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Okorocha Declares Free Education in Imo

EMMA OGU, Owerri

Education, job creation and security top priority list Governor Rochas Okororcha of Imo state announced yesterday to the cheering of enthusiastic crowd of Imo citizens shortly after being administered the oath of office with his deputy Chief Sir Jude Agbaso at Dan Anyiam stadium Owerri.

Immediate past Governor Ikedi Ohakim, his deputy Ada Okwuonu as well as Speaker of the State House of Assembly were however, conspicuously absent at the occasion graced by former governor Achike Udenwa, governor Peter Obi of Anambra State, Chief Victor Umeh, national chairman of All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) governorship candidate of the party for the 2007 election Chief Martin Agbaso and other distinguished personalities.

Okorocha who arrived at the venue with his wife and six children took his oath of office at exactly 12 noon after the deputy governor Chief Agbaso was administered the oath by the Chief Judge, Justice Benjamin Njemanze.

Okorocha who burst into songs of praise after his swearing in declared the day a day of freedom, a day of emancipation and a day of restoration for Imo people saying democracy has really started in the state and never again shall an Iroko decides who governs Imo people but the people themselves.

"The May 5 supplementary election remains a great day in history. I see before me a great thing to happen. I know you expect much from me. You believe in me and you trust me. I will perform and I will not disappoint you. Your peace is my peace; your pain is my pain. Where you are, there I will be.

"Just few days ago the outgoing governor Ikedi Ohakim issued staff of office to over 160 traditional rulers. Appointment letters for his 10,000 thousand jobs were released to the beneficiaries within a week. Just few days ago he signed N18, 000 minimum wage for workers. Imo allocation stands at N2.2billion. Imo is not worthy to borrow from any bank because of over borrowing. Even on that I will perform. I will not give any excuse. I will deliver", he said.

Reeling out his priority areas, Okorocha declared free education and warned that any parents or guardian who refused to send his child or ward to school will face the law. He said he was prompted to declare free education out of his belief that the best that can be given to a child is education as a child without education is a futureless child.

He said Imo has a lot of security challenges and noted that peace has returned to the state since his election because there is a new spirit among the people to move forward. In this regard, he promised to tackle security to the fullest.

"I don't believe in crime fighting but crime prevention. The criminals are all in our communities and my administration will create a black book for them. No criminal shall go unpunished as far as this administration is concerned", he said.

On the issue of job he said his government will do a lot to keep everybody busy. He said that he would rescue the few remaining industries in comatose position in the state. He warned civil servants in the state to be serious with their jobs noting that the era of truancy and coming late to work is gone with the old order.

He said: "Our civil servants must stand up and face the challenge. For every single worker, there is a corresponding person waiting to take over your seat if you don't perform".

He advised unemployed young men and women in the state looking for jobs to be close to their God henceforth because his government will go to churches to collect list of such job lookers and this will ensure that those to be employed are spiritually certified.

Governor Okorocha did not ignore the health sector as he said that his government will review the issue of health with serious concern. He said he is worried by the issue of justice and fairness and therefore will appoint a special assistant in charge of that to ensure that innocent persons are not kept in prison custody because they have no big man to bail them.

He said: "No innocent person will be kept in police or prison custody anymore. At the same time, no criminal will go unpunished no matte his connection. I therefore warn the big men who are fond of issuing orders to Divisional Police Officers to release detained criminals stop it henceforth or they will replace such criminals in prison."

Assuring that his government will be grassroots based, Okorocha said his government will create fourth tier of government, Community Government and the seat of power, Douglas House is now in the communities.

He said he was not interested in probing his predecessor, but in auditing the accounts of the state. "This government is not interested in witch hunting anybody. What we are interested in is auditing the account of Imo state. I have no business looking backward".

He said of the immediate past governor: "Ohakim said his name is Ikiri. But since I won the election he is my brother. I have separated my brother from Ikiri. Ikiri has gone to the bush and my brother has gone back to Isiala Mbano. From today, Ohakim is no longer Ikiri but former governor.
Source: Daily Champion, 30^th May 2011.

Lawyers Divided Over Ohakim's Handover

CHIKA OTUCHIKERE ABUJA

The seeming hurried handover of office of former Imo State governor, Chief Ikedi Ohakim on Friday to governor-elect, Chief Rochas Okorocha has sparked controversy with lawyers holding divergent views.

Some Lagos-based constitutional lawyers have described as illegal and unconstitutional, the handover by Gov. Ikedi Ohakim to the governor-elect, Chief Rochas Okorocha.

Ohakim handed over the government to Okorocha on Friday, barely two days to the May 29 official handover date.

A legal luminary, Chief Mike Ahamba, however said that the administration had run its full course of four years between May 29, 2007 and May 29, 2011.

Reacting to the development which has caused a lot of curiosity among the people of Imo, Ahamba explained that the tenure of the governor formally lapsed on Friday in spite of the fact that the inauguration would come up on Sunday.

The Owerri-based legal practitioner, who was counsel to CPC presidential candidate General Muhammadu Buhari and recently announced his retirement from active politics,  said: "It is only the governors whose tenures were extended that should remain in office," adding that there was nothing wrong in Ohakim's action.

Prof.  Itse Sagay speaking in Lagos, said that ``the governor- elect has to take an oath of office to be legally recognised as the Imo State governor.''

Sagay argued that even if the governor had resigned, the governor-elect cannot assume duties until May 29 after he had been sworn in.

In his views, Mr Fred Agbaje described the handover as an affront on the nation's constitution.

``The constitution is clear as to when the four-year tenure of a governor terminates -  which is May 29.

``What they have is a gentleman's handover which is not recognised by the constitution,'' Agbaje explained.

``Handing over to a man who has not been legitimately sworn in was shadow boxing.  Swearing in confers legitimacy on the governor-elect and until then, he cannot give any directive officially in the state.''

Also speaking, Prof. Taiwo Osipitan said the governor- elect cannot function in office until he is officially sworn in on May 29.

The Constitution, he noted,  states that a governor-elect cannot function in office before  the swearing-in.

He said the handover might have been done because the incumbent was probably in a hurry to leave office, noting that it `` has no recognition of the law.''
Source: Leadership, 29^th May 2011.

Exposing Ohakim's Landmines Against Okorocha

By Ebere Uzoukwa

opinion

Owerri — As the hand over date draws near, the outgoing governor of Imo state, Sir Ikedi Ohakim has initiated deadly actions capable of frustrating the incoming government of Owelle Rochas Okorocha.

Though Ohakim congratulated the APGA candidate in his victory, the governor on the other hand is hatching plans apparently designed to make things difficult for a hitch free hand-over and smooth take-off of the incoming government unrealistic policies and frivolous approvals.

Contrary to the claim by the present government that it has been unable to pay salaries due the freezing of the State accounts by the incoming administration, investigation revealed that the state account is rather on red.

Even as federal government instructed that state government accounts be defreeze to enable outgoing governments carry out their final activities and transactions until May 29, the accounts of Imo state government were rather discovered to be empty.

This development may not be unconnected to the alleged financial recklessness of Ohakim during the gubernatorial elections where billions of naira was wasted in buying voters. The desperation exhibited by the outgoing governor towards retaining his plum job obviously caused financial draught in the state treasury that has equally halted government actions.

Further investigation also revealed that payment of salaries and pensions are not in the priority list of the outgoing government as it has rather decided to pay for contracts through which it will fleece the State of the remaining cash to settle cronies and PDP henchmen who may lead Ohakim to the gallows if not settled.

Ohakim who is facing a challenge of his life due to his defeat and subsequent humiliation by Imo people for taking them for ride since 2007 he became governor is said to have been besieged by his supposedly trusted men that had told him to his face that he is a big failure and disappointment to the people of Okigwe zone. They are insisting that Ohakim settles them even if it means borrowing as he had sought while running his elections.

While Ohakim is busy hatching evil plans to bring Okorocha's incoming government into collision with the people of imo state, some prominent Imo citizens are gathering their facts to ensure that the outgoing governor account for his stewardship. They had listed the governor's unpardonable sins, which might take him to jail after handing over on May 29.

Investigation revealed that the outgoing governor has embarked on massive allocation of land to his cronies and allies as well as issuing them with C of O without following due process. Massive looting of government properties by the governor and his aides had equally begun especially the newly purchased vehicles. Government has virtually become empty as one could hardly see government cars with official registration plate number. Most of these vehicles had been looted and confined to undisclosed locations as government officials now goes with their private cars.

Other antics employed by the outgoing governor include recruitment of youth numbering about ten thousand in the state civil service, approval of free education from primary to tertiary level and free healthcare for all Imo citizens. What he never dreamt of doing, he has approved for the incoming governor. Ironically, Ohakim in his campaign had told Imo people that free education at primary and secondary levels are not realizable in the state. His insensitivity on education equally manifested when he returned 44 schools to the missionaries. This particular action has not only portrayed the governor as an unrepentant fellow but has further ridiculed him before the people of the state. The knock so far received over the action has equally reduced his much battered personality.

Meanwhile, about two thousand previously employed, only about ten percent of them have received salaries and yet he is over-bloating the civil service by employing more for Okorocha. It is rather in a bid to create a distasteful relationship between the governor and the people as most of these newly employed persons may be laid off.

Not yet done, the outgoing governor is said to have embarked on a massive promotion of workers without any input from the State Civil Service Commission. This has largely created a heavy financial burden for the incoming governor. While other buoyant governments are still crying over how to meet up with the minimum wage, Ohakim has also approved the payment of N18, 000 minimum wage. What it means is that the incoming governor will only pay salaries if that is allowed to stand.

The latest of its ploy to achieve its devastating goal, Ohakim has allegedly begun its usual threat to the lives of those who are averse to their devilish activities. Among those threatened are members of the civil service and other politicians in the PDP fold who have raised an eye brow over his ploy to heat up the system. Some of the APGA chieftains are not left out due to their insistence that right things be done especially their stand that proper accountability be done for a smooth transition.

Apparently to leave no trace of some government transactions carried out by Ohakim and his brother Emma Ohakim who is also his chief of staff, the outgoing governor has resorted to burning down government house and other strategic quarters to justify the removal of those documents that may nail him. Attempts to burn government house have thickened even as some efforts had failed. A government house source disclosed that a particular gang led by the outgoing governor's kinsmen had been contracted to execute this mission before May 27.

Similarly, the going governor had redeployed all the staff of Secret Registry. Hence government all over the world remains a continuum; one wonders why Ohakim decided to post out these staff of a sensitive department immediately he lost re-election. It was also gathered that before new ones were posted, the outgoing governor's wife with some close allies of the governor had removed all the sensitive documents.

Meanwhile, a section of Imo people had cautioned the outgoing governor against frustrating Okorocha's incoming government.

A human right lawyer, Barr. Uche Wisdom Durueke told Leadership that it was rather unfortunate that the outgoing governor had continued to embark on actions that have deepened the hatred Imo people have on him.

He said that he had expected Ohakim to change his approach on issues that have to do with Imo people rather than planting landmines for the incoming government.

A chieftain of APGA in the state, Chief Chris Ejike Uche, however maintained that Ohakim's antics cannot stop Okorocha from offering governance to the people of Imo state. Uche, who is the National Deputy Chairman of APGA, said he had expected Ohakim to apologize to the people of imo state over his misrule which inflicted suffering on the faces of the people. But the commissioner for Information in the state, Nze Elvis Agukwe told our correspondent that Ohakim has no intention of frustrating Okorocha's government as speculated in some quarters.

He expressed that the outgoing government is only laying a foundation for the smooth take-off the incoming government by initiating policies that were already contained in Okorocha's manifesto.
Source: Leadership, 30^th May 2011.

Court Rejects Bid to Stop Okorocha's Inauguration

MALACHY UZENDU, Abuja Bureau Chief

As controversy continues to trail the supplementary election conducted in Imo State by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja, yesterday, effectively frustrated attempts by the Freedom Party of Nigeria (FPN) to stop the inauguration of Owelle Rochas Okorocha as the new governor of Imo State.

There was initial stalemate after the April 26 governorship election in the state following non-conduct of election in four out of the 27 Local Government Areas in the state and Orji Ward in Owerri North Local Government Area which prompted INEC to declare the election as "inconclusive".

To extricate itself from the provisions of Section 178 (2) of the 1999 constitution (as amended) which forbids INEC from conducting election less than 30 days to the expiration of the tenure of the office holder, the electoral body came up with what it described as "supplementary election" which was conducted on May 6.

Owelle Okorocha, who contested under the platform of All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), was declared winner of the election by INEC after the May 6 supplementary election and sent Governor Ikedi Ohakim of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) packing from Government House Owerri.

Dissatisfied with the ingenious method employed by INEC to conclude the governorship election, the FPN, through its governorship candidate, Dennis Chinedu Chikere, approached the Federal High Court, Abuja, presided over by Justice Bilikisu Aliu, to grant an Interim Order of Injunction "restraining any person or authority whomsoever from swearing in the candidate declared as winner of Imo State governorship elections conducted by the first defendant (INEC) on April 26 and May 6, 2011, respectively, pending the determination of the motion on notice".

The case has been dragging since May 5 when the originating summons was filed and on May 12, the plaintiffs approached the court asking for an ex-parte order of interim injunction because of the proximity of the inauguration date.

The application was supported by affidavit of urgency deposed to by Dennis Chikere himself who prayed the court "to treat the application as a matter of urgency because of the proximity of the swearing in date on May 29, 2011 which constitutes a major volume of the RES of our suit".

Chikere's eight-point affidavit of urgency in support of motion ex-parte further said that "delay in hearing this application will render any future hearing an exercise in futility because of the proximity of the swearing-in date and that "if this court does not direct otherwise, the swearing in will take place unabated".

On May 19, Justice Aliu fixed May 26 for definite hearing of the matter and the litigants were promptly notified of the hearing date.

However, the litigants who had stormed the Court Six for the case went home disappointed when after waiting in the court room for several hours without the judge appearing only got an announcement by the court officials that the case has been adjourned to May 31, two days after Owelle Okorocha must have been sworn in.

This put paid to the attempt and by May 31, Okorocha would have acquired constitutional immunity, which would make it impossible for anyone to drag him to court, until the end of his tenure, when the immunity would have been shed, not later than four years time.
Source: Daily Champion, 28^th May 2011.

Okorocha Unfolds Agenda

EMMA OGU, Owerri

Ahead of his inauguration tomorrow, Imo State Governor-elect, Owelle Rochas Okorocha has declared a zero corruption for his administration assuring also that his government will make every sacrifice to save the lives of Imo people it is going to serve.

Okorocha who spoke at a dinner with journalists in the state held at the Rochas Convention center along Okigwe road Owerri as part of his pre-inauguration ceremony reiterated that he is on a rescue mission in the state and therefore, the people should expect a government that is not corrupt. The governor-elect was in company of his deputy Chief Jude Agbaso.

He said: "Ours is to make sacrifice to save the lives of Imo people. My government is government of the people given by the people and must remain for the people'.

He said he was not going to govern the people but to guide them to govern themselves pointing out that the historic Douglas House will not remain in Owerri but shall be in every community in the state, an expression that means that his government will be felt at the grassroot.

He said that free education in the state is not negotiable because every child should enjoy the right to go to school. Okorocha also stated that job creation is uppermost in his mind because he is so much concerned about the welfare of the masses. He described his election as a battle between the people and the oppressors.

He said: "While I will focus on the masses, I am not going to hurt the elders. It is a very big task but I will perform. If governing Imo will make me to become poor I am ready for that. In this election, I spent nothing to win. So I am clean from any bondage of political Godfathers'.

He also promised not to engage in witch hunting and blaming his predecessors but rather, he would look forward and not backward in his mission of rebuilding the state. He therefore, solicited the support of the press and urged members of the profession to report issues accurately.
Source: Daily Champion, 28^th May 2011.

Okorocha: I'm in a Hurry to Deliver

By Amby Uneze

Imo State Governor-elect, Chief Rochas Okorocha, has restated his commitment to rescue the state, even as he declared that he is in a hurry to deliver the services to the people who massively elected him to serve.

In his first press briefing in Owerri Thursday since he was declared governor-elect, Okorocha who in his usual oratory rendition, observed that he was not expecting any monetary reward from the state because he did not put in money to win his election.

According to him, he won because the battle was between the oppressor and the oppressed (people) and at the end of the day the people won, adding "the battle between the oppressor and the people in the state has ended".

"I am proud to say that I spent nothing in this election, so I owe nobody and the state does not owe me. I have taken the side of service to the people. I think nothing except how to better the lot of Imo people who trooped out in the sun and rains to vote for me", he stated.

He promised to move government closer to the people, stressing that there shall be no Douglas House (official residence of governor of Imo State), and would make the people active participants of governance.

On corruption, Okorocha said his government will not tolerate corruption, as "ours will be to make the necessary sacrifices to make sure that the masses of the state are well taken care of".

On education, he reiterated that he had passion for education and would ensure that every child of Imo origin goes to school free-of-charge. "On free education in Imo State, it is not negotiable. We shall put everything to make sure that we achieve this feat".

He advised that his government will not tolerate laziness and urged all to wake up and embrace good opportunities his government would provide, as he assured that his would be better than the outgoing administrations in the state.
Source: This Day, 27^th May 2011.

