24th January, 2015
Okafor Ofiebor/Port Harcourt
Armed youths have bombed all the equipment, podium and have destroyed all the canopies set up at the National School Field, Okrika venue of the campaign rally for the All Progressives Congress, governorship candidate, Dakuku Peterside.
The atrocious act was carried out around 3:45 a.m. on Saturday. APC Chairman in Okrika local Government area told PM News that “some armed youths started shooting sporadically and throwing dynamites at the venue of the APC governorship rally, National School Field in Okrika. Those setting up the sound system and the podium were forced to flee for their lives”.
Asifamaka lamented that in Okrika, home of Mrs Patience Jonathan, the wife President Goodluck Jonathan the Peoples Democratic Party PDP thugs have resorted to violence to deny other Okrika people room for alternative voice as enshrined in the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
Asifsamaka stated that on Thursday 22 January, Mrs Patience Jonathan presided over a PDP rally at the same venue where she campaigned for the election of Nyesom Wike, the PDP governorship candidate and for the reelection of her husband, President Goodluck Jonathan.
She had urged her people not to have anything to do with APC. “They don’t have anything to offer you,” the chairman claimed she said.
Although he did not accuse the PDP of masterminding the destruction he noted that they had planned the attack. “At about 4:00 a.m. some boys drove into the venue in white Hiace bus from the Igbiri axis of the town and started shooting sporadically into the air and throwing explosives into the arena and destroyed the podium, sound equipment and some canopies”.
Also confirming the incident Mrs Ibim Semenitari, Commissioner for Information Communications who is also the Director Communications of Dakuku Peterside’s campaign said in a Facebook post: “Right now in Okrika our venue for the APC rally has been bombed by unknown persons. Chai there is God ooooooooo and he will defend our defenseless heads”.
It would be recalled the three leading governorship candidates in the state: Dakuku Peterside of APC, Nyesom Wike of the PDP and Prince Tonye Princewill of Labour Party signed a non-violent pact to ensure peaceful campaigns and election initiated by James Entwhistle, the American Ambassador to Nigeria.
It is however not clear if the campaign rally will still go ahead at the time of this report.