Grace Egbo – Abakaliki
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) rally venue in Ebonyi, was in the early hours of Friday attacked by unknown gunmen destroying properties worth millions of Naira.
The venue of the rally was the home of (PDP) candidate for Izizi/Abakaliki Federal Constituency, Barnabas Ofoke.
The Deputy Director Media and Publicity PDP campaign council Moses Idike disclosed this in a statement on Friday accusing the ruling All Progressive Congress(APC) in the State of being responsible for the attack.
According to Idika, the primary aim of the attack was to frustrate the Izzi local government campaign rally of their party which was scheduled to take place at the home of Chief Boniface Ofoke.
Mr Nwoba said: “Today is the PDP governorship campaign rally in Izzi LGA of Ebonyi State. Yesterday by 2 o’clock in the night, thugs working for the APC governorship candidate, Francis Nwifuru invaded the compound of the PDP candidate for Izzi/Abakaliki Federal Constituency, Hon. Barnabas Ofoke and shattered the house, vehicles and sent occupants away.
“This was the compound the campaign was meant to hold since the APC governorship candidate and Gov. Umahi declared no open space for PDP in the LGA”.
This is the LGA of the APC governorship candidate. The father of the PDP House of Representatives candidate whose house was destroyed as shown here was the political godfather of Francis Nwifuru and is still alive.”
The APC and the governorship candidate, Francis Nwifuru however denied having a hand in the attack.
A member of the party’s media team and an Aide to Governor David Umahi, Brutus Orogwu said the incident was self-inflicted by the PDP.
He said the PDP staged the said attack in an attempt to tarnish the image of the APC and its governorship candidate, Francis Nwifuru who hails from the area.
He said: PDP secretly sent their boys to destroy those things just to use them to tarnish the APC image in Izzi. Well, all I know is that they have failed already,” he said.
The Director of New Media of the APC Campaign Council and State Spokesperson of APC, Simbad Ogbuatu also debunked the accusation.
He said Mr Nwifuru and the APC had no hand in the said attack and accused the PDP of staging the incident.
He said: This is mere propaganda by the PDP. Nwifuru is a peaceful person, a man who has respect for human life and rule of law and as such can never send anybody for such a despicable act.
“PDP are not on ground, they stage managed the attack. Ofoke is not a threat, he has never won his Polling unit”
“The media and Ebonyi voters should disregard this propaganda by PDP, it is because they know they don’t have the capacity to defeat APC at the polls that they are coming up with these gimmicks to tarnish the image of PDP”
“Nwifuru did not attack anybody and didn’t send anybody to carry out any attack. APC does not have things and does not believe in or engage in thuggery,” he said.