Police take Over Imo Assembly
• Foil attempt to impeach Ohakim, Speaker

EMMA OGU, Owerri

Plot by a group of 19 aggrieved lawmakers of the Imo state House of assembly to commence impeachment proceedings against out-going Governor Ikedi Ohakim yesterday hit the rock as a team of policemen led by the commissioner of police Ibrahim Maishanu took over the premises of the house and shut out the lawmakers who had planned to sit yesterday for the action.

The angry lawmakers however, vowed to sit today to probe the state finances, saying that they had complied with the rules of the House which permit one third of members to reconvene the house by way of giving notice to the Speaker and Clerk of the house.

The 19 members of the 27 member House reportedly signed the document to impeach the speaker Goodluck Opiah and his deputy at yesterday's planned sitting to pave the way for removal of the outgoing governor. But luck ran out of them as the police acting on the order of the speaker sealed off the place before the arrival of the lawmakers.

Both the deputy speaker and many other legislators who turned up at the assembly were not allowed to enter the premises by the combined team of policemen and members of the civil defense corps who claimed to be acting on the orders from above.

Our correspondent who visited the place observed that police armoured tank was stationed at the entrance of the premises alongside many patrol vans occupied by many of the security operatives. It was gathered that some of the lawmakers and the police commissioner met at the police command over the development.

Daily Champion reliably gathered that the law makers were visibly angry over non payment of their allowances almost two days to the end of the tenure of the present administration. They were said to have resolved over night to impeach the speaker seen as a stumbling block to actualization of the plot to remove the governor before the end of his tenure in other to teach him a bitter lesson.

Ten of the lawmakers later met at a corporate office of a chartered Estate Surveyor on World Bank Estate where they later addressed journalists on their grievances including Amaechi Nwoha, from Nwangele state constituency; Ugochukwu Nzekwe (Nkwere); Ifeanyi Agwu (Ehime Mbano); Celestine Ngobiwu (Obowu); Basil Duru (Onuimo); Chris Eboh (Okigwe); Benjamin Emeronye (Ahiazu); Henry Igbomezie (Oguta); Larry Ajero (Ideato South) and Clinton Amadi (Owerri Municipal).

Spokesman of the lawmakers, Nwoha, said the lawmakers were not witch-hunting anybody but were worried that workers have not been paid their salary for two months now including the house of assembly members.

"For about two months now workers have not received their salaries. We have heard rumour that the state is indebted to United Bank for Africa (UBA) up to N6.5 billion and the bank seized the last allocation of the state. We have also heard rumour that the incoming governor froze the state bank account. We have also heard another rumour that the incoming governor has denied it and said he did not freeze the accounts. We as lawmakers therefore need to sit down to find out the actual financial situation of the state.

"Unfortunately when we returned from a long holiday on Tuesday, the Speaker adjourned sitting to May 31 without taking into consideration the winding up of the present administration. Now the speaker has written to the police and shifted the reopening date of the house to June 2. The members of the house have agreed that we have to follow the rules of the house to reconvene", he said.

The lawmaker dismissed the allegation that the group want to impeach the governor and the speaker as "completely unfounded" but said they must look into the financial situation of the state. He also denied alleged meeting between his group and the incoming governor, Chief Rochas Okorocha. He said: "We as the House never had any meeting with the incoming governor but some of us as individual have gone to him to congratulate him on his victory".

Meanwhile the lawmakers insisted on meeting today saying that they had convinced the police commissioner that they were acting in accordance with the house rule.

Indication that the lawmakers were on collision course with the outgoing governor emerged Tuesday when the House resumed sitting and quickly repealed the law which renamed the state university after the late governor Evan Enwerem. The law was an executive bill initiated by Ohakim's administration.
Source: Daily Champion, 27^th May 2011.

Hard time for Rochas, Ohakim and Imo State

By EMENIKE NSU EMENIKE

I do not envy Owelle Anayo Rochas Okorocha. This is really a difficult time for him. He has to come to terms with his victory in the Imo gubernatorial election. The combined forces that helped him win will come back to extort their ransom. That is the nature of Imo politics. And the challenge for him will be whether to placate all of them or face his "rescue mission". To ignore them will turn them to enemies. To indulge them will be at the expense of his promise to Imo people. Udenwa's eight years tenure was stymied by propitiating the godfathers in Imo to the extent that it was difficult to even remove refuse from the streets of Owerri!

 Already newspaper reports indicate that an army of sycophants is already camping at the gate of Okorocha's Ogboko country home. It is pay back time for people who will come with all manner of claims for compensation through appointments and contracts. Some will tell him, "I am the one who tore Ohakim's posters in my local government". "I am the one who abused Ohakim in that newspaper article" "Owelle, did you see the congratulation message I placed in the newspaper?" "Owelle, I coordinated for you in my booth".

 People are already falling over themselves to catch Okorocha's attention. This, unfortunately, includes some of Governor Ikedi Ohakim's appointees who, with indecent haste, are crowing loudest to congratulate Okorocha. They go to Okorocha with all manner of stories denying Ohakim, their master, even before the cockcrows once! Some have already taken positions in Okorocha's Transition Committee. Such behaviour tends to give credence to the conspiracy theory afloat in Imo. I have read some articles laced with wild conjectures, vacuous claims and innuendos, which make the articles mere applications for appointment in Okorocha's government.

 Okorocha himself has to show that he can manage power as Governor. His first steps have shown that he may have difficulty understanding the nuances of governance. His order to banks in Imo from the "office of the Executive Governor-Elect" purportedly freezing Imo State accounts was a clear product of infantile hubris. He has eight years to be "Executive Governor", a prefix Ohakim never used. The use of thugs to chase Permanent Secretaries out of their offices and intimidating calls to some key officials asking them to go into hiding so that they don't sign cheques should embarrass his supporters.

You don't cripple government and deny Imo civil servants their April and May salaries and out-going public officers their severance benefits just because you have won an election. It suggests that Imo may be spinning into a rule of the mob. Governor Adebayo Alao Akala of Oyo State lost election. Yet, neither the Oyo Governor-elect nor his supporters have resorted to "agbero" tactics. Behaviours like this breed do-or-die politics, which we all condemn.

 This is also a difficult time for Governor Ohakim. It is indeed a lonely time for him. I have been in similar circumstance. I know how it feels. This is a time when everybody, including those who dined with him till 7 May 2011 when the final result was declared, becomes an "expert" on why Ohakim lost the election. In this country, people are impatiently flippant about what they are ignorant of! People hardly respect facts. There is no rigour in interpreting facts and figures. It is not helped that Imo State has earned itself an unflattering place as the rumour capital of the nation.

This was effectively deployed against Ohakim for four years. It is so bad that, only two days in Imo for the Supplementary Election, Mr Aniedi Ikoiwak, INEC Supervisory Officer, while addressing the world why election could not hold in Oguta, lamented how insidious rumour mongering is in Imo! That is something that should worry Imo citizens.

 I have read many expert "reasons why Ohakim lost" that simply recycled fanciful rumours. The Imo governorship election result was in no way an overwhelming victory, a landslide, a tsunami, a battering or a humiliating defeat. The figures are there for any objective commentator to make an informed conclusion. Given the forces ranged against Ohakim, we should acknowledge that on 26 April he fought them to a standstill. Those who witnessed what transpired during the Supplementary Election know that it was no longer the normal election that we all know. Some commentators have resorted to personal abuse that has nothing to do with governance. My people say a bloodied lion is a prey to even a lizard!

 Ohakim has nothing to be ashamed of. I am sure he will remember that this is typical Imo behaviour. Both of us were victims of similar treachery by friends when the military overthrew Enwerem's government of which he was a member of cabinet. Soon, the smokes will clear and the truth will be told. The truth we know for now is that Ohakim's problem was not lack of performance. A government is judged by its promise to the people. Commentators will be forced to acknowledge that in four years, Ohakim raised the bar of leadership in Imo, perhaps too high, for the comfort of some. A few objective commentators like the Chairman of ANPP in Imo State, Chief Vitalis Ajumbe, has testified to that (Daily Independent, Tuesday 17 May page 27).

 In the weeks ahead, there will be futile efforts to rubbish Ohakim using the rumour machine in Imo State. Uncritical commentators will aid an obvious witch-hunting. I know. I have been there before, as I said. At the end, I am sure that many commentators will discover that they have been swindled; people will realize how badly they have misunderstood Ohakim. The Ohakim I know is not anything they have said about him. There is still time to re-examine the totality of Ohakim's mystique and his four-year tenure.

 As for Imo, it is either that there is a collective effort to sanitize the state of the corrosive rumour mongering or the state convulses into a state of anomie. A people who cannot run their lives on truth and facts cannot think right and therefore cannot act right.

Emenike N Emenike is a businessman/politician in Owerri
Source: Sun, 25^th May 2011.

Okorocha, Ohakim meet

EMMA OGU, Owerri

For the first time since his election, the in-coming governor of Imo State Owelle Rochas Okorocha, yesterday met with the out-going Governor, Chief Ikedi Ohakim at Government House, Owerri as part of preparation for his assumption of office on 29th May. It was the first meeting between the two since the conclusion of Imo governorship election.

Okorocha in company of his senior special assistant on media, Chinedu Offor and deputy chief of staff Uche Nwosu had earlier carried out a facility tour on some of the establishment in the state including the Imo State University Teaching Hospital in Orlu before storming the Government House where he was received by Ohakim. Okorocha while on his way to Orlu also inspected a bridge under construction along Orlu road.

Okorocha after a warm embrace with Ohakim promised to start from the foundation laid by the outgoing governor in his task of rebuilding the Eastern Heart land. He also thanked him, Ohakim for his contribution towards development of the state. The governor-elect and his men inspected the governor's residence where he is going to park into as well as the historic Douglas House in the Government House.

The visit yesterday has doused tension created by the seemingly frosty relationship between the two since after the governorship election particularly when the in-coming governor took the move to place embargo on all the bank accounts of Imo state government which Ohakim resisted by going to court.

Ohakim had after taking the governor-elect round government house including his living quarters and offices promised to do every thing possible to ensure that he had a smooth tenure and enjoy the cooperation of Imo people. He wished that Chief Okorocha should not enjoy any distraction during his tenure as it was his fate through out his four year tenure in the state.

Ohakim further said: "That is why I decided not to go to court after your election because I don't want my predecessor to suffer the distraction I suffered through out my tenure as the governor of Imo state. I can assure you that I will cooperate with you in whatever way to ensure your success in the state".

The visit of Chief Okorocha coincided with the last security council meeting of the out going administration as all the heads of security agencies were present on the occasion including the Police Commissioner Ibrahim Maishanu, Director of the State Security Services, Sam Kalama and Brigade Commander of 34 Artillery Brigade Obinze.
Source: Daily Champion, 25^th May 2011.

Ohakim Relocates Enwerem Varsity

FROM CHARLES OGUGBUAJA, OWERRI

A FEW days to the end of the administration of Governor Ikedi Ohakim of Imo State, the State Executive Council has relocated the Evan Enwerem University, Owerri, from its temporary site at Okigwe Road, Owerri to a border town between Ohaekelem in Ngor-Okpala Local Council and Uvuru, Aboh Mbaise Local Council of the state.

Also, Ohakim has presented certificates of recognition and staff of office to 106 monarchs in various autonomous communities in the state. The action was sequel to the creation of additional autonomous communities by the 27-member Imo State House of Assembly recently.

Briefing journalists after the executive meeting on Monday in Owerri, the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Nze Elvis Agukwe, noted that the decision to relocate the university was taken based on the reports of environmentalists and other experts. He said that further decisions on the matter would be made open in future.

The university was relocated from Abia in 1991 by the administration of the late Chief Evan Enwerem in the state. The name was later changed from Imo State University to Evan Enwerem University, Owerri, by the state Legislature a few months ago. But the renaming has witnessed stiff opposition, prompting the same 27-member Imo State House of Assembly to initiate another bill to revert to the old name (Imo State University, Owerri). It is currently being debated.

Presenting the documents to the monarchs at the Government House, Owerri, the governor disclosed that out of over 400 traditional disputes he inherited in office, over 300 had been resolved, urging the recipients and Imo people to embrace peace and dialogue.

He pointed out that the monarchs were strictly screened by the government and security agencies before they were approved.

He said: "Those of you who have received staff of office and certificates of recognition have escaped through   the traditional institution and other areas of life, it remains our legacy".

While urging the rulers to remain custodians of peace and culture, he maintained that they should continue to play their roles as royal fathers, adding that he took the duty based on the creation made by the state Assembly recently.

Ohakim urged the monarchs to work in tandem with various town unions in their domains.

In their speeches, the Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs and the Imo State Chairman of Council of Traditional Rulers, Eze Cletus Ilomuanya, said the occasion was desirable, adding that it would put an end to unrest in the areas.

On behalf of the recipients, the monarch of Ikwuano in Ideato-North Local Council, Eze John Obidiegwu, thanked the governor, adding that they would discharge their duties creditably.
Source: The Guardian, 25^th May 2011.

Imo : DDIC Seals 5 Companies, Issues 11 with Directives

Emeka Ihiegbulem, Orlu

Chairman of Drug Distribution Inspection Committee (DDIC) Chairman, Pharm (Mrs). Anthonia O. Aruya, has sealed five premises . He said the measure was aimed at sanitizing drug distribution system in the country.

Aruya, who disclosed this while briefing newsmen at Pharmacists Council of Nigeria (PCN) Secretariat in Owerri, capital of Imo State declared that it was also done to ensure that quality, safe drugs are made available to the end-users (patients).

She noted that most of the drugs found in illegal outfits are kept under adverse conditions adding that it makes them dangerous and unsafe for consumption.

Aruya, also a Deputy Director in Pharmacists Council of Nigeria however, did not disclose the names of the companies 'premises sealed and their offences but said that the sealing was not meant to witch-hunt them or destabilize their enterprise but to ensure that proper processes were taken in terms of quality of drugs sold to end-users.

She advised the public, private and public hospitals to source their drugs and medical devices from registered and licensed premises saying that the premises can easily be identified by the presence of premises license, conspicuously displayed in the premises.

She contended that drugs are chemicals and therefore need a special storage conditions in order to maintain their integrity and that all premises licensed by the PCN have been made to provide those requirements alongside training personal that can interpret and ensure that the conditions are met with.

In furtherance Aruya stated that DDIC was established over three years ago and has visited over 12 States.
Source: Daily Champion, 24^th May 2011.

Imo Varsity: Enwerem's Widow Cries Foul Over Move Against Husband

From Our reporter

Widow of former Senate President and Imo State governor, Chief Evan Enwerem, Vivian, has denounced attempts my members of the state House of Assembly to reverse the law naming the State University after him. Enwerem, told Daily Sun over the weekend that the university remained an important legacy of her husband's administration as governor and he should be remembered for it.

She added:. "Nobody can controvert the fact that this man single-handedly founded this university out of his own ingenuity when the Imo University was ceded to Abia State."

She stated further that the late Enwerem built the university when the then Imo State University was ceded to the new Abia State on its creation in 1991, adding that her husband used his position both as Imo State governor and personal friend of the former military President Ibrahim Babangida to get the university on its feet.

"When he was there not only did he make sure that the university was established, but well-funded with take-off infrastructure, because at the time he had good relationship with the then military President Ibrahim Babangida, who gave him the necessary support and enablement to make sure that the university took off at the current site. At that time,the Federal University of Technology was occupying that site, but he used his position and got them to move FUTO to its permanent site, even though the Vice Chancellor at the time said he was not ready, but it was moved, making it possible for Imo University to have a new home outside the Alvan Ikoku College of Education," she explained.

Mrs. Enwerem regretted that the same state House of Assembly that passed the law naming the school after her husband is now planning to reverse the law by tomorrow. According to her, the decision to name the institution after her late husband was taken during a valedictory service held in his honour at the Assembly, and that the decision was debated and passed into law as advised by the then Speaker of the House of Representatives Hon Patricia Olubunmi Etteh.

"The then speaker, Patricia Eteh, was also present; in fact, it was her idea and the governor was also present. I mean Ikedi Ohakim and other prominent sons of Imo State, who were present in the Assembly, supported Hon. Patricia Etteh and intoned that the idea was good, but Etteh reminded them there was the need to pass it as a law, otherwise any incoming governor or other persons could just come up to say it was no more Evan Enwerem University, and they agreed with Hon Etteh and promised to debate it, and that was exactly what they did. They debated it, they passed it, the governor consented to it and it became a law of the state.

Asked whether she raised the issue with outgoing Governor Ikedi Ohakim, Mrs. Enwerem explained that she was currently busy with her studies at the Nigerian Law School where she was preparing to take the Bar final examination, but promised to take it up with concerned individuals. The widow described her husband as a man, who contributed immensely to the development of his people and Nigeria, having served the country as the Senate President in the fourth Senate and should not be treated in a disreputable manner in the name of politics.

"I am greatly pained that this kind of humiliation could be meted to a man, who achieved so much for his state and for his count. "I am greatly pained that this kind of humiliation could be meted to a man, who achieved so much for his state and for his country, being the former Governor and Senate President. I am also aware that there are several universities in this country, named after similar individuals that have done one thing or the other for their respective states."
Source: Sun, 23^rd May 2011.

My Priority is to Tackle Poverty - Okorocha

Chief Rochas Okorocha, Imo State Governor-elect yesterday said his priority would be to tackle under-development and alleviate poverty in the state.

Okorocha said this when he visited the Nigerian High Commission in London.

"I am on a rescue mission that will tackle under development and reduce poverty which had for too long been the plight of the Imo people,?? the Europe Correspondent of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) quotes him as saying.

He said his administration would collaborate with the Nigerian missions abroad to attract investors to the state.

