Governor Ikpeazu Declares Friday, Monday Public Holidays As Battle For Abia Begins

Governor Okejie Ikpeazu of Abia State has declared Friday and Monday public holidays.

The administration said the public holidays were to honour Chief Ojo Maduekwe, who died on Wednesday.

The Federal High Court, Abuja, had ordered that Ogah should be sworn in was “a rape of democracy.”

The court, presided over by Justice Okon Abang, on Tuesday ordered Gov. Okezie Ikpeazu to vacate office as governor over the case of tax evasion.

 

But the reaction of the state government came as the Abia chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has declared that it will resist any attempt to inaugurate, Dr. Uche Ogah, as the new governor of the state.

The PDP chairman, Onuigbo however, said that the judgment and issuance of Certificate-of-Return to Ogah had undermined the peace and tranquillity enjoyed in the state.

“Abia is not safe. I didn’t want to believe the rumour that the state will soon be invaded by the army because this is not a war zone.

“We want to inform the world that there is tension in Abia because democracy is about to be raped.

“As a party, we will resist any move by anybody to undermine the peace in the state,” Onuigbo said.

He said that as a law-abiding state, the government had obtained an exparte injunction “restraining the state Chief Judge or any other judges from swearing in Ogah as governor”.

“We are ready for them, we are ready to die,” he said, adding, “If they do it, then they are inviting anarchy and confusion in the state.

“We are in a democracy so we want the world to hear and know that we are being shortchanged in Abia,” he said. Onuigbo said that the party had sent emisaries to Ogah to persuade him “to sheath his sword and allow peace to reign in Abia”, to no avail.

He said that at the end of the current crisis, the party would met out sanction to Ogah for disregarding entreaties from the chieftains of the party.