Governor Hope Uzodinma of Imo State has alleged that Igbo leaders in the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, are plotting to topple the government of President Muhammadu Buhari.
In a statement he personally signed and made available to reporters in Owerri, the state capital, he described the nationwide protest by the PDP over his victory at the Supreme Court as a veiled version of the Revolution Now agenda.
The former lawmaker claimed that although the opposition was pretending that his court victory was the main reason for taking to the streets, the truth is that there is more to it.
The Governor accused those leading the protests of harbouring a hidden agenda because they know that the sacked PDP governorship candidate, Ihedioha never won the election in Imo and they also know that the election petition was dead and buried.
The Governor noted that when APC suffered same loss in Zamfara and other States no one protested, adding that this does not mean political leaders in those places are cowards or fools but patriotic Nigerians who respect the laws and institutions of the land.
He said, “The protests is a script; a veiled version of Revolution Now agenda, to topple the Federal Government and it is unfortunate that Igbo leaders are wittingly and unwittingly lending themselves to the actualisation of this perfidious agenda, thereby making themselves willing sacrificial lambs and also endangering the lives of innocent Igbo all over the country
“I think if these Igbo leaders should do a sober soul search, they will realise that the people from the North West who remained calm and law abiding when the supreme court sacked all the elected officials from governor to National and State assemblies of APC and gave same to PDP, were neither cowards nor fools but patriotic Nigerians who respect the laws and institutions of the land.
“These Igbo leaders should try and look beyond their noses and maybe they will see that they are being set up as intemperate, volatile, lawless group of people who can be used to rock the boat because they can be goaded into hasty actions and will not play by the rules of civility and democracy.
“If they look carefully, they will also see that it was not by accident that no prominent leader from any other part of the country was marked present at those protests.”
Uzodinma added that it was a shame that it is “Igbo leaders who will be remembered for the very unpatriotic act of openly inviting foreign powers to interfere in the internal affairs of the country.”
Senator Uzodinma pointed out that “It was an open secret that the protests are hugely funded from somewhere to discredit the entire electoral process, not because of the Imo judgement but because the PDP has a grouse to settle with the entire 2019 elections and will do everything to bring down the entire Federal Government apparatus.
“If Igbos decide to exit themselves from a family bus with enough seats to accommodate every family member, they should have themselves to blame when they find themselves on the fringes of the family business.”