Okorocha, who commended the officials of the Nigerian mission for their engagement with Nigerians in the UK, urged them not to relent in their efforts.

"The Nigerian missions should not be separated from its citizens irrespective of their immigration status in such countries.

"A Nigerian still remains a Nigerian even if he commits an offence; he should be defended and given a fair hearing and not be rejected,?? he said.

Okorocha, who also spoke on his election, commended President Goodluck Jonathan and Prof Attahiru Jega for creating unfettered process and atmosphere for votes to be counted.

"For the first time, Nigerians decided to vote for those that would lead them; the outcome of my election brought about a new terminology called supplementary vote in the history of elections in Nigeria," he said.

Okorocha, who was accompanied by the APGA Chairman Chief Victor Umeh, was in the UK to visit ailing Chief Emeka Odumegwu-Ojukwu, the APGA leader who is recuperating in a London hospital after suffering from a stroke in December 2010.

Meanwhile, banks operating the accounts of Imo State government yesterday finally vacated the order allegedly baring them from honouring cheques from any ministry, departments and parastatal (MDAs) of the state government.

This was revealed in a telephone interview with the State Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Chief Elvis Agukwe who said: "All the matters relating to Imo State government's accounts with banks have been resolved forthwith," revealing that "as am talking with you now, UBA is working on posting the salaries of workers and any moment from now, Imo government workers will be receiving their salary alerts from UBA.

"What I am telling you now is confirmed to me few minutes ago by the Finance Commissioner and that means in effect that all the anxieties generated by the development have been put to rest.

It will be recalled that the Office of Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice had in the wake of the controversy in states with new governors-elect ordered that no in-coming governor has any right to order the freezing of running states accounts or any other affairs of the state pending his or her swearing in as governor.

Agukwe however said UBA manages made a large size of the state's account and has agreed to reverse the alleged freezing order gradually beginning with the salary account from today (yesterday).

Before now, allegations were rife that an aide to the in-coming governor of the state, Chief Rochas Okorocha had in a memo allegedly directed banks operating accounts for the government to freeze all state's account pending handover.

This immediately raised apprehension in the government circles over fears of government may be shut down.

Further enquires by our correspondent revealed that whereas UBA seems to be foot-dragging on honouring other cheques except those for salaries from the state government and her MDAs, some affected agencies are now crippled financially as all their activities have been forced to hang on pending when the bank will honour their cheques.

A staff of one of the state's agencies, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, told Daily Champion on phone yesterday that "upon all approvals even from the Commissioner of Finance and other relevant authorities, our cheques were yet to be honoured by the bank".

UBA according to investigations manages a substantial number of heavy accounts of the state government in the last four years.
Source: Daily Champion, 19^th May 2011.

Okorocha Inaugurates Transition Committee

By Emma Mgbeahurike,Owerri and Franca Ochigbo, Abuja

IMO State Governor-elect Owelle Rochas Okorocha yesterday inaugurated a transition committee.

The inauguration was used as an opportunity to educate members of the committee on how to discharge their duties in accordance with the rescue mission slogan.

They were sensitised to the expectations of the masses from Okorocha's administration and how to achieve all the electioneering promises made to Imo people.

Senator Chris Anyanwu said Okorocha was unanimously elected by the masses, as such he is working out modalities to ensure that he serves Imo people well.

She said the whole arrangement is a brain storming process to prepare their minds for the challenges ahead.

Chief Patrick Nbanusi Igweboni, a member of Okorocha's Culture and Tourism Committee, said they serve as a think-tank to enable Okorocha carry out his Constitutional responsibilities.

He said the committee is a rescue mission.

Igweboni assured that Okorocha's administration would provide the dividends of democracy to the grassroots.

Okorocha has reiterated his determination to tackle the challenges of governance by hitting the ground running.

The governor- elect promised to pay attention to issues as they present emerges, so as to satisfy the yearnings and aspirations of the electorate.

He spoke during a visit to Orient FM and Television in Owerri,yesterday. 

He assured on the transformation of the state.

The governor-elect said education and security would form the bedrock of his administration.

He promised free primary and secondary schools, warning that parents would be held accountable for any child that refuses to go to school.  "Some people think it is impossible, but we must make the necessary sacrifices to achieve our aim", he said.

The former Minister of State, Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Chief Chuka Odom has charged Okorocha to embark on good governance.

In a congratulatory letter to the Governor-elect, Odom said: "Your victory is the wish of Imo people and advancement in march to full democracy. Do not embark on political structure building, the best you would build is good governance and the rest will fall in place.

"Avoid witch-hunting and shadow boxing. It is a waste of time and adds nothing to the welfare of the people. Do not allow your administration to be distracted.

"You can afford to run a transparent government. I do not think you are in dire need of money. You can always find a way to settle those who helped you without compromising performance.

"This is the time to roll your sleeves and go to work. You must redeem your campaign promises especially free education and creation of jobs for the youths."

Source: The Nation, 17^th May 2011.

Imo: Tasks Before Okorocha – Indigenes,
ex-FCT Minister

BY CLIFFORD NDUJIHE & HENRY UMORU

HAVING been elected with support from all parts of state, Imo State Governor-elect, Owelle Rocha Okorocha, has been urged to fulfill his campaign promises especially his free education policy beginning from his May 29 swearing in date.

Okorocha was also advised to avoid witch-hunting and shadow boxing given the tough electoral battle he fought against incumbent governor, Chief Ikedi Ohakim; and to consult widely and work with the best hands, not business as usual politicians.

The advice came from the lips of former Minister of State, Federal Capital Territory Administration, FCTA, Chief Chuka Odom and members of Imo Indigenes Club (IIC).

Fulfilling free education promise

IIC leaders (Mr Vitalis Ejimofor -chairman and Engineer Abuchi Iwuji – secretary), who said Okorocha's victory had marked the end of stolen mandate and imposition of unelected leaders on the people of Imo, said the governor-elect had a lot of challenges to face.

Reason: "People are yearning for change. You will be faced with a lot of challenges in so many areas – roads, education, agriculture, industries, commerce , etc. We are happy that even when you were not a governor you were giving scholarships to less-privileged and indigent people in Imo State in particular and others from other parts of the country. There has been misplacement of priority in governance by past governments. "

Promising to assist Okorocha to surmount the hurdles, they said, "we know you will be having challenges as the state resources have been squandered by previous governments. The club will set up a bureau where information will be collected and disseminated accordingly for good governance."

Harmonious relations with lawmakers

IIC also canvassed harmonious relations between the Executive and Legislative arms of government in the incoming administration to better the lot of Imo citizenry.

To be humble in victory

In a personal letter to Okorocha, which was made available to Journalists in Abuja, Odom, who is a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, urged Okorocha to be humble and magnanimous in victory, just as he congratulated him for his successful outing.

His words: "You should be humble and magnanimous in victory. Leadership is not a test of wits or a platform to showcase intellect and embark on ego trip. Leadership is a call to service. In providing leadership, you should at all times ensure that you are on the same page with the electorate. May I use this medium to congratulate you on your historic victory in the just concluded gubernatorial election in our state. Your victory is the wish of Imo people and an advancement in our march to full blown democracy."

Shun discredited politicians

Calling on Okorocha to consult widely in order to understand the yearnings of the people of Imo State, the former minister said: "Most of the so-called leaders at various levels have failed their people and will not add any value to your administration.

They are custodians of business-as-usual politics, which you know by now is over in Imo State. You should search for honest and credible community leaders and work with them otherwise you may waste the current goodwill. You should search and find credible, properly educated and God fearing people who abound in the state and engage them to help you move the state forward."

Go for good governance

He continued: "Do not embark on political 'structure' building now. The best structure you would build is good governance and the rest will fall in place. You should avoid witch-hunting and shadow boxing. It is a waste of time and adds nothing to welfare of the people. Do not allow your administration to be distracted. This is the time to roll your sleeves and go to work. You must redeem your campaign promises especially free education and creation of jobs for the youth. These promises earned you their fanatic support.

You must not betray them. You should see public funds as a sacred trust which you must account for, if not here but before your Maker on that day when no amount of money will buy you eternal rest. You can afford to run a transparent government. I do not think you are in dire need of money. You can always find a way to settle those who helped you without compromising performance.

As you take these words to heart, God will be on your side and will fight your battles. You will earn the love and respect of us, your subjects. Most importantly, God will bless you even more for leading yourself as a vessel to salvage His people. Put God first in all you do, seek His face day and night and watch the wonders you will perform in Imo state. I wish you every success and God's abundant blessings."

Remain in APGA

Apart from transforming Imo State, Okorocha has been advised against leaving the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) and returning to the PDP as many governors do to the detriment of their parties. His out-going predecessor, Ohakim was elected on the plank of the Peoples Progressive Alliance (PPA), he dumped the party for the PDP mid-way into his four-year reign.

The plea is against the background that Ohakim is occupying the seat at the expense of APGA's 2007 guber candidate, Chief Martin Agbaso.

Indeed, to keep the APGA flag flying, Okorocha was in Anambra State last week to meet with the Governor of Anambra State, Mr. Peter Obi.

Coming out from an indoor meeting of the duo, Governor Obi said they were strategising on how to move APGA and Ndigbo forward. Obi said he was delighted to have a brother, who would share the burden he had been carrying alone for 10 years with him.

Assuring Rochas of cooperation, he said that as APGA governors that they would always share ideas and consult each other whenever necessary.

Okorocha, who described his victory as the will of God, thanked Governor Obi for his unobtrusive support, even when the going was tough.
Source: Vanguard, 17^th May 2011.

Nigeria: Rochas to Transform Sam Mbakwe Airport

Anthony Omoh

The Sam Mbakwe International Cargo Airport (SMICA) may be in for a facelift and complete overhaul to meet its status as the in-coming administration in Imo state is said to have identified the airport as part of a priority projects to engage its attention from the on set.

Managing Director of Ambed Group of Company, Sir Ambrose Eke made this known at the weekend while congratulating Imo state governor -elect, Owelle Rochas Okorocha. Eke said that Okorocha's experience and integrity will not allow him to abandon such communal efforts as the Imo airport like his predecessors in office did.

Eke who is also the Public Relations Officer of Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA) told newsmen that for the Imo Cargo Airport to achieve its full potential, the state government needs to invest and own equity in the airport.

He also stated that as an international cargo airport all that the state government need do is find the right business module and the airport would begin to generate revenue.

The revealed that since the airport was built in the 80s with the resources of the Imo people that it has not made any profit and thus government through the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has not remitted any financial benefit to the people of the state.

Eke however said that the people of Imo were not interested in the money but the development that a full functional cargo airport would bring and how it would assist the people of the South East especially those in Aba and Onitsha to get their cargo on time without the challenges of moving them by road.

The Ambed CEO,who was part of the Governor-elect's team in 2003 when he contested for the Presidency of the country said that Rochas has been in the aviation industry for over 10 years and has the zeal and motivation to carry out the task.

He said that all Rochas needs to do to resuscitate the airport is to partner the federal government, provide a befitting terminal building, a cargo warehouse to be manned by either nahcoaviance or SAHCOL and provide building for customs post for screening.

Eke said that already, the airport has an Instrument Landing System (ILS) and that it was available for night operations, all it needed was marketing.

On competition with the newly built Asaba Airport, he said that not only has SMICA been certified by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) it has a business thrust in cargo mostly and not passenger.

He said that the airport would provide adequate cargo transport in the south east and if fully utilised, act as a cargo hub for the region.

He however said that airports like Asaba would have come to meet a thriving Owerri Airport had previous governments in the state taken interest in the airport stressing that airports like, Asaba, Akwa Ibom and the rest which are been built by the respective governments have realised the importance of airports that will employ more of their people.

Eke also admitted that Imo State is in a mess already and that there is a lot to be fixed including infrastructure, road networks and the like but that the governor-elect would also look at that hidden goldmine, SMICA and make it work.

He further said that the governor-elect was on a rescue mission and that in four years he has to make the people of Imo state feel good governance and met them at the various points of needs.
Source: Daily Champion, 17^th May 2011.

How Jonathan, PDP Failed To Return Ohakim

STANLEY NKWOCHA, ABUJA

Fresh revelations have emerged on how despite the effort of the presidency and the ruling PDP to get Governor Ikedi Ohakim re-elected , all efforts were abortive. But for the resilience of the electorate in Imo State, Ohakim, who last week, lost his bid for a second term would have been returned.

Reports available to LEADERSHIP SUNDAY reveal that President Goodluck Jonathan, who had taken the state for granted as a result of Ohakim's over confidence was taken aback when the April 26 election ran into a stalemate which necessitated the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to organize supplementary elections.

Following the debacle that Ohakim found himself in, he was said to have approached Dame Patience Jonathan, who graced the last of his campaigns and pressed on her to talk to the President who initially did not want to stretch his hands too far in the Imo matter as intelligence reports suggested that the governor was unpopular and hence, likely to lose the election.

After much pressure, President Jonathan was said to have spoken to Chief Tony Anenih to talk to his godson, Senator Ifeanyi Araraume, who is Ohakim's kinsman but believed to hold the ace for the election at a point in time. It was after Chief Anenih must have spoken to Ohakim that the political difference between the duo was resolved. Though from the same community in Mbano, the relationship between Ohakim and Araraume had been strained since 1999 when Araraume alleged that Ohakim stole his mandate in connivance with former President Olusegun Obasanjo and immediate past chairman of INEC, Prof. Maurice Iwu. It was only after Anenih got Araraume's ears that he tried in vain to lend support to his kinsman who wiped up zoning sentiments

A source who confided in LEADERSHIP said the presidency also reached out to disgraced former minister of Interior, Col. Emmanuel Iheanacho, urging him to support Ohakim as the action to sack him from the federal cabinet, though hastily done,' would be looked into' .

Iheanacho and Ohakim had been political enemies since the later was sacked from office about three weeks ago, following alleged pressure from Ohakim. Though Iheanacho pledged to work for the ruling PDP, he continued to work and support APGA, having dissipated the governor at his zone when Senator Chris Anyanwu defied all odds to win the senatorial seat. Iheanacho and others got the credit for this feat.

However, with stiff resistance, the Imo electorate, precluded their decision to send the governor packing and they did it in style with Rochas beating the incumbent governor with 336,859 against the incumbent governor's 290,490 votes.
Source: Leadership, 15^th May 2011.

Freezing of accounts: Your action is illegal, Imo govt tells Okorocha

By Okorie Uguru

The Imo State government has slammed the state's governor-elect, Chief Rochas Okorocha, for instructing the state government's bankers not honour cheques from the current government of Chief Ikedi Ohakim until after the handover on May, 29.

In a release signed by the state's Commissioner for Information, Mr. Elvis Agukwe, the government described the action as illegal as order was being issued from 'the Office of the Governor-Elect' which does not exist in the Nigerian constitution and that the action was causing tension in the state.

According to the statement, Chief Okorocha's order was passed to the banks through his Chief of Staff, one Prince Eze Madumere.

The state said further: "The action of Chief Okorocha is already grinding government machinery to a halt. As I talk to you now, civil servants in the state are becoming restive because the banks, evidently acting under the instruction of Chief Okorocha, have refused to release cheques for their April salaries. Yet Chief Okorocha and his handlers are sending out text messages, telling the civil servants that salaries cannot be paid because the governor used all the money for his campaigns."

The statement further said that aides of Chief Okorocha with a Senator recently went to the office of the Imo Broadcasting Corporation (I.B.C) to ransack computers and files in search of contract papers on projects handled at the corporation in the last four years."

The Imo State government described the actions as acts of perfidy and unconstitutional as there is no office of the governor-elect in the Nigerian constitution, saying the state government was unafraid of probe, but that the Chief Okocha should do that only when he assumes office on May 29.
Source: The Guardian, 14^th May 2011.

PPA chieftain advises Okorocha not to dump APGA

ANONYMOUS

Imo Governor-elect, Owelle Rochas Okorocha, has been advised against toeing the line of outgoing Governor Ikedi Ohakim in dumping APGA for the PDP.

Mac Ogoke, Imo deputy chairman of the PPA, gave the advice in an interview with newsmen on Wednesday. Okorocha won the Imo governorship race on the platform of APGA. Ohakim, who was elected on the PPA platform in 2007, later defected to the PDP.

Ogoke, who was the candidate of the PPA for Okigwe South Federal constituency in the just concluded election, said that Ohakim lost his bid for re-election because he defected from the PPA to PDP, where he lost focus.

He said that history was beckoning on Okorocha to give Ndigbo an identity, which could better be achieved while in an opposition party.

"He (Okorocha) should not think of taking Imo people and by extension, the Igbos, back to the so called main stream of Nigeria politics, which the zone had not benefited from all these years," he said.

Ogoke noted that when Ohakim was in PPA, he performed creditably. (NAN)  

Source: Business Day, 11^th May 2011.

Imo State Elections: Lessons For Political Leadership

LAMBERT ANAELE OPARAH

Even if the incumbent government of PDP in Imo State led by Governor Ikedi Ohakim succeeded in elbowing its way out of the corner the people of Imo State boxed it during the April 26th and May 6th governorship elections, it should have learnt a serious lesson in governance and that is that you can deceive some people for some time and not all the people all the time.

