Ahead of the meeting of Okigwe Zone All Progressives Congress APC leaders scheduled for August 1, 2017 at Umualumoke Okigwe, Imo State, the country home of the Speaker Rt. Hon. Acho Ihim, prominent politicians from the Zone have spoken out against an inciting publications that purportedly had the speaker arrogating the powers of the APC Zonal leader to himself.
One of such politicians Hon. Chukwunonye Irouno a former Chairman of Okigwe Local Government Area and presently the Senior Special Assistant to Imo State Governor on Entertainment, said that the Speaker cannot contest the position with anyone, because as the number three citizen of the state and the fact that none of the Governor or the Deputy Governor hails from the zone, means he is number one in the zone.
“By natural arrangement, by virtue of the fact that he is the number three in the state, he cannot go to his local government and zone and become number 2.
“He is number 3 in the state and the person who is number 1 is not from his zone, the person who is number 2 is not from his zone, automatically, he is number one in that zone”, Hon. Irouno said.
The speaker on his side said; “Acho Ihim can convene the meeting of APC leaders. I would have done that before now on the ground that I am of Okigwe extraction”. He further stated that he convened the meeting in consultation with other leaders of the zone especially Senator Benjamin Uwajumogu and Hon. Chike Okafor who are in the Houses of Assemble and Representatives respectively, confirming that the duo and other leaders of the party from the zone will be at the meeting.
“We want to galvanize our people for APC and I am not in any leadership tussle with anyone”, the speaker added at an interactive session with blogger and journalist in Owerri, Imo State on Friday July 28, 2017.
