The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Rivers State has denied an allegation that it was recruiting thugs from the 23 local government areas of the State, to attack supporters of the party’s presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, and members of the opposition political parties.
Spokesman of the PDP Presidential Campaign Council in the State, Dr. Leloonu Nwibubasa, had recently accused the State chapter of the party of recruiting thugs to attack supporters of Atiku and other opposition members in the State.
But, addressing journalists in Port Harcourt on Saturday, spokesman of the Consolidation of the New Rivers Vision Campaign Council, Hon. Ogbonna Nwuke, accused Atiku supporters of resorting to underhand practices in an attempt to stir distrust and unrest in the State.
Nwuke said: “We have invited you as a party to share thoughts with you on a number of developments associated with the unethical behaviour of certain political renegades who are manning the Atiku campaign in Rivers State.
“While Governor Nyesom Wike has been busy, to the glory of God, commissioning and flagging off new projects in parts of the State, Rivers people are being fed with unbridled falsehood.
“We refer specifically to illogical and ill-conceived claims made by the Spokesman of the Presidential Campaign Council in Rivers State.
“He has claimed in chats with the media that there are plans by the Rivers PDP to dress up some persons in branded T-shirts bearing the face of the former Vice President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar in order to destroy or deface billboards and posters.
“We have similarly learnt through the media of a move by the PDP to recruit 20 political thugs in each of the 23 Local Government Areas of Rivers State, who would be used to intimidate innocent and defenceless citizens.
“We would not have wasted energy in responding to these allegations that are as worthless as the paper on which they are written. The reason is that they are products of poor workmen who are usually in the habit of quarrelling with their tools.
“Despite claims that supporters of the PDP in the State that are loyal supporters of Governor Wike are pulling down or defacing billboards, billboards carrying the faces of candidates of other political parties, including those that are aspiring for the presidency, are standing elegantly along major roads and streets.
“Nobody in the PDP loyal to the leadership of Governor Wike has removed them. The media is at liberty to confirm our assertion. The media is also at liberty to confirm whose posters are being torn by agents of the Atiku campaign organisation.
“Our position is that agents of the presidential candidate have resorted to underhand practices in an attempt to stir distrust and unrest in Rivers State.
“We have stumbled upon a plan by the pro-Atiku group led by a War Canoe Chief, supported by some rogue politicians who believe in divide and rule tactics, to use murderers, assassins and ex-prisoners to inflict bodily harm on innocent and defenceless Rivers people.
“The idea, we have learnt, is to destabilise a peaceful State, create fear and unrest and cause public disaffection through the generation of bare-faced terror and mind-boggling violence.
“More importantly, the idea is to cover up their evil plan to attack the State, stimulate tension and attempt to halt the ongoing and commendable bid by Governor Nyesom Wike to deliver more facilities to the good people of Rivers State in accordance with his electoral promises.
“As part of the plan, they are already running on the theory of the big lie by fabricating all kind of tales, so they can later claim they told us so. In their desperation, they have even claimed that we are assembling thugs.”