I monitored the elections in some parts of Nigeria, including Imo State and I was amazed by the level of decay I found in the state in spite of the huge advertisement being mounted in both national and international media about the successes of Governor Ohakim's administration. Owerri, the state capital is like a land-locked city with no access roads, while the few available roads are taken over by operators of the tricycles( KEKE- NAPEP).There was no visible government project except abandoned heavy machines along the banks of the controversial Wore River. If you wake up in Owerri later than 6 a.m  to catch a  flight at the Sam Mbakwe Airport  a distance of 20 kilometers, you risk being held up for hours in a traffic  jam. That is the plight of the residents of the once most beautiful city in the South East.

What happened in Imo State on the 26th April and 6th May 2011 respectively was akin to a revolution. The people wanted a change and an alternative to a government whose successes can only be found on the pages of newspapers and television. The PDP in Imo State should have known that their flag bearer is  lowly rated among  the governors in Nigeria . I grinned the other day the vice chairman of PDP South East, Chief Olisa Metuh was reacting to the Imo governorship stalemate. He claimed that APGA colluded with INEC officials to rig the elections in Imo State. He went further to say that there appeared to be a grand conspiracy against   Governor Ohakim. I laughed and rolled on the ground. To say APGA rigged election beggars the issue. The half truth in Chief Metuh's claim however is that yes, the people of Imo State conspired to change their governor.Governor Ohakim is a hard-sell and I thought his handlers should have known this .While his colleagues were busy campaigning, Ohakim was  shuttling between Owerri and Aso Rock to crave for presidential support. He spent time in Abuja beating his chest for delivering President Jonathan as if he was the only governor that  did so. If Ohakim was popular with his people as he claimed, how come he could not deliver himself like his counterparts . Truth is that President Jonathan enjoyed the overwhelming support of the people of Imo State and they demonstrated this in the April 16 Presidential election. Ohakim  had wanted to ride on the popularity of President Jonathan in Imo State to sail through. He never embarked on any serious campaigns, but rather recruited former  President Obasanjo and First Lady Dame  Patience Jonathan  to help him. He miscalculated. Neither Ota farm nor Also Rock could vote in Imo State. He took the election for granted, banking on the previous discredited style of winning by hook or crook. Governor Ohakim had an unbridled tongue. Few days before the governorship election, he boasted in a Hitler -like  manner that he was going to rout his opponents. But  when the chips were down, he was nowhere to be found. He never reckoned with the new INEC led by Professor Jega.

I  watched Channels Television on 29th April beaming the demonstration of women from Owerri  zone asking that Ohakim be allowed to complete his tenure to allow the zone their turn in line with the zoning arrangement in the state. Looking at the women, well-fed with expensive bangles and gorgeous apparels, it was clear they were not the true representatives of the Imo women, but rather  wives  and relations of the fat cats that have been feasting on the misfortunes of the  people of the state. Pray what is the business of an Imo woman with zoning. Zoning has no bearing  on good governance. The average Imo woman is  interested in having access road to the Relief Market in Owerri, Eke-eziachi  market in Orlu  or Afor Enyiogugu market in Aboh- Mbaise to sell her farm produce. She wants someone  who will take 'away the excruciating burden of school fees  from her  and provide job for her son who graduated five years ago. Whether that person is from the moon or another planet is immaterial to her. The whole argument to allow Ohakim  do another four years is pedestrian and tantamount to taking Imo State back to the pre- Mbakwe era.

One legacy the present managers of our electoral system will bequeath to Nigerians is the re-awakening of the opposition waiting to take over from a sick administration . This  is critical to  our democracy. Professor Jega and his team have done pretty well. The icing on the cake however is the Imo re-run. The whole world and indeed Nigerians  were watching . By extending the time for a supplementary election, INEC  knew that it has given the incumbent government in Imo State some advantage with enormous state resources at its disposal. This advantage however was narrowed by providing a level playing ground for all the contestants.

First, INEC directly supervised the Imo State supplementary election from Abuja. Second, security  was adequately provided to guarantee the voters the right to freely exercise their rights without fear or undue influence.

Third, the result of the supplementary election was made public early enough to avoid the undue delay and tension that pervaded Imo State in the past few days.Finally ,  the elections  in Imo State have provided some lessons in leadership  for both the victor and the vanquished. The onus is on Rochas Okorocha to prove Imo people right or wrong.

Oparah wrote in from No. 796 Oka-Akoko Street, Gark 11, Abuja.
Source: Leadership, 11^th May 2011.

'Okorocha must hit the ground running'

FROM GORDI UDEAJAH, UMUAHIA

POLITICAL scientist, economist and Fellow of the Centre for Democracy and Good Governance, Prof. Ebere Onwudiwe, has hailed the victory of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) candidate, Rochas Okorocha, in the Imo State governorship election at the weekend, saying it is inspiring.

Onwudiwe, who is an indigene of Imo State, told The Guardian: "For the first time, a people's movement in Nigeria has stood up like the tiger it is, and against all odds, thrown out a despised government in a true demonstration of people's power.

"The state's uninspiring slogan,  'The Eastern Heart' ought to be replaced with 'The Freedom State' because, after the 2011 elections, nobody, no governor should again toy with Imo State and its freedom-loving people".

Onwudiwe, who was the director of National Resource Centre for African Studies at the Central State University, Ohio, United States and is now the chief executive officer of Futeliv Konsult in Nigeria, added: "No Igbo politician in recent memory has enjoyed close to a universal popularity in Igboland as Mr. Okorocha whose mix of refinement, charisma, intellect and history of philanthropy constitute an irresistible political asset".

He urged Okorocha not to allow his general acceptance to take the place of good governance in the state, which he said, is peopled by educated and politically sophisticated brains.

"Governor Okorocha must hit the ground running immediately on assumption of office as his huge mandate comes with an equally huge doze of rising expectations from people who have shown by electing him, that they know the difference between a picture of good roads on a big billboard and good roads on the ground.

"There is a real and boiling pent-up demand for the dividend of democracy in Imo State. Mr. Okorocha must get on the business of delivering them as soon as he assumes office. He will have to start with a census of the programmes started by the out-going governor and continue the real and useful ones among them.

"Having also come from a private sector background, I have no doubt that he can assemble a strong professional group of Imo sons and daughters who will move the state forward in the great tradition of another great son of Imo State, late Governor Sam Mbakwe.

Source: The Guardian, 11^th May 2011.

Imo: I'm on Rescue Mission, Says Okorocha

By Charles Onyekamuo in Onitsha and Emeka Osondu in Awka

Governor-elect of Imo State, Owelle Rochas Okorocha Monday described his election as the will of God expressed by the people, saying he was on a mission to rescue the state from the shackles of poverty and under-development.

The Governor-elect who was in Awka to thank the Anambra State  Governor, Mr. Peter Obi for his support during the election which he acknowledged made a whole lot of difference jocularly said his desire to quickly develop the State could be likened to scenes in a popular film in the 1980s entitled: "Ninety Minutes at Entebbe."

"I will describe the incoming government in Imo state as 90 minutes at Entebbe.  I am in a hurry to develop the state.  I reckon that since the announcement of my name as the Governor-elect of Imo state, the entire state has been very calm and peaceful.  Imo will be a well secured state devoid of kidnapping, 419ners and armed robbery," he said.

Okorocha said he would run a people-oriented government where every decision taken would be anchored on how it would protect lives and property, improve the welfare of the people as well as protect their interest.

He pledged to immediately complete every abandoned project in the state commenced by the Achike Udenwa administration in the past 12 years before initiating his, which he hinted would be integrative because "whatever that is good for the people is what will be done".

He also said he was not  interested in probing the out-going Ohakim administration in the state but would be interested in having a proper audited account of the administration for posterity.

Source: This Day, 10^th May 2011.

I'll rid Imo of kidnapping, robbery – Okorocha

Awka – The Imo governor-elect, Chief Rochas Okorocha, has declared that he is on a short-term time mission to rescue the state.

Okorocha, who made the declaration when he visited the Anambra governor, Mr. Peter Obi, promised to do everything possible to elevate the state to an enviable level.

He observed that since his announcement as governor-elect of Imo, there had been total peace in the state, even without him doing anything.

According to him, Imo will be a well-secured state devoid of kidnapping, armed robbery and other menace that had disrupted the peace of the state.

"Whatever decision I must take while as a governor has to be such that positively touches the lives of the people and not the one that touches the lives of the few.

"Am prepared to protect the interest of the few, but I must save the lives of the numerous poor Imo sons and daughters.''

While noting that his election was full of controversies, he said: "one thing that worked for me was that I came from the right party, the APGA party which is deeply rooted in the Igbo spirit.''

"Igbo nation is known with APGA just like ACN is known with the southwest. I guarantee you and assure you sir, that just as we have ACN in the southwest, we shall have APGA in the southeast.''

Okorocha, who is the president of the Nigerian Red Cross, commended Obi for his contributions to the organisation and to the victims of the Haiti earthquake.

He said his visit was to commend Obi and the National Chairman of the party for their contributions towards his success.

Responding, Obi said he was delighted to have a brother who would now share the burden of reclaiming the Igbo identity.

He assured Okorocha of his cooperation and said that as APGA governors, they would always share ideas and consult each other whenever necessary. (NAN)
Source: Vanguard, 10^th May 2011.

Onyekakeyah: Why Ohakim lost Imo re-election

BY LUKE ONYEKAKEYAH

THE tumultuous celebration that graced the defeat of incumbent Governor Ikedi Ohakim on Saturday, May 6, clearly showed that the people were completely disenchanted with his administration and were eagerly waiting for a change. The defeat came as a huge relief to a people that have been treated with raw deal by an administration that pretends to be working in their interest.

It came as a dramatic high point in a crime buster movie. As soon as the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) announced the defeat of Governor Ikedi Ohakim (PDP) by Owelle Rochas Okorocha (APGA), wide celebrations broke out across the entire Imo State and Abuja. That was instructive. Don't take the people for granted. Don't assume that everything is possible for you simply because you're the incumbent governor. The people are watching every step you take.

There would have been frustration and apathy if Ohakim had won the election. His defeat didn't come as a surprise. It was clearly predicted in three separate polls conducted by Ipsos, an international leading market research company for ThisDay newspapers.

Unfortunately, many in this clime don't believe in civilized discourse. Governor Ohakim and his acolytes didn't countenance the polls. In the developed world, pre-election polls are taken seriously, as they often set the course the elections would go.

But the Governor was misadvised to ignore it and instead regarded it as the handiwork of his traducers. If his advisers had told him the truth that the polls were instructive, perhaps, he would have made some adjustments. A simple promise like giving free medical care or free education could have made a difference.

Unfortunately, the governor was told to discountenance the polls. So, who is to blame? Is it the polls that warned him or his advisers? The blame should go to his advisers.

Nevertheless, it didn't matter any more at that stage whether or not Governor Ohakim took the polls serious because the Imo electorate had already made up their mind to vote him out for several reasons. The wrongs of his administration, which formed the basis for their decision couldn't be righted at that stage.

It is a lesson for the governors to be wary what they do while in office, in order not to incur the displeasure of the people. The problem, however, is that many of the politicians didn't believe that the electorate had any power. Those were the ones that were foisted on the people by the powers that be. They thought that those powers would always be there to perform the magical abracadabra on their behalf, notwithstanding their follies.

Unfortunately, things have changed. The votes now count. Suddenly, the electorates are now important in determining who governs them. The people have become conscious of their rights, which they exercise at the polls. It's not only in Imo State that there is wailing in the Government House. There is also wailing in eight other states including Oyo, Ogun, Nasarawa and Kano, among others. In the case of Imo, several factors were responsible for the defeat of Ohakim.

First was the controversies surrounding Ohakim's emergence to power. Prior to the 2007 general elections, Ohakim was an obscure figure, not known in Imo State, despite his stints in government, as commissioner, or so. In 2007, the People's Democratic Party (PDP) was in power under the former Governor Achike Udenwa. At the point of the 2007 election, Senator Ifeanyi Ararume was gunning for the PDP's ticket for governorship.

He won at the party's primary but was denied the ticket. He challenged the party's decision up to the Supreme Court and won. But the powers that be still flatly disallowed him to contest on the platform of the PDP. And, as if Ararume had committed an unforgivable sin, his party, the PDP decided not to contest the Imo governorship election, rather than fielding him.

The coast was therefore cleared for the other opposition parties, namely, the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) and the Progressive Peoples Party (PPA) in particular to grab the governorship. At the polls, the Imo people voted for APGA's Martin Agbaso but the powers that be cancelled the governorship and ordered a re-run election. That was when mago-mago was reigning supreme in the country. It was at that point that Ohakim, who was contesting under the PPA ticket, from nowhere, was foisted on Imo State against the people's wish.

It was after he decamped to the PDP in July 2009, that the former president, Olusegun Obasanjo, told Imo people that Ohakim entered into a pact with the PDP, which made the power brokers, foist him on the state. The truth, therefore, remains that the Imo people never voted for Ohakim in the first place. But rather than capitalising on that historic opportunity to deliver and impress the people for his re-election, he bungled the opportunity, which led to his rejection at the polls.

Second, highhandedness. From the early days of his administration, Governor Ohakim carried himself high above reproach. His grandstanding emboldened his security escort to be brutal to the citizenry. For instance, Governor Ohakim first came to national attention shortly after his inauguration when his brutal security escort beat a woman motorist black and blue in Lagos for allegedly obstructing the governor's convoy. Next, Governor Ohakim was upbraided after he reportedly flogged and head butted Citizen Samuelson Iwuoha at the Government House in Owerri.

The last straw that broke the camel's back was the beating and detention of Rev. Fr. Eustace Okorie in Owerri for reportedly blocking the governor's convoy. This last beating infuriated the entire Imo population. The governor's prompt apology and subsequent taking on board of Professor Viola Onwuliri, a catholic woman leader from Mbaise, didn't placate the matter in a state that is predominantly catholic. The damage had already been done. While the issue raged, Governor Ohakim again became entangled in a $60,000 bribery scandal he allegedly gave to catholic priests in Okigwe to buy their favour.

Third, high wire propaganda in the media. Governor Ohakim elevated media propaganda to statecraft. He called it branding of what he tagged The New Face of Imo. The slogan, rather than translating into concrete achievements on ground took over the airwaves on radio, television and newspapers to propagate the "record-breaking" strides of the governor only in the media. The pages of newspapers were awash with expensive coloured advertorials of completed or on going projects. All over Owerri were giant bill boards announcing the wonders the governors was performing. It could be argued that Governor Ohakim spent more money on branding his administration than say on roads. He received an award as a brand governor from The Sun newspaper.

Four, courting too many enemies. The renowned American success consultant, Marion R. Kopmeyer, in his book Success Methods, said one key to having success is to have more friends and fewer enemies. The more friends the better whereas the more enemies you have the more obstacles you face. Governor Ohakim went against this principle to court many enemies, especially, with those who helped bring him to power. His altercation with the Iwus and Udenwas, among many others, was a grave mistake. If all those were behind him, perhaps he would have scaled through. But he bit the fingers that fed him and have himself to blame.

Five, there is also this allegation that Governor Ohakim surrounded himself with questionable characters as aides, advisers and all what not. Since nothing is hidden under the sun, if that was true, then the governor exposed himself to ridicule. Imo people kept talking about it in hush tones.

Six, aversion to criticism. Worldwide, once one assumes a public office, s/he puts self in the eye of the storm. You can no longer hide from the prying eyes of the public, particularly the media. There must be criticisms and it's the duty of the leader to sieve and learn from them. Those that are constructive would definitely help the administration. But Governor Ohakim saw every criticism as a personal attack against his administration. Thus, he spent time to write abusive rejoinders to every comment on his administration. That was unbecoming of a leader.

Seven, bad advisers. I have mentioned this above. My experience working in government shows that the boss's Oh Yes members, who surround him, more often than not misadvise him. In government, the bosses are hardly told the truth. Whatever he says or does receives resounding acclaim and approval by those who are supposed to tell him the truth. Governor Ohakim was a victim of misadvise. The result is that he was led blindly to the poll to be defeated.

Finally, relying on the old fraudulent political order and not appreciating change. Governor Ohakim relied entirely on the power of the PDP to guarantee his re-election. He thought that once he joined the PDP, his re-election was guaranteed. He failed to read the handwriting on the wall, even when the pre-election polls alerted him that PDP was losing Imo State. Now, the people have spoken. The only thing that will subsist in life is good. Evil is a negation of good and can never remain forever.Source: The Guardian, 10^th May 2011.

Imo Indigenes Celebrate In Enugu, Praise Jonathan Over Ohakim's Ouster

NNAMDI MBAWIKE, ENUGU

Indigenes of Imo State residing in Enugu went into enjoyment galore weekend following the declaration of Chief Rochas Okorocha as the winner of the   gubernatorial elections held in April 26th and May 6th 2011 in Imo State.Our correspondent who went round the Coal City state on Saturday and Sunday  saw majority of the Imo Indigenes in relaxation joints where they were celebrating the failure of Governor Ohakim to actualise his re-election ambition.

Majority of them who spoke to Leadership said they would have wept if the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had announced Ohakim the winner of the controversial gubernatorial election in the state.

They poured encomiums on President Goodluck Jonathan for making Imo State unconducive for riggers through the provision of tight security, alleging that Governor Ohakim and his men would have manipulated the election if the army was not drafted to the state.

When asked why they were celebrating the failure of Governor Ohakim, they replied that the outgoing governor was "the worst governor Imo State had since its creation."

Speaking to Leadership, an Imo State Indigene residing at Achara layout, Enugu, Mr Obinna Anoyua described Governor Ohakim as a "non performer who failed to utilise the opportunity God gave to him."

