hire and convey about 6000 protesters and members of the Labour Party using 340,18 -seater buses to Umuahia,to protest the Appeal Court judgement.

Elder Amah said that the actions of the Labour Party were unbecoming of an organization that is supposed to function as a political party and a responsible corporate citizen,added that its State Chairman,Ceekay Igara had thrown caution to the winds when he addressed a press briefing and assumed the role of an Agent Provocateur and Judge Extraordinarie to reject the judgement.

He maintained that the resort by Labour Party to protest and demonstrate is a new low in their unbridled quest for power and a call to anarchy, saying the people of Abia State would not sit by and watch it trample on the rights of others

He also accused the Labour Party of staying mute when judgements go in its favour but prefer to protests whenever a judgement goes against it,noting that sinnce 1999 when Nigeria returned to democracy and in the 24 years PDP was in power in Abia State, the party never called out its members to protest any judgement that did not favour it, much more disobey a court order.

” We call on the security agencies to bring to justice all the actors in the bizarre and actionable act capable of truncating our democracy, especially operatives of the State government who are not mindful of the fact that the protest against the judiciary is an affront to the concept of separation of powers, one of the strongest safeguards of our democracy against authoritarianism and absolute power in the hands of a few men.

“We also call on members of the PDP and the good people of Abia State to remain eternally vigilant because that is the price we have to pay to secure and sustain our liberty from autocrats” he said