Ohuabunwa refutes alleged importation of hoodlums to disrupt Kalu’s visit

Ohuabunwa refutes alleged importation of hoodlums to disrupt Kalu’s visit

By Steve Oko

Senator Mao Ohuabunwa has refuted media reports that he is allegedly importing some questionable characters from Rivers State with the intent to disrupt the visit of the Senate Chief Whip to Arochukwu, and an event by Arochukwu women.

He dismissed the allegation as fictitious and a cheap blackmail by his detractors who are desperately looking for occasion to incriminate him.

Ohuabunwa said that those who  feel threatened by his rising political profile ahead of the 2023 polls were bent on tarnishing his image.

The former Leader, ECOWAS Parliament who spoke through the Chairman of his Campaign Council in Arochukwu, Hon. Obinna Nwankwo, said that media report was a blatant falsehood and a smoke screen by the sponsors to instigate crisis in Arochukwu and blame it on him.

Hon. Nwankwo in a statement urged members of the public to discountenance the said report, disclosing that Ohuabunwa had already detailed his lawyers for necessary actions.

Below is a full text of the statement made available to Wawa News Global:

“Our attention has been drawn to a spurious media report credited to one faceless Chief Ijioma Okoro Nkemdirim, a self-acclaimed Community Leader in Arochukwu

who alleged that the Distinguished Senator Mao Ohuabunwa was planning to cause crisis in the ancient town of Arochukwu.

“According to the fictitious and sponsored report, the attention-seeking Nkemdirim alleged that Senator Ohuabunwa was planning to disrupt an event organized by Arochukwu women and further disrupt the ward-to-ward tour of the Chief Whip of the Senate, Senator Orji Uzor Kalu in Arochukwu.

“He further claimed that Senator Ohuabunwa and his brothers allegedly engaged  “boys” from Rivers State to cause crisis in Arochukwu, warning that he would not want the Army to invade Arochukwu.

“Ordinarily, we would not like to dignify such an amorphous element with a response but for the sake of straightening the records, and the gullible members of the public who could be easily deceived by such unfounded cheap blackmail. We want to make it categorically clear that there is no iota of truth in such untenable allegations which only exist in the figment of the imagination of the peddler and his sponsors.

“The good people of Arochukwu and indeed members of the public who know Distinguished Senator Ohuabunwa can always attest to the fact that he is a man of peace, and has never been associated with any form of violence. All through his life both private and public, there has never been a time he had anything to do with hoodlums, or engaged criminals for any purpose. He, still does not intend to, and will never for any reason contemplate resorting to such unpatriotic lifestyle.

“It’s not in doubt that the so-called Chief Ijioma Okoro Nkemdirim is a fake figure because no Aro man or woman can associate the Ohuabunwas with violence. Senator Ohuabunwa has served both as a House of Representatives member and a Senator who gave out his best for the good of Aro people and never at anytime associated with wrong characters. Similarly, his siblings have been at the forefront of advancing the cause of Aro people, and cannot arguably be importing “bad boys” from anywhere to foment troubles in the same town they have always defended with everything they have. For the records the Senator’s Elder brother, Mazi Sam Ohuabunwa has been the President of Nzuko Aro for many years, and could not have been part of any plots to destabilize  Arochukwu.

“It is very clear that this fabricated blackmail is only a smoke screen by the peddlers to foment trouble in Arochukwu and possibly, as he warned, find justification to deploy the Army to Arochukwu for God-knows reasons. Senator Ohuabunwa has no reason to disrupt any event organised by Aro women who he has strongly supported, and will continue to support. He also does not have any reason or intension to disrupt Ward-ward visit of the Senate Chief Whip.

“If the faceless Nkemdirim and his sponsors are plotting to use the false alarm to instigate crisis in Arochukwu and blame it on the amiable and peace-loving Distinguished Senator Mao Ohuabunwa, they should think of better strategies.

“Meanwhile, Distinguished Senator Ohuabunwa has notified his lawyers of these wild allegations for necessary actions while efforts are on to fish out the self-acclaimed community Leader, Chief Nkemdirim, so he could substantive his claims with proof.

“We equally want to aver that no amount of cheap blackmail by anti-democratic forces who are already threatened by the rising popularity and swelling support for Senator Ohuabunwa across Abia North, can deter the Senator and the people of Abia North from reclaiming their stolen mandate in 2023. It is very glaring that those holding Abia North down are so frustrated, and out of ideas that they have resorted to throwing tantrums out of their desperation to possibly escape the obvious humiliation awaiting them in 2023.”