His words: "I don't want  to say everything. In the first place, Ohakim was not qualified to be governor of an enlightened state like Imo State. He emerged by luck because of the problems in PDP then.

"My annoyance is that he ruled Imo like a military governor, abusing everybody irrespective of  status or age. You saw what his aides did to a Reverend Father who did not do anything to him. What of your colleague in the media. My brother, that position entered his head and we are happy that he was not re elected."

Mr Emeka Ibekwe who resides at Abapka Nike in Enugu east Local Government Area of Enugu State said Ohakim's failure was  the "greatest news he received since   2007 when the outgoing governor assumed office".

" I want to tell you that Imo state has been liberated from bondage. The only noticeable things that Ohakim did were the beautiful bill boards he mounted everywhere in Imo State. Go to Imo and see things yourselves. Imo state has been reduced to nothing. Ohakim worked only in newspapers and billboards. When you see the billboards, you will not see the projects", he stated.
Source: Leadership, 9^th May 2011.

I'm happy Ohakim lost, says activist flogged by gov

By Simon Utebor and Olusola Fabiyi

An Imo State-based rights activist allegedly flogged and stripped by Governor Ikedi Ohakim, Mr. Samuelson Iwuoha, said on Sunday that he was the happiest man on earth that the governor lost in the governorship election concluded on Friday.

Iwuoha, who spoke with THE PUNCH on the telephone, said that with the defeat of Ohakim at the governorship election, he was vindicated that the governor was cruel and incapable of leading the state.

He said that the scars of the koboko flogging he received from Ohakim in his office on January 21, 2010, were still visible.

He said his sins before the governor was that he wrote petitions and articles to expose the governor's financial recklessness and anti-people's policies by the state administration.

He said, "Naturally, I am the happiest man on earth. The people of the state have spoken that he is not the right material for the state.

"When I exposed him and wrote petitions to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and series of articles about his financial recklessness and anti-government policies, he became uncomfortable.

"He lobbied me through influential people in the state but I did not budge. One day, I was bundled to his office. When I got there, he stripped me naked and flogged me several times with koboko. The scars of the flogging are still there. I was not surprised that he lost the election. He deserved to lose. Whatever any man sows, he reaps. With his defeat, I am vindicated that he is cruel, wicked and lacks the skills to govern a state."

Iwuoha urged the Governor-elect, Owelle Rochas Okorocha, to set up a commission of inquiry to look into the running of his administration.

"I wrote petititons also to the Presidency, EFCC, Independent Corrupt Practices and other Related Offences Commission and Code of Conduct Bureau. I also expect Okorocha to ask them to make public their findings and investigation on Ohakim so that the people of Imo State and Nigeria will confirm the kind of character he is," the embittered Iwuoha appealed.

He said since the governor would lose his immunity after May 29, his legal team were on stand-by to revisit his case in court against the governor for assault, abuse, financial reckless and bad governance.

Meanwhile, some members of the opposition political parties on Sunday hailed the defeat of the Governor of Imo State, Chief Ikedi Ohakim, saying the defeat was a testimony that the defeated governor was not popular in the state.

The Citizens Popular Party and the Progressive Peoples Alliance said that voters in the state had shown that they were no longer docile and asked those sympathetic to Ohakim not to cry for him.

A statement by the National Chairman of the PPA, Lisa Olu Akerele, said politicians should learn from the conduct of the elections that "things are no longer the same."

Akerele added that the electorate was no longer docile as the people now voted out non-performing politicians.

"The elections have taught us that we cannot toy with the electorate by waiting till the last moment to storm them with transformers, bags of rice and cartons of money," he added.

Also, the chairman of the CPP, Mr. Maxi Okwu, congratulated Okorocha over his victory and advised him to listen to the electorate while carrying out his duties.

He said the result of the election had shown that the people of the state voted for change, and therefore urged the governor-elect to formulate and implement people-oriented programmes that will raise the living standard of the people.
Source: Punch, 9^th May 2011.

Arik Flight Struck Birds

By Chinedu Eze

Passengers were petrified Sunday when Lagos bound Arik Air Flight from Owerri struck birds which knocked off one of the engines of the aircraft.

The incident forced the aircraft to lose altitude as the pilot declared for emergency landing when it managed to fly the aircraft

to the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos at about 10.10 am. A statement signed by the spokesman of the airline Banji Ola, identified the aircraft that was involved in the incident as a Boeing 737700 New Generation aircraft flight W3 596 from Owerri to Lagos.

According to the statement, it was the second engine of the aircraft that was struck by birds immediately after takeoff from the Sam Mbakwe Airport, Owerri.

"This became apparent during the flight and necessitated the shutdown of Engine 2 by the flight commander who piloted the aircraft to Lagos and then declared an emergency landing at the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Ikeja. The aircraft landed safely with no injury to the 69 passengers on board."

Speaking on the incident, Arik Air Managing Director, Mr. Chris Ndulue, praised the operating crew of the aircraft for displaying a high sense of professionalism and called on the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) to intensify the fight against the bird menace at our airports.

"Bird strike hampers the safety of passengers and aviation agencies should make concerted efforts to eradicate this menace. The cost implication of bird strike to airlines is enormous and operators need every  possible assistance from airport authorities. This is Arik Air's fourth bird strike incident in year 2011", Ndulue said.

THISDAY learnt from the crew in a telephone interview that the Owerri airport is well known for bird strike incidents and regretted that FAAN has not made extra effort to eliminate birds at the airport.

But the agency has said it was going to install three melinnabar bird strike avoidance radar at the cost of N96, 717, 756 this year at

Owerri and other airports in the country.

Recently, the Director General of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Dr Harold Demuren, said that the major threat to safety of air travel in Nigeria today is bird strike, disclosing that in 2010 alone 47 aircraft suffered bird strike and said that sometimes all the aircraft engines could pick birds and shut down, which may give rise to the crash of the airplane.

Many air crashes have been caused by bird strike and in Nigeria many aircraft have been sent for maintenance after they were damaged by bird strike, which usually keep such aircraft out of operation for weeks.

This is huge loss of money for the airlines both in revenue that would have accrued by the airline and the huge foreign exchange that would be spent to repair the machine.

"A typical bird strike could affect the aircraft's nose; that is the cone where the radar is. This costs about $400,000; it could destroy

the engine, where you have the turbine blade, the thrust and the boroscope. It could affect the wind screen, which is $10, 000. It can affect the airframe and that could take the aircraft out for two weeks. Each time there is bird strike the airline losses about $260,000 of revenue and on cost of repairs," a source told THISDAY.

"Last year alone there were about 47 cases of bird strike. It would be tragic if engines of an aircraft are lost. Bird strike is our biggest concern today in the aviation industry, the Director-General said.It is estimated that Nigerian airlines lose about N15 billion annually to bird strike and although it has not led to lose of lives, but every bird strike that takes jeopardizes the safety of that aircraft.
Source: ThisDay, 9^th May 2011.

Ogboni: Catholic Church questions Okorocha

EMMA OGU, Owerri

An interesting drama played out yesterday in Owerri, the Imo State capital, as the governor-elect, Owelle Rochas Okorocha was drilled by the Catholic Church over alleged membership of Ogboni Fraternity and other secret cults.

Okorocha had gone to worship at Assumpta Cathedral with his household on the occasion of Christian fathers day celebration. He was however asked to step on the Alter and took a vow as directed by Catholic Archbishop of Owerri diocese, Most Rev. Dr. Anthony Obinna.

Obinna while officiating at the service had sighted Okorocha who was dressed in Christian fathers? attire and called him out to face the congregation. The cleric told him to use the opportunity to make a statement on or denounce his alleged membership of Ogboni Fraternity.

Obinna had also in his sermon at the church reminded Okorocha that the people voted for him because of their expectation of good governance from his government and therefore, urged him not to disappoint the people.

Okorocha holding a crucifix handed to him by the Archbishop swore that he had never been a member of Ogboni Fraternity as alleged by his opponents and will never associate with any secret society.

He vowed to worship God and said as a Christian who believes strongly in God, he also did not seek the services of any native doctor during his political campaign insisting that all the things said about his involvement in secret cult especially the Ogboni Fraternity were false.

The governor-elect said his government will focus on the welfare of the masses because it was the masses that voted him into power and also protected the votes they gave him, adding that his priority is to transform the state and empower the people.

He was nevertheless grateful to the outgoing governor Chief Ikedi Ohakim for accepting defeat and congratulating him on his victory.

Students from nursery, primary, secondary and tertiary institutions were later called out by the Archbishop to address the governor-elect on their expectations from his government.
Source: Daily Champion, 9^th May 2011.

How Okorocha Won

By Simon Utebor

All Progressives Grand Alliance candidate, Owelle Rochas Okorocha, was on Saturday formally declared the winner of the governorship election held in Imo State by Independent National Electoral Commission.

Of the 750, 955 total valid votes, Okorocha polled 336,859 votes to defeat his closest Peoples Democratic Party rival and incumbent governor of the state, Chief Ikedi Ohakim.

Ohakim scored 290,496 votes in the poll.

Senator Ifeanyi Araraume of the Action Congress of Nigeria scored 107,068 votes to come third.

A total of 28,504 votes were voided by the commission.

By Okorocha's victory, Ohakim has joined the league of incumbent governors and prominent politicians that lost their re-election bid.

Others who fell before him were the governor of Oyo State, Adebayo Alao-Akala; his Nasarawa State counterpart, Akwa Doma; Zamfara State governor, Mohammed Shinkafi; Speaker of the House of Representatives, Demiji Bankole and daughter of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, Iyabo-Bello.

Interestingly, they are all of the PDP.

The party also in this dispensation has lost five governorship positions in Oyo, Nasarawa, Zamfara, Ogun and Imo states.

The state returning officer, Prof. Hillary Edeoga, declared Okorocha winner after the results of the three Local Government Areas whose results were not taken during the April 26 election in Owerri, the state capital were announced.

The governorship poll was earlier declared inconclusive as Okorocha and Ohakim ran neck and neck in the 23 councils declared by the commission on Wednesday, April 27, 2011.

Following this, INEC ordered that a supplementary poll be conducted on Friday, May 6 in four councils comprising Ngor Okpala; Mbaitoli; Ohaji/Egbema and Oguta as well as a ward in Orji in Owerri North LG.

However, in the results declared on Saturday by Edeoga in three of the four councils and Orji Ward, Okorocha swept the poll, scoring 15,234 in Ohaji Egbema against Ohakim's 11,588; Ngor Okpala, APGA, 17,370, PDP, 9,237; Mbaitoli, APGA 24,305, PDP, 12,278 and Orji Ward, APGA 22,723 and the PDP 8,025.

There was no election in Oguta as youths and women in the council protested against the late arrival of voting materials.

Edeoga, who is also the Vice-Chancellor, Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike, Abia State, said Okorocha, having satisfied the constitutional requirements and polled above other contestants, had been declared the governor-elect.

Meanwhile, outside the INEC office on Owerri-Port Harcourt Road, Owerri, jubilant residents of the capital city converged on the expressway, celebrating the victory of Okorocha.

Also at the Owerri Muncipal Council, Owerri West and Owerri North LGs, there was wild celebration by youths, children as well as the elderly.

Some climbed the top of moving vehicles, some half-naked, while others took over the major junctions, expressways, roundabout and streets, dancing, singing and celebrating in grand style.

A jubilant resident, who craved anonymity, said the victory of Okorocha was an end of slavery, poverty and trampling of fundamental human rights of the people.

Okorocha's victory, he said, would teach politicians lessons that things go wrong when they disconnect with the people.

Also, the APGA National Chairman, Chief Victor Umeh, said the party's victory was an indication of its acceptance in Imo.

He promised that APGA government would not disappoint the people and that they had made a very wise choice in voting Okorocha, whom he described as an agent of change and transformation.

Umeh said, "We are going to end their sufferings. We are going to give them responsible government and our candidate, even before his victory has proved to be a man of impeccable charity. He is going to take care of everybody, the less privileged. We thank them for the honour done to our party and we assure the people that good things await them."

The party's governorship candidate in 2007, Mr. Martins Agbaso, said the victory had shown that APGA was a party to beat and had more in store for the people than any other party.

The All Nigeria Peoples Party chairman in the state, Mr. Vitalis Orikeze, said the victory represented the people's wish and that he should not disappoint them.

He stated that for the first time the people's wish was respected, adding that if it had gone the other way round, there would have been a problem in the state.

"Though our party did not fare well, we have been able to identify where we had lapses and we are going to correct. Rochas Okorocha has won; no doubt about it. His victory represents the people's wish and he should not disappoint them," Orikeze said.

But the state PDP Chairman, Mr. Eze Duroiheoma, sued for peace and tranquility, saying the state belonged to all of them, whether the winner or the vanquished.

"Those who are celebrating should do so with a sense of decorum and order without hurting anybody. Imo State is for all of us. Our party will take position on the issue soon, I can assure you."
Source: Punch, 8^th May 2011.

Celebration In Imo

FROM CHARLES OGUGBUAJA (OWERRI) AND MARCEL MBAMALU (LAGOS

As Okorocha Wins  Governorship Poll

 Jonathan, Ohakim, Obi, Umeh Congratulate Governor-elect, APGA

THE declaration of Owelle Rochas Okorocha as Governor-elect of Imo State yesterday sent the residents into wide jubilation.

And in the spirit of a new dawn in Nigeria's political terrain, incumbent Governor Ikedi Ohakim congratulated Okorocha last night.

He said he would not contest the results of the election at the tribunal nor would he allow Okorocha pass through the same distraction that he (Ohakim) experienced during his tenure in office.

And from Abuja came a congratulatory message from President Goodluck Jonathan to Okorocha for winning the Imo gubernatorial election.

In a statement released by the presidential spokesman, Ima Niboro, Jonathan said that "the people of Imo State have spoken through the ballot box, and it is time to forge ahead in the task of further developing the State."

The President assured the Governor-elect of the Federal Government cooperation in the task ahead, and invited Okorocha to build on the achievements of the outgoing administration.

He also congratulated the Independent National Electoral Commission for successfully concluding the Imo State elections, noting that Nigerians appreciated the efforts of the electoral body to give the country credible elections.

Also, Governor Peter Obi has congratulated Okorocha, saying that APGA's victory in the keenly contested polls in Imo had far-reaching implications for the Southeast.

Not even the heavy military presence in the state could deter many youths from celebrating the APGA victory yesterday. Some of them went "on rampage" in major streets of Owerri and environs.

Specifically, there were spontaneous celebrations in the three geopolitical zones of the state — Orlu, Okigwe and Owerri.

Some of the jubilant people, who spoke to The Guardian, thanked God for allowing their choice candidate to prevail after several days of uncertainty.

One Edoga spoke as if he was the INEC returning officer, stressing, "that the winner of the election (Okorocha) fulfilled all the electoral requirements and thereby was declared elected and returned."

Indeed, Okorocha, who attributed his victory to God, and pledged to "improve the lot of the masses that have, over the years, suffered deprivation and misrule," polled a total of 336,859 votes to clinch the coveted position.

He beat his closest rival and incumbent Governor Ikedi Ohakim of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), who scored 290,496 votes while Senator Ifeanyi Ararume of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) had 107,068 votes to come in third position.

Others scores were the ANPP 1,678 votes; APS, 364; ANP, 3,313; BNPP, 334; CDC, 447; CPC, 3,063; DFDF, 163; DPP, 563; FPN, 101; FRESH, 122; Labour, 1, 549; NTP, 790; PPA, 1,698, PRP, 295; and SDMP, 1,103 votes.

With the exception of Oguta Local Government Council, where election could not hold due to disagreement between PDP and APGA supporters, Okorocha showed impressive performance, scoring more than 25 per cent of the total votes cast in more than two-thirds of the 26 local government councils.

The Vice Chancellor of the Michael Okpara University of Agriculture, Umudike, Umuahia, Prof. Hilary Edoga, was INEC's Returning Officer for the supplementary election.

Four Resident Electoral Commissioners and four National Commissioners flanked him when the results were declared to an expectant crowd of party agents, journalists and party supporters.

The declaration was witnessed by APGA's National Chairman, Chief Victor Umeh; the Deputy Chairman, Southeast, Mr. Chris Uche; APGA's candidate at the 2007 governorship elections in the state, Chief Martin Agbaso; and the State Chairman of the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP), Dr. Vitalis Orikeze Ajumbe, among others.

Edoga, in conjunction with the Supervisory Resident Electoral Commissioner in the state (SREC), Aniedi Ikowaik, cancelled Oguta Local Council polls because the electorate made it difficult to conduct elections in the area on Friday, alleging late arrival of materials to the state.

Supervising REC Ikowaik had told journalists and party agents that the report from the returning officer of Oguta spoke for itself (on the issues that took place in the area), necessitating the cancellation of poll in the council.

Meanwhile, Governor Peter Obi of Anambra State while congratulating Okorocha, said that APGA's victory in the keenly contested polls in Imo had far-reaching implications for the Southeast.

The governor's statement, made available to The Guardian by the Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Mike Udah, described Okorocha's victory as a welcome development for the Igbo.

"What has happened in Imo State," the governor said, "is a welcome development for Ndigbo."

"With the victory of APGA there (Imo), the difficult journey for reclaiming Igbo political identity has just begun. To God be the Glory!"

Obi, till date the only APGA governor in the country, said: "Today, is a new dawn for APGA, which represents the Igbo man's political consciousness.

"In the past, there was a connivance to stifle the development of that consciousness. But with this victory, the shackles are now being shaken off,

"While I congratulate my brother, Rochas Okorocha, I thank APGA in Anambra State and throughout the country.

"From zero, we have secured over 60 per cent of available political posts in the just-concluded elections in Anambra State.

"I look forward to seeing Ndigbo work together for the good of our people; and that, for me, is the significance of Okorocha's victory."

In his reaction, both the national chairman of the APGA, Victor Umeh and Agbaso, expressed confidence in the electorate, stating that the Governor-elect, Okorocha, would maintain his "welfarist stand as a philanthropist."

The 70 observers that were re accredited to monitor the polls, led by Mr. Emmanuel Nkweke, a.k.a. Mr. Vote Count, said they were satisfied by the election's outcome, adding that the "winner did not induce but his choice was a clear manifestation of people's votes."

The group also endorsed the cancellation of Oguta local council, noting that the reasons were acceptable.

However, the Publicity Secretary of the PDP in the state, Blydeen Amajirionwu, told The Guardian that the party would come with its position, as soon as it finished meeting.

Results declared in the three councils and Orji ward indicated that in Owerri North, APGA won by scoring 22,723 votes; PDP, 8,025 and ACN, 2,834. Ohaji/Egbema: APGA, 15,234 votes; PDP, 11,588, and ACN, 60.

Ngor Okpala: APGA, 17,370 votes; PDP, 9,237 and ACN, 411; and Mbaitoli: APGA, 24,305 votes; PDP, 12,278 and ACN, 93 votes.
Source: The Guardian, 8^th May 2011.

Imo Speaker Loses Seat

FROM CHARLES OGUGBUAJA, OWERRI

WHILE Owelle Rochas Okorocha celebrated yesterday for breaking the jinx that had, since 1999, kept the APGA away from the seat of power in the state, the Speaker of the Imo State House of Assembly, Mr. Goodluck Opiah, may not return to the assembly in next democratic dispensation.

Opiah's hope to represent his constituency, Ohaji/Egbema, has been dashed at the polls by APGA's Luis Chuckwu, who polled over 14,000 votes to the Speaker's, over 12,000 votes.

Opiah represents the PDP in the outgoing legislature.

Okorocha, who emerged on the platform of the APGA for the governorship poll, had been a strong member of the PDP, having occupied the position of Special Adviser during the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo.

The current National President of the Nigeria Red Cross Society had indicated interest to occupy governorship post in 1998/99, but lost to the internal wrangling of the PDP at the time.

A zonal arrangement in the state, known as "Imo Equity Charter", had seen Owerri zone take its slot with the ascendancy of late Evan Enwerem in 1991. He ruled for 18 months.

Achike Udenwa, from Orlu Zone, ruled for eight years (2003-2007), while incumbent Governor Ohakim, who began his tenure under the platform of the PPA in 2007, would have concluded in 2015, if the electorate had returned him.

It had been the party's slogan that Ohakim should have handed over to an Owerri man in 2015. But the wish of Imo people, in the election, changed the arrangement.

Since the creation of Imo State in 1976, this is first time an incumbent would fail to be re-elected for a second term.

Okorocha broke the jinx, despite huge funds allegedly spent by the serving governor in the 27 local councils of the state to retain his seat.

Most people believe that Okorocha may have won the election based on his philanthropy and scholarship programme that has benefited 5,000 orphans, pupils and students from indigent homes in the country.

He has also maintained a free education and takes care of the indigenes and residents of Imo State.

Ohakim's popularity and influence in the state has reportedly dwindled due to the introduction of the Imo Environmental Transformation Commission (ENTRACO), which led to demolition of churches, illegal structures and shanties, forcing people back to their ancestral homes unceremoniously.

Okorocha is said to have capitalized on the governor's alleged role in the manhandling of a Catholic priest last year.
Source: The Guardian, 8^th May 2011.

Ohakim: A Gamble That Failed

FROM LEO SOBECHI, ABAKALIK

WHEN Governor Ikedi Ohakim, outgoing governor of Imo State, was speaking on Channels Television, he boasted that he would win the then inconclusive governorship election hands down.

By now he must have seen the grave error of his boast. Many reasons explain the loss of the Governor in his re-election bid.

If Ohakim was playing on the intelligence of Imo people, he stretched his luck too far when he jumped ship from the Progressive Peoples Alliance, (PPA) platform upon which he ascended the seat.

Ohakim, it was believed, wanted to ensure his second term ambition by moving over to the Peoples Democratic Party. It took a remark by former President Olusegun Obasanjo, on the occasion of the governor's public declaration for the PDP, for people to know that Ohakim's mandate was procured through an extra-electoral discussion with the PDP.

With a litany of abandoned projects including Heartland TV and Radio, Ohakim, went to the capital market to obtain N40 billion in bonds. While he dreamt about many new lands to conquer, he failed to connect with his people. The failure of the Imo governor in the governorship election is therefore due to the voter vigilance of Imo people.

But all said and done, the hard fighting Imo PDP calculations represent a gamble that was billed to fail.  Not even Obansajo or the wife of the president could save him.

There are chances that the journey to the future for ideological politics in Igbo land would take root in Imo State. As such the election of Anayo Rochas Okorocha, is a challenge to the durability of change enthroned by the citizens.
Source: The Guardian, 8^th May 2011.

INEC Declares Rochas Okorocha Winner of Imo Election

All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA, governorship candidate, Rochas Okorocha,  has won the Imo state gubernatorial elections.

The final results announced by INEC Saturday morning, showed that the APGA candidate scored 336,859 votes with the incumbent governor Ikedi Ohakim scoring 290,490 votes.

Supplementary governorship election were supposed to be held, yesterday, in four local councils and one ward in Imo State. However, election  did not hold in Oguta local govt due to security threat.

19 candidates contested for the governorship position in the state.

Prof. Hillary  Odoagah, Vice Chancellor of Michael Opara University  of Agriculture Umudike and INEC's Returning Officer, announced the results.

Summary of results

ACN- 107,068 votes

ANPP-3,313

APGA-336,859

APS-364

CDC-447

CPC-3063

DPP-563

LP-1549

NCP-790

PDP-290,490

Source: Vanguard, 7^th May 2011.

Rochas Okorocha Is Imo Governor-Elect

EDITOR

THE candidate of the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA), Owelle Rochas Anayo Okorocha has been declared winner of the Imo State Governorship election by the Independent National Electoral Commission.

According to the Returning Officer, Professor Hillary Ode Edeoga, Okorocha defeated the incumbent Governor, Mr. Ikedi Ohakim of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to clinch the governorship seat of the state. He polled 336,859 as against Ohakim's 290,496, while Ifeanyi Ararume of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) polled 107,068.

With results declared from 26 out of the 27 Local Government Areas of  the state, having successfully concluded the supplementary governorship election in three of four LGAs on Friday, May 6, 2011, Owelle Okorocha was declared winner having fulfilled all other constitutional requirements.

The commission cancelled election in Oguta Local Government Area following the discovery of electoral fraud allegedly orchestrated by one of the political parties with the support of INEC officials. Oguta LGA is the strongold of former Senator, Chief Arthur Nzeribe.

Imo State capital virtually stood still as loyalists of All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA, stromed the streets of the municipality to jubiliate over the declaration of their principal, Chief Rochas Anayo Okorocha, as the winner of the governorship election in the state.

Motorcyclists, who were hitherto banned from plying the streets of the municipality defied the order and displayed all manner of acrobatics in the process, while emergency dancing troops emerged and danced to their rhythmic tunes.

Traders in especially the New Market, Owerri, hired several commercial buses and headed for Ogboko, Ideato North local council area country home of Chief Okorocha.

Some irate youths pulled down all the campaign posters of Governor Ohakim in Owerri municipality, while the posters of Okorocha was hoisted to replace the dismantled ones.

Reacting to the result, the National Chairman of APGA, Chief Victor Umeh, who was at the State INEC Headquarters Owerri, said he was very satisfied with the outcome of the governorship poll in Imo State.

While describing the poll as "free, fair and credible", Chief Umeh commended Imo people for "making a wise choice in Chief Rochas Okrocha", stressing that the party will surely deliver on its electoral promises.

The situation in Government House, Owerri, was very calm as some of the staff were found in groups discussing the outcome of the governorship election in low tones.
Source: The Guardian, 7^th May 2011.

Okorocha Wins Imo Governorship Election

The governorship candidate of the All Progressive Grand Alliance , APGA ,in Imo state , Chief Rochas Okorocha  ,was Saturday declared the winner of the 2011 gubernatorial election in the state

Okorocha  was announced overall winner of the gubernatorial poll in Owerri , the Imo state capital at about 10.36 am by the INEC Returning Officer for the state governorship election , Prof.Hilary Edoka

According to him,the APGA candidate defeated 18 other gubernatorial candidates during the election that saw supplementary poll being held in four local councils on Friday  to conclude the election that commenced on Tuesday , April 26

Edoka said Okorocha polled a total of 336,859 votes to defeat Governor Ikedi Ohakim of the Peoples Democratic Party , PDP , who came a distant second with 290,496 votes

The Returning Officer therefore declared Okorocha as being duly elected governor of Imo state ''having satisfied all requirements of law for election as governor''
Source: This Day, 7^th May 2011.

Okorocha's Victory Made Possible by God, Says Imo Citizen

Owerri – The declaration of the APGA candidate in the Imo supplementry governorship poll Rochas Okorocha as winner by INEC has been received with mixed feelings by Nigerians spoken with on Saturday.

Thousands of youths, traders, artisans, tricycle operators took over the major roads and streets of the town in celebration of the candidate's victory.

Mr Kingsley Chukwu, a trader, said that the victory was made possible by God because "we need a God-fearing governor in this state.

The Special Adviser to the Governor on Political Affairs, Chief Rex Anunobi, said that the declaration of the result of the election by INEC without holding election in Oguta Local Government Area was wrong.

According to him, the result of the election in the council area, if held, could change the entire governorship election result.

He, however, appealed to the residents to remain calm because "whoever that is the winner is a son of Imo state".

The PDP chairman in Imo, Chief Eze Duruiheoma, said that the party was still consulting on the declaration of the result and would make a pronouncement later.

Chief Emmanuel Iwuanyanwa, member of PDP Board of Trustees (BOT) sais that it was too early to comment on APGA's victory.

But the PDP chieftain had earlier noted that whoever that was elected among the contending candidates was qualified to govern the state.

He had earlier pledged his support for such a person and urged Imo people to rally round him/her to ensure good governance.

Chief Victor Umeh, APGA National Chairman, who described the victory as "God's given" said that Imo residents had demonstrated their deep commitment toward enthroning APGA government in the state.

Okorocha, who polled 336,859 votes to defeat his closest rival, Gov. Ikedi Ohakim of PDP who scored 290,496 votes, was declared winner  by the Returning Officer in the election, Prof Hilary Edoga.

"The people have wiped our tears by this gesture and we want to thank them from the innermost part of our heart and we give God all the glory.

"They have made a very wise choice and we assure them that the party will take the sufferings of the people away," he said.

Umeh added that the party's candidate was a man of "impeccable charity" who would be very kind to the people and look after the less privileged.

In his reaction, the state Chairman of the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP), Dr Vitalis Ajumbe, said that Okorocha's victory represented the wish of the people.

Ajumbe called on the governor-elect, to ensure good governance when he assumed duty because "he cannot afford to disappoint the people".

The chairman urged the people to cooperate with the in-coming APGA government because they voted it in.

On the performance of his party in the election, he said that ANPP did not do well because of some lapses which would be corrected in subsequent elections in the state.

NAN reports that Owerri, the state capital went agog following the declaration of Okorocha as the winner of the poll.
Source: Vanguard, 7^th May 2011.

Tension as Ohakim, Okorocha Await Imo Guber Results

By Amby Uneze  in Owerri

The atmosphere in Imo State was tense Friday night as counting of votes in the supplementary governorship election in four local government areas and Orji Ward in Owerri North in the state was in progress.

The supplementary poll in the areas where the April 26 election was inconclusive will determine the winner of the governorship election between Governor Ikedim Ohakim of the Peoples Democratic Party and Owelle Rochas Okorocha of the All Progressives Grand Alliance.

But the election was characterised by late arrival of election materials particularly in Mbaitoli and Ngor Okpala and allegations of ballot thumb-printing, arrests of political stalwarts including a local government chairman in Ngor Okpala as well as alleged complicity of security agencies in ballot snatching and thumb-printing.

The police had deployed 10,000 men in the state for the election while the Independent National Electoral Commission sent four national commissioners to the state to ensure the success of the poll.

There was no election in Oguta local government as voters were embroiled in controversy over whether complete election materials were in place for the poll.

Notwithstanding that electoral materials got to some polling units late, the electorate maintained some level of discipline as they were seen queuing up in an orderly manner while waiting anxiously to be accredited.

In Orji Primary School, voters arrived the venue at about 8.00am waiting to be accredited.

INEC staff were on hand to start the process before the arrival of hoodlums who tried to disperse the crowd but for the quick intervention of security personnel who brought the situation under control.

As soon as this initial setback was overcome, another drama played out as the INEC officials complained of lack of chairs and tables in the school premises as the school authorities had locked up the school furniture.

It took the intervention of the  INEC Supervisory Resident Electoral Commissioner, Mr. Aniedi Abassi Ikoiwak, who sourced for these items locally before the commencement of accreditation of voters at about 9.30am.

In Egbeada, Mbaitoli local government area booth 1 and 2  , hot augment broke out between the INEC officials and some voters over alleged incomplete electoral materials and the voters insisted that they would not participate until the entire materials were in place.

At Oguta local government area, one of the opposition parties insisted that there would be no election in the council area because of incomplete materials.

Not even the heavy presence of the security chiefs and senior INEC officials could change things.

Speaking to THISDAY, a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Hon. Gerald Irona, observed that the major opposition party felt that PDP would win in the area and as such they decided not to vote.

According to him, they went and mobilized some thugs.

"We are ready for the election since the necessary materials are here for distribution" he said.

An agent of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Chief Gerald Okorocha , insisted that INEC did not bring complete materials and as such "we are not going to participate in the election".

The INEC Supervisory REC, Ikoiwak, after surveying the situation said that the election in Oguta would not hold as the time was far spent.

However, the Action Congress of Nigeria candidate, Senator Ifeanyi Araraume, may determine who becomes the next governor of the state.

Although he came third in the original election held on April 26, whoever Araraume  and his supporters back between Ohakim and Okorocha is likely to win the poll.

The supplementary election has now effectively become a run-off between Ohakim and Okorocha.

In the original election, Ohakim and Okorocha won in 11 local government areas each, with the governor scoring 268,927 votes – 12,370 less than the APGA candidate's tally of 281,297. Araraume polled 106,503 votes.

The INEC declared the election inconclusive and ordered "supplementary elections" in Ngor Okpala, Mbaitoli, Ohaji/ Egbema and Oguta council areas as well as Orji Ward, Owerri North.
Source: This Day, 7^th May 2011.

Protests, Late Arrival Of Materials Mar Imo SupplementaryElection

FROM CHARLES OGUGBUAJA

ALTHOUGH there was an impressive turnout of voters for the controversial supplementary governorship election in Imo State yesterday, the exercise was nearly marred by late commencement of voting in some areas.

As of 5.p.m yesterday, election materials were yet to be distributed in Oguta Local Council Area, home to the PDP political kingpin Chief Chief Francis Arthur Nzeribe.  This led to protests by some voters who called for the cancellation of the election, alleging a plot to draw the election into the night to perfect rigging.

But, while Imo voters argued over the situation in Oguta, many cars, buses, trailers and their passengers were stranded at the security barricade on Onitsha road, which is the entry point to Mbaitoli Local Council Area, one of the areas where election took place, in line with the enforcement of election monitoring directive issued by the security agencies.

Over 10, 000 officer of the Nigerian police were deployed to Imo State for the election. But, there was little or no police presence in some polling units in the areas where election took place. For instance,  The Guardian observed that there was no single police or security official at Polling Unit 008, Orodo Ward A, which is adjacent to an INEC office in Mbaitolu.

Earlier in the day between 5.20 a.m and 6.30a.m, the Nigeria Army apprehended over 120 suspected political thugs in Mbaitoli and Ngor/Okpala Councils, a development confirmed by Sagir Musa, a lieutenant colonel and assistant public relations unit of 81 Division.

The thugs were in buses from Onitsha and neighbouring states. Preliminary findings indicated that they had been documented and handed over to the Imo State police command.

As at 11.30am, accreditation was yet to commence in Oguta and Mbaitoli Council areas. It was, however, not certain why the election processes had not commenced.

Soldiers, in Oguta LGA, dispersed some male protesters. Barely 20 minutes later, a defiant crowd of women protesters, daring soldiers, marched to the INEC office in Oguta calling for the cancellation of the election.

The protesters, not minding heavy security presence besieged the office of INEC located in Oguta yesterday, urging INEC offices to discontinue with the conduct of supplementary governoship polls earlier scheduled in the area

They accused INEC personnel of being negligent and slow in displaying electoral materials to the area in good time. But, except for the late arrival of voting materials, election took place peacefully in other council areas including Ngor-Okpala, Mbaitoli, Ohaji-Egbema and Orji wards.

But, the supervising resident electoral commissioner in the state Aniedi Ikowa announced the withdrawal of election material earlier sent to Oguta for the election, saying he would take a decision what would become of the election in Oguta later. The announcement had not come as at press time.

The Guardain gatthered that some materials arrived the area in the late morning hours without official stamp.

Meanwhile unconfirmed report said two people were shot in Ngor-Okpala while another two persons believed to be thugs were apprehended on Thursday night.
Source: The Guardian, 7^th May 2011.

Fraud and Fights Mar Final Imo State Election

REUTERS

Fist fights and fraud marred Imo state governorship election on Friday, a re-run of a vote which was declared inconclusive last month because of widespread irregularities. Africa's most populous nation held presidential, parliament and state elections in April but the governorship race in Imo state, on the edge of the oil-

producing Niger Delta, had to be held again in some areas after no winner could be declared. The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) ordered a fresh vote in four local government areas (LGAs) after ballot boxes were stolen and fake voting materials used. But Friday's re-run appeared to face similar problems. "It's no use. There is massive fraud in the four LGAs," said Victor Ume, chairman of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (AGPA) opposition party. "People have been arrested with already written results and thumb-printed ballot papers ... It is very frustrating indeed.

Unscrupulous elements here do not want a free and fair election in this state," he said. Protesters destroyed an INEC office in one community after a group of youths were arrested for thumb-printing ballot papers and being in possession of pre-written results sheets. Voting materials failed to arrive for hours at several polling units and there were fights elsewhere. "There was a fight at Oji township primary school, where indigenes tried to stop some people from being accredited, saying they were strangers who had come to rig the election," said Timothy Oda, a local observer. "At Ngo-Okpoala some thugs are harassing and attacking people to scare them away," he said. Ballot box snatching and thuggery marred state governorship elections in some other parts of Nigeria last week, although there was little of the orchestrated mob violence which had undermined similar votes in the past.

The state elections were the final stage of an electoral cycle deemed by observers and many Nigerians to have been the fairest since the end of military rule in 1999, despite some of the worst political violence for years. President Goodluck Jonathan, a Christian from the south, beat his main rival, ex-military ruler Muhammadu Buhari, a Muslim from the north, but the ruling party lost control of several states and saw its parliamentary majority weakened. Buhari supporters launched violent protests in towns across the north after the results were announced, burning homes, shops, churches and mosques in violence which a civil rights group said had killed at least 500 people. A curfew and heavy military presence brought the unrest under control and Jonathan, who also won millions of votes in the north, has pledged an "all-inclusive" government.
Source: Business Day, 7^th May 2011.

Imo: FG to Immortalise Slain Corps Members

By Simon Utebor, Owerri

President Goodluck Jonathan, on Thursday, said that the Federal Government would immortalise the late Chukwunonyerem Nkwazema, who was killed during the post-election violence in Bauchi State.

Nkwazema, a native of Imo State, was doing his compulsory National Youths Service Corps assignment in Bauchi State before he and other corps members met their untimely death.

Jonathan, in a speech read by Imo State Governor, Mr. Ikedi Ohakim, stated this during the presentation of the corpse of the deceased corps member at the Multi-Purpose Hall, Government House, Owerri.

"Instead of receiving your certificate of discharge, we are receiving your corpse. Your death will not be in vain. We receive your corpse with pride. We shall immortalise your name; a particular government institution will be named after you," the President said.

Jonathan, who said the country belonged to all Nigerians, condemned the dastardly act, saying that the perpetrators of the act would not go unpunished.

He urged Nigerians to always seek peaceful process of advancing their interests, saying that visiting mayhem on fellow Nigerians was crude, archaic and unthinkable.

"Let it be sounded clearly that no particular person, group of persons or section has the key to the warehouse of mayhem and violence. Enough is enough," Jonathan said.

The state Commissioner for Youths and Sports, Mrs. Ngozi Anyikwa, said the death of the 26-year-old was a big blow to the family and to Imo State.
Source: Punch, 7^th May 2011.

Imo West: Uzodinma Floors Izunaso

MEBRIM UCHECHUKWU, Abuja

The Supreme Court yesterday declared Chief Hope Uzodinma the authentic candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the Imo West Senatorial seat.

With the ruling the controversy that has trailed the party's nomination for the senatorial district is now rested. Senator Osita Izunaso and Uzodinma have been locked in a fierce battle on who the authentic candidate of the party was.

In a unanimous decision, the apex court set aside the judgment of the Court of Appeal which affirmed the decision of Justice Abdul Kafarati of a Federal High court that Senator Osita Izunaso was the candidate of the party for the senatorial seat.

Justice Walter Onnoegen who read the lead judgment however said the court would give reasons for its judgment on May 20, 2011

Prior to the judgment, the court took oral submissions from counsel to both parties in the suit with the legal team assembled by Uzodinma praying the court to allow the appeal and set aside the judgment of the lower court.

Chief wole Olanikpekun (SAN) who lead the team comprising of four other Senior Advocates of Nigeria contended that the lower courts failed to consider all the evidence placed before it before arriving at its judgment.

Aside from this, he said his client was not given sufficient time to present his case as his time accrued to him by law was abridged by the court.

Counsel to the PDP, Chief Olusola Oke pitched tent with Uzodinma when he told the court that the appellant was the authentic candidate of the party and not Izunaso.

During the hearing, the apex court had directed the Independent National Electoral Commission and the two contenders to maintain the status quo until a final judgment is delivered.

Before now, the duo of Federal High Court in Abuja and the Court of Appeal also in Abuja had made concurrent findings and affirmed Izunaso as the candidate of the party for the already held National Assembly election.

Uzodinma had earlier lost his bid to stay the judgment of the trial court at the Court of Appeal which held that Izunaso was already the candidate of the party on the grounds that Uzodinma was disqualified by the PDP's electoral panel headed by Prince Orji Nwafor-Orizu.

In affirming the judgment of Justice Abdul Kafarati of a Federal High court, the appellate court dismissed the appeal brought by Chief Hope Uzodinma for lacking in merit.

Chief Uzodinma who was dissatisfied with the decision of the Court of Appeal approached the Supreme Court to set aside the judgment and to decide the appeal in his favour.

The appeal filed by his counsel, Mr. Paul Erokoro (SAN) was accompanied with an application to stay the execution of the judgment pending the hearing and determination of the appeal.

In addition, the application also sought to restrain INEC from effecting any change with respect of Uzodinma as the candidate of the PDP for the Imo West Senatorial seat.

But when the application was moved yesterday, Counsel to INEC, Hassan Liman prayed for a short adjournment to enable the commission respond to it by filling a counter affidavit even as he said election into the senatorial seat had already been conducted and a winner emerged.

He told the court that the application was only given to him on Wednesday by his client and he needed time to study it and file a counter affidavit.

Although counsel to PDP, Chief Olusola Oke said he was not opposing the application for stay, but counsel to Izunaso, Chief Patrick Ikwueto (SAN) opposed it.

In granting an adjournment, Justice Walter Onnoegen who presided over the five-man panel said in the interest of justice, it was proper to give INEC a chance to be heard.

According to him, INEC must be heard because one of the injunctions is against it.

It was at this stage that the court ordered all parties in the matter to maintain status quo in the matter since the appeal was before the court.

Justice Onnoegen said : "We are in court and I have never seen a mad man in court in all my years in court. It is a court of law so I presume all of us are sane. There is a reason for this quarrel but as responsible people, I expect you to maintain the position until the issue is resolved. I want all the parties in this matter to maintain the status quo. A situation of self help should not arise until we decide the faith of the judgment of the lower court. Every party in this case should behave responsible including INEC."
Source: Daily Champion, 6^th May 2011.

'Why we are deploying four RECs'

By John Alechenu, Abuja

The Independent National Electoral Commission on Thursday gave an insight into why it deployed four Resident Electoral Commissioners for Friday (today's) governorship supplementary election in Imo State.

Our correspondent gathered that INEC's top hierarchy reviewed security reports from the field and came to the conclusion that the stakes were too high to leave anything to chance.

The INEC top shots also took into cognisance local and international interest generated by the stalemate which led to the decision to hold a supplementary election.

Some have described today's election as having the potential to sway public opinion in favour of or against the work so far done by INEC.

In a telephone interview with our correspondent, in Abuja, the Chief Press Secretary to the INEC Chairman, Mr. Kayode Idowu, said INEC was prepared for the poll.

He said, "The commission is aware of the level of desperation among politicians.

"We are also aware of the fact that this is the last lap of the elections which makes it the more important for us not to leave anything to chance.

"Yes, we have four Resident Electoral Commissioners on ground and this is part of our strategy to ensure the credibility of the election."

The commission had in a statement on April 29 gave the reasons for organising a supplementary election.

The statement read in part: Following the April 26, 2011 governorship election in Imo State which the Returning Officer ruled inconclusive, the Independent National Electoral Commission has scheduled supplementary election to hold in selected areas on Friday, May 6, 2011.

"The supplementary election will hold in four (4) Local Government Areas namely Ngor-Okpalla, Mbaitoli, Oguta and Egbema; as well as in Orji Ward in Owerri North Local Government Area."

It promised all stakeholders that it would ensure the highest level of integrity and good conduct in the supplementary election to allow for the smooth conclusion of the governorship poll.

Source: Punch, 6^th May 2011.

Anxiety as Imo election holds today

FROM MOHAMMED ABUBAKAR, LEMMY UGHEGBE (ABUJA, WITH AGENCY REPORT

Coalition officers shun Bauchi elections

ALL eyes are on Imo State today as the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) holds supplementary election in four local councils and a ward in Oguta area of the state in order to determine the winner of the April 26 gubernatorial polls.

In this regard, no fewer than 108 members of staff of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from Enugu State will be deployed for the conduct of today's supplementary elections in Imo State.

Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in Enugu State, Josiah Uwazuruonye, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) yesterday in Enugu that the directive came from INEC headquarters in Abuja.

And collation officers in the 11 registration areas in Ningi Local Council, Bauchi State yesteday failed to turn up for the rescheduled State House of Assembly election.

The Electoral Officer in the area, Mrs, Hadiza Bome, disclosed this when INEC National Commissioner, Col. Muhhamed Hammanga (rtd) and the Bauchi REC, Iliya Audu visited the area.

Meanwhile, efforts to abort the Imo supplementary governorship election yesterday failed at the Federal High Court, Abuja Division, as the court did not hear two actions, seeking to stop the election. No official explanation was given for the Judge's absence.

Five indigenes of Imo State had filed two separate suits at the court to stop the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from holding the said supplementary election in the state just as a similar case filed by the All Progressive Grand Alliance and its governorship candidate in Imo State, Owelle Rochas Okorocha, did not go on.

The plaintiffs, namely Bob Njemanze, Kingsley Ihegworo, Chief Alan Onyemaechi, Nwokedi Jideofor and Emmanuel Ihim, are praying the court to hold that the May 6, 2011 supplementary election into the office of the Imo State Governor is unconstitutional.

And, National Chairman, All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP), Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu, yesterday called for an initiative towards curtailing the use of money to induce voters, saying public office seekers should endeavour to convince the electorate to vote for them by articulating sound policies and programmes in their campaigns.

While admitting that this year's general elections were successful despite the obvious challenges when compared to the previous ones, Onu submitted that it was hasty to jump into conclusion that the elections were free, fair and credible, saying doing so would amount to ignoring the pitfalls that trailed the process and conduct of the polls.

The ANPP chairman spoke while receiving a delegation from the Country Office of the National Democratic Institute (NDI), led by the Senior Country Director, Carlo Binda in his office in Abuja.

In a related development, Mr. Titus Uzor, Special Adviser on Security to Governor Ikedi Ohakim, yesterday said arrangements had been concluded to ensure smooth conduct of today's supplementary governorship election in Imo.

Onu stressed the need for both local and international election observers to focus more on the rural areas where he said rigging and manipulation take place. Nevertheless, he commended the democratic spirit of Nigerians, which he said led to the success of the general elections.

"Most people, without any form of qualifications, talk about the elections, having been very free, fair and credible. For us, yes, there were improvements, but we cannot make those comments because if we do that, it means that we are ignoring all the weaknesses we saw in the electoral processes. Besides, there is danger if we do that because there will be no room for improvement," he said.

He said the ANPP had taken a very close look at the general elections and "we are satisfied, we are happy that the elections in 2011 showed significant improvement in a number of areas, but still, we feel there are very disturbing signs and developments as well as actions within the last election. For instance, we have instances where the will of the people was not respected. What we have seen in the electoral process is that Nigeria in virtually divided into two segments.

"One of the two segments comprise where elections were reasonably free and fair. For instance, in the South West region of the nation and some parts of the north. But there are other parts of the country where elections were not free and fair, principally in the south east and south-south parts of the nation, as well as some states of the north."

He said because of the relative fairness of the elections in the South West, people who lost the elections, even sitting governors, were quick to congratulate those that won, saying this development had not happened before.

Uwazuruonye said: "As a result of what happened in the country concerning youth corps members, most of them are no longer eager to continue participation as ad hoc staff in respect of the election. Most of them still nurse the morbid fear that what happened in the north might also be extended to them in the east.

Bome said there was a clash between the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) agents in Didanga polling unit.

The electoral officer told the commissioners that a presiding officer was beaten at Gwada polling unit and that after he left, people started massive thumb printing of ballot papers.

She quoted the officer as saying that he would cancel the election in the polling unit.

Bome also informed the commissioners that another INEC staff, Abdullahi Barau, was beaten in Balma ward, with a threat to his life if he went back to the area.
Source: The Guardian, 6^th May 2011.

Abia, Imo, Anambra Bury Corps Members

By Sanni Ologun, Abuja

What a difficult job! But they had to do it – with bravery.

Fighting bottled-up emotions, the six youths bore the casket containing the remains of their colleague who was killed in the post-election violence that rocked some parts of the North.

It was a moving final farewell for Michael Obinna Okpokiri, a National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) member from Abia State who was killed in Bauchi State.

Governor Theodore Orji led a long list of mourners at the commendation service at the Michael Okpara Auditorium in Umuahia.

Many shed tears. Some silently cursed the killers. Others were merely wondering why it happened?

As the six youths moved the casket, which was covered with the green-white-green national colours, out for burial, the auditorium remained charged. It was perhaps the most solemn ceremony in the auditorium named after the first Premier of the old Eastern Region.

The youths were decked out in full NYSC uniform of Khaki trousers, T-shirts with bold NYSC inscription, trainers and Khaki caps. They were moody.

In the congregation were Deputy Governor Chief Eric Acho Nwakanma, the governor's wife, Mrs Mercy Odochi Orji, former Senate President Adolphus Wabara and NYSC co-ordinator Mrs Victoria Akakwu.
Source: The Nation, 6^th May 2011.

Imo Guber: No Supplementary Poll In Oguta LGA

By Amby Uneze in Owerri

The supplementary poll ordered by the Independent National Electoral Commission,INEC,in four local government areas of Imo state to conclude the gubernatorial election in the state went as scheduled  on Friday but not without a hitch

While registration of voters began in earnest in three of the affected LGs-Ngor Okpala,Mbaitoli,Ohaji/Egbema and Orji ward in Owerri North-,there was no sign of any election rerun in Oguta LGA

As at 3.20pm,no single electoral material has left the INEC office in the area for the polling booths  talk less  of accrediting voters for proper voting

Thisday checks revealed that the agents of one of the candidates in the gubernatorial poll,Rochas Okorocha of the All Progressive Grand Alliance,APGA, are insisting they won't  be part of the rerun election as they claimed the poll will be rigged in favour of the sitting governor Ikedi Ohakim of the Peoples Democratic Party,PDP

All entreaties from the INEC National Commissioners,Police DIG and Commander of the Army Artillery Brigade,Obinze to the party agents to be part of the election fell on deaf ears as they stood their ground to boycott the rerun poll

INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner,Mr Albert Ikioria in his reaction to the development said with the charged atmosphere  in Oguta LGA election cannot be held in the area

He said the commission in a matter of hours will take a definite decision on the next line of action as regards the LGA
Source: This Day, 6^th May 2011.

Imo Guber: Araraume Holds the Ace in Friday's Supplementary Poll

By Tobi Soniyi in Abuja and Amby Uneze in Owerri with agency report

The candidate of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), Senator Ifeanyi Araraume, may determine who becomes the next governor of Imo State as the supplementary elections hold Friday.

Although he came third in the original election held on April 26, whoever Araraume supports between Governor Ikedi Ohakim of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Owelle Rochas Okorocha of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) is likely to win the poll.

The supplementary election has now effectively become a run-off between Ohakim and Okorocha.

In the original election, Ohakim and Okorocha won in 11 local government areas each, with the governor scoring 268,927 votes – 12,370 less than the APGA candidate's tally of 281,297. Araraume polled 106,503 votes.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared the election inconclusive and ordered "supplementary elections" in Ngor Okpala, Mbaitoli, Ohaji/ Egbema and Oguta council areas as well as Orji Ward, Owerri North.

Araraume is said to be nursing the "cancerous wound" inflicted on him by his associate, former Governor Achike Udenwa who is believed to have betrayed Araraume in the April 26 poll.

Araraume lost all the local governments in Orlu Zone to Okorocha. Udenwa had been expected to deliver the zone to his associate.

THISDAY gathered that since INEC fixed the supplementary election, high-powered delegations from Ohakim have been meeting with Araraume to appeal for his support.

It is also believed that Araraume may have conceded to assisting his brother who happened to be his associate at one time as well as being a "blood relative" from the same Ugiri clan of Isiala Mbano local government area of the state.

Araraume and Ohakim are from the same Okigwe Zone and since the zone has another four years to complete an eight-year slot to produce the chief executive of the state, the duo are said to be working together to prevent power from going back to Orlu Zone. Both Okorocha and Udenwa are from Orlu.

This calculation was confirmed in a press statement announced on a local radio station and jointly signed by some ACN chieftains from Ngor Okpala local government where the party has large followership. It is one of the major areas where there was no governorship election on April 26. They urged ACN supporters to vote for PDP.

The election will hold in two councils in Orlu Zone (Oguta and Ohaji/Egbema) as well as two councils in Owerri Zone (Ngor Okpala and Mbaitoli, in addition to Orji Ward).

A major handicap for Ohakim and Araraume, however, is that no election will hold in Okigwe where both of them hail from.

Ahead of Friday, more than 10,000 policemen have been deployed in the four local government areas of Imo State where supplementary governorship and House of Assembly elections.

Deputy Inspector General of Police (DIG), Ivy Okoronkwo, told newsmen in Owerri Thursday that the measure was to ensure peaceful, free and fair supplementary elections.

She said  the personnel were drawn from the anti-riot, anti-terrorism and anti-bomb squads, in addition to conventional policemen.

According to her ,other security agencies would provide personnel to complement the efforts of the Imo Command.

Okoronkwo, who said she had been assigned to supervise the exercise, added that there would be strict restriction of movement between 8am and 10pm in the state Friday.

Politicians, she added, had been banned from visiting polling stations with policemen.

"Thuggery and hooliganism will not be tolerated and anybody caught with any offensive weapon will have himself or herself to blame; to be forewarned is to be forearmed,'' she said.

In the meantime, INEC in the state has suspended four of its staff for allegedly sabotaging its efforts to ensure free, fair and credible supplementary elections.

The Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in the state, Mr Aniedi Ikoiwa, announced this at a separate press briefing in Owerri Thursday.

Ikoiwa said the conduct of the suspended staff was being investigated, adding that anyone still found wanting would be suspended from duty.

He said more than 90 per cent of INEC staff involved in the elections were drafted from six other states to ensure credibility of the exercise.

He also said materials for the elections would be distributed promptly and would arrive at the polling units between 7am and 7.30am Friday.

"We are here to ensure a free, fair and credible election; we have put everything in place to do that and we will do just that," he said.

He stated that due to the seriousness of the supplementary polls, the commission decided to post one REC to each of the local governments affected by the elections.

At present, there are four RECs moved into the state from other states as well as other National Commissioners to be led by Dr Ismail Igbani to supervise the elections.

The Supervising REC maintained that there would be no National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) member to be used for the election, but emphasised that all polling units should be manned by not less than four security personnel.

Also, attempts to stop today's election failed as the Federal High Court did not hear the two suits filed at the court to stop the elections.

Five indigenes of Imo State on Wednesday filed a suit at the Federal High Court in Abuja to stop INEC from holding a supplementary election in the state.

Their case, though separate, was similar to that filed by the APGA and its governorship candidate, Okorocha, but the case did not go on.

The plaintiffs - Bob Njemanze, Kingsley Ihegworo, Chief Alan Onyemaechi, Nwokedi Jideofor and Emmanuel Ihim - are asking the court to hold that the supplementary election into the office of the Imo State governor is unconstitutional.

In the case filed on their behalf by Ihegworo, who is also one of the plaintiffs, they asked the court to issue an injunction and stop the election.

According to them, the proposed election violates the provisions of Section 25(7) and (8) of the Electoral Act 2010.

They asked the court to declare that the holding of the supplementary election was alien to both the Electoral Act and the 1999 Constitution.

They also asked the court to declare that 27th April, 2011 was the last day limited by the Act and the constitution for holding elections into the office of the governor of Imo State.

The plaintiffs asked the court to declare that any election by whatever description conducted by INEC into the office of the governor outside the period limited by law was unconstitutional and therefore of no effect.

The case was assigned to Justice Bilikisu Aliyu and was supposed to have been heard Friday but the judge did not show up in the court.

The plaintiffs asked the court to determine if within the intendment of sections 25, 26 and 153 of the Electoral Act, 2010, as amended and sections 178(2) and 179 of the 1999 constitution, election into the office of the governor of Imo State could be extended beyond the limited period of 30 days before the expiration of the tenure of the holder of that office.

They also want the court to resolve the question if INEC can validly call for and fix the 6th May, 2011 as the date for election into the office of the governor of Imo State after the period limited by law which is a period not later than 30 days before the tenure of the last holder of that office.

On Wednesday, APGA and Okorocha filed a similar case wherein they asked the court to stop the election

In a motion on notice filed on behalf of the plaintiffs by Professor Francis Dike (SAN), APGA and Okorocha are seeking two injunctive reliefs.

They warned that unless the court stopped the elections, there would likely be a breakdown of law and order in the state.

They asked the court for an order of interlocutory injunction suspending the decision of INEC to conduct the supplementary election or any other election howsoever called on May 6th, 2011 or any other date into the office of the governor of the state pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suit.

Secondly, they asked the court for an order of interlocutory injunction restraining INEC from taking any step whatsoever or conducting supplementary elections or any elections howsoever called on May 6th, 2011 or any other date into the office of the Governor of Imo State pending the hearing and determination of the substantive suit.

Front Runners

Rochas Okorocha (APGA)
•Born on 22nd September 1962 in Ogboko, Ideato South.
•Attended University of Jos, getting an advanced diploma in Public Administration and an LL.B
•Vote haul so far: 281,297
Ikedi Ohakim (PDP)
•Born on 4 August 1957 in Okohia, Isiala Mbano.
•Attended the University of Lagos, bagging a B.Sc. in Business Administration and a Master's Degree in Management.
•Vote haul so far: 268,927
 Tie Breaker?

Ifeanyi Araraume (ACN)
•Born on 16 December 1958 in Isiebu, Umuduru, Isiala Mbano.
•Attended the Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia, US, earning a B.Sc in Business Admin; and Uniben, MA in International Relations.
•Vote haul so far: 106,503

Source: This Day, 6^th May 2011.

SUPPLEMENTARY POLL: Anxiety in Imo

By CLIFFORD NDUJIHE, IKECHUKWU NNOCHIRI & CHIDI NKWOPARA

LAGOS – WITH 10,000 police men, four National Commissioners and four Resident Electoral Commissioners, RECs, and other Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, staff from neighbouring states on duty, the commission must get right  today's supplementary governorship election in four local councils and one ward in Imo State.

Already, there is anxiety in the land with a thick cloud of uncertainty covering the political atmosphere. Imo citizenry are scared that if mishandled, the supplementary poll might degenerate to avoidable mayhem. Some of them have urged INEC, security agencies and stakeholders to save the state avoidable mayhem.

Assurance from INEC

However, the INEC, yesterday, assured the citizenry of a peaceful, free and fair election stressing that  it had made adequate arrangements for credible balloting.

Chief Press Secretary to INEC Chairman, Mr. Kayode Idowu, told Vanguard that there was no cause for alarm. He said:

"We are taking the election seriously. We have four Resident Electoral Commissioners and four National Commissioners on ground. Security agencies are also on ground. With the level of security on ground, the fear that violence may break out is unwarranted."

The election will hold after spirited efforts by the All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA, and its governorship candidate, Owelle Rochas Okorocha, to stop the poll through the courts hit the rocks. The absence of an Abuja Federal High Court Judge, Justice Bilkisu Aliyu, who was assigned the case meant that there is no judicial declaration stopping INEC from conducting the election was made.

To give credibility to the exercise, some INEC staff serving in Imo State have been suspended from office and others were charged to court for their alleged complicity in the political stalemate now being experienced in the state.

This is coming as major stakeholders and combatants in the election met with one another in a series of meetings. Vanguard gathered that they also met separately with President Goodluck Jonathan said the goal is to ensure that the outcome of today's election is acceptable to all. This will save the state from unnecessary tension and halt likely post-election litigation that can nullify the election.

Going by provisions of the Electoral Act, the election should be held at most 150 days and at least 30 days to the end of the current dispensation. Today, May 6, is 23 days to the May 29 handover date, which leaves a clear landmine that could be detonated by an aggrieved loser.

At press time, Vanguard learnt that one issue hindering the 'arrangement' was whether or not the beneficiary (Governor Ikedi Ohakim of PDP or Rochas Okorocha of APGA) would play ball and deliver at the end of the day. A source said that electoral commissioners considered hostile to one of the leading political parties have been redeployed, to pave way for a good outcome.

Why INEC sanctioned staff

Speaking on the suspended and prosecuted staff, the supervisory Resident Electoral Commissioner, REC, for Imo State, Aniedi Abasi Ikoiwak, who resisted the temptation of rolling out names of the affected INEC staff, yesterday in Owerri said: "We have thoroughly examined all INEC staff in respect of the conduct of past elections in the state and those found wanting have been suspended and some others charged to court."

Ikoiwak said the electoral umpire had discovered that almost everybody in Imo State now claims to be an observer, adding that as a result of this startling discovery, the commission had introduced a fresh revalidation exercise for the accreditation of observers.

Warning that any fake observer caught would be punished, Ikoiwak also disclosed that 90 per cent of the people that would handle the supplementary poll, including collation officers would come from outside the state.

He said: "INEC staff have been brought from six states and they will go to the affected local government areas and if we discover any funny or strange conduct from any of them, we will act accordingly."

Ikoiwak said that four electoral officers appointed from different states have been posted to the affected four local council areas, adding that there will be total restriction of movement with effect from 10pm yesterday.

He added: "We are poised to live up to expectation. We are not interested in who wins or loses but to ensure that the exercise is credible and transparent. Results will be announced after all electoral formalities had been concluded."

108 INEC staff from Enugu

Indeed, about 108 INEC staff from Enugu State had been deployed for the election.

INEC Resident Electoral Commissioner, REC, in Enugu State, Mr Josiah Uwazuruonye, told the News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, yesterday that the directive came from INEC headquarters in Abuja.

Uwazuroye said: "As a result of what happened in the country concerning youth corps members, most of them are no longer eager to continue participation as ad-hoc staff in respect of the election. Most of them still nurse the morbid fear that what happened in the North might be extended to them in the East.

"INEC does not want to take chances in case we do not have full complement of corps members. We were given directive to deploy our competent staff to conduct the supplementary election in Imo State. If the situation arises where the corps members are not eager to participate, INEC can as well make use of its staff.

That is why staff from Enugu and other neighbouring states are being invited to report at Owerri for the exercise. If we do not have full complement of corps members to take part in the supplementary election."

Police deploy 10,000 men

To ensure security at the election, the Nigeria Police has deployed over 10,000 of its personnel in the four local council areas where the planned supplementary governorship and House of Assembly polls would be held today in Imo State.

Deputy Inspector General of Police, DIG, Mr. Ivy Okoronkwo, who disclosed this during a pre_election press briefing at the Police State Headquarters, Owerri, also assured the citizenry of the neutrality and preparedness of the security agencies to play their constitutional role during the poll.

Okoronkwo said: "This number is made up of men from anti-riot Police Mobile Force, PMF, anti terrorism squad, ATS, conventional policemen and anti-bomb squad."

Noting that other sister security agencies will provide a good number of their personnel to complement police efforts, the DIG also said that each polling unit would be adequately manned and that vehicular patrols would cover all the polling units in the council areas.

The DIG who warned that thuggery and hooliganism would not be tolerated in any part of the state, and that anybody caught with any offensive weapon will have himself to blame, stressed: "The use of tinted glasses, covered number plates or provocative inscriptions or slogans is prohibited. All the political parties participating in the supplementary elections are advised to avoid making inflammatory statements capable of heating up the polity that is already charged.

Okoronkwo equally urged Imo people not to see the exercise as a do or die affair, even as he appealed to parents and guardians to warn their children and wards to desist from any act of violence and other vices that could mar the smooth conduct of the election.

Judge stalls APGA's bid to stop INEC

Spirited efforts by APGA and its governorship candidate, Okorocha, to invoke the original jurisdiction of a Federal High Court in Abuja and stop the INEC from going ahead with its plans to conduct the election failed following the refusal of the trial judge to appear in court yesterday.

Though the acting Chief Judge of the High Court, Justice Ibrahim Auta, initially assigned trial Justice Donatus Okorowo to preside over the ex_parte application that was filed before the High Court by APGA, the case was later re_assigned to Justice Bilkisu Aliyu who failed to show up in court throughout yesterday.

Though the court clerks waited in expectation that the presiding judge would turn_up for both the APGA case and several other matters originally slated on the court's cause_list, they, however, packed their registers at about 4pm after it became evident that Justice Bilkisu would not anchor legal proceedings for the day.

With this development, the suit that was lodged at the high court by APGA as well as a similar one that was filed by five indigenes of Imo State, seeking the cancellation of today's supplementary poll in four local government areas of the state might have been reduced to an academic exercise.

The other five Imo indigenes that equally approached the High Court with a view to quashing INEC's bid to hold election in the state today were Chief Bob Njemanze, Kingsley Ihegworo, Chief Alan Onyemaechi, Nwokedi Jideofor and Emmanuel Ihim.

They are pleading the court to declare the planned supplementary governorship election in the state illegal and unconstitutional.

APGA via a motion on notice it filed through its counsel, Prof. Francis Dike, SAN, sought two injunctive reliefs, stopping the said election.

The party warned that unless the court stopped the election, there might be a breakdown of law and order in Imo State today.

In asking the court to stop the supplementary elections in Imo, the party raised several grounds upon which the court should rely in granting them the reliefs among which were, "That election into the office of the governor of a state by law must be conducted not earlier than 150 days and not later than 30 days before the expiration of the term of office of the last holder of that office."

Conduct of election

The applicants also maintained that the last day for the conduct of election into the office of the governor of Imo State is April 27, 2011.

"That the period between May 6, 2011 and May 27, 2011 which is the last day before the expiration of the tenure of the last holder of the office of the governor of Imo State which expires on May 30, 2011 is less than 30 days limited by law."

According to the processes it filed in court, the cancellation of Mbaitolu Local Government Council election and result after same was declared by the appropriate/ designated officer of INEC was ultra vires the powers of the commission.

In a 25_paragraphed affidavit that was attached to the suit, the deponent, Mr. Jude Nsofor, averred that Okorocha won 12 out of the 24 local government councils where election was held while the Peoples Democratic Party's candidate, Ikedi Ohakim won 11.

According to him, by the released result of the Mbaitolu Local Government Area by INEC upon conclusion of the election in the council area, they led the other contestants with 17, 757 votes while the PDP runner up scored 12,440 votes.

He stated thus:"That of the said 11Local Government Areas declared to have been won by the PDP, the plaintiffs also scored not less than 25 per cent of total votes cast in five of the council areas namely, Aboh_Mbaise, Ahiazu_Mbaise, Ikeduru, Nwangele and Ezinihitte Mbaise local government areas."

He maintained that the plaintiffs scored 299,253 votes out of the total votes cast in the election including Mbaitolu LGA result while PDP, the runner up scored 291,365 votes.

He added that when the results of the election in Mbaitolu LGA were added the plaintiffs had scored not less than 25 per cent of the total votes cast in 18 local government areas being two-thirds f the 27 local government areas of Imo State, stressing that unless INEC was stopped by the court, it would go ahead to conduct an illegal election in Imo State.

"Unless the defendant is immediately restrained by this court, the defendant will proceed with the conduct of the said supplementary election which may likely lead to break down of and order," he added.
Source: Vanguard, 6^th May 2011.

Party Chiefs, Thugs Hijack Imo Supplementary Election

Party chiefs and thugs, Friday, hijacked the conduct of the supplementary election in four local government areas of Imo State, sparking fraud, fights and protests in many of the polling stations.

Some security agents even joined in alleged intimidation of opposition supporters, agents and election observers.

The supplementary election had been ordered after INEC declared the April 29 election inconclusive.

An exasperated Victor Umeh, National Chairman of the All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA, said: "It's no use. There is massive fraud in the four L.G.As.

"People have been arrested with already written results and thumb-printed ballot papers. It is very frustrating indeed. Unscrupulous elements do not want a free and fair election in this state."

Signs that all might not go well with the election appeared on Wednesday night after the authorities of the National Youth Service Corps, NYSC); in the state withdrew its members from participating in the conduct of the election.

INEC had to make emergency provision for ad-hoc staff from neigbouring Ebonyi, Cross River and River states.

This had a telling effect as election materials and personnel were nowhere many polling stations by 12 noon.

Tension soon rose in the affected LGAs: Mbaitolu, Ngor-Okpala, Oguta and Egbema and Orji ward in Owerri North.

Our newsroom was inundated with text messages from observers who complained of intimidation by party stalwarts in Orji where a PDP chieftain and his thugs allegedly prevented non-natives who registered there from voting.

At Umuagwu in Ohaji-Egbema, a prominent community leader was said to have gone round threatening that anyone who would not vote for a particular party should steer clear of the polling booths.

In Ejemekwuru, Oguta 2 election materials were allegedly diverted to the residence of a party stalwart.

Three men were arrested by the Police in Oguta for being in possession of thump-printed ballot papers.

1000 voters stage protest in Oguta

Not fewer than 1,000 voters at Oguta Local Government Area took to the streets to protest the non availability of electoral materials for the supplementary governorship poll.

The voters trooped out early in the morning for the registration to enable them cast their votes but after hours of waiting in vain for the arrival of the materials the people took to the streets.

NAN reported that as at 2.50 p.m. the exercise had yet to begin and no INEC official could be found in the area to explain the situation.
Source: Vanguard, 6^th May 2011.

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