The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) senatorial candidate in the just concluded bye-election for Ebonyi South Senatorial District, Barrister Silas Joseph Onu, has condemned the arrest of Comrade Chika Nwoba, former spokesperson of the party in the state.
Nwoba’s arrest followed a petition he forwarded to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Enugu Zonal Office, alleging that the current Commissioner for Commerce and Industry in the state, Mr Oguzu Offia Nwali, diverted the sum of 3 billion which the state government has mapped out for the empowerment of indigenous street hawkers across the country.
Reacting to the allegations, Mr Oguzu Offia Nwali reportedly arrested the whistleblower in his residence at Awka, Anambra State, on Sunday and subsequently arraigned him before a magistrate court presided over by Mrs Lilian Ogodo in Abakaliki, the state capital, on Tuesday.
Following his arrest and detention Nwoba was immediately arraigned and remanded at the Abakiliki correctional centre which the magistrate court said lacked jurisdiction to entertain the matter and referred it to the high court scheduled for hearing on March 1, 2024.
Questioning the arrest and subsequent arraignment of the whistleblower, Onu, in a statement he issued to journalists in Abakaliki on Thursday, described it as a sad development that exposing corruption in the state has become life-threatening.
“It’s sad that in today’s Ebonyi State, exposing corruption comes with a threat to the life of the whistleblower. I thought that Chika Nwoba had taken steps to verify and substantiate his allegations by writing a petition to the EFCC.
“Why will the police be so willing to be used for purposes of silencing Nwoba? Well, they have succeeded in keeping him in prison via a well-coordinated arraignment before a court they knew had no jurisdiction, and the magistrate delivered what they actually desired.”
Onu, who lamented over the situation, regretted that the unprofessional action of some security agencies in the country has jeopardized the essence of community policing and opined the idea of state police would not succeed in the country.
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“This is why state police will never work in Nigeria. Imagine how the federal police are already being used by an ordinary commissioner.
“Chika Nwoba won’t be in prison forever, and the allegations he made will also not disappear, as some of us are now willing to join in and ensure that the truth is not swept under the carpet via intimidation and harassment.
“Now, we will all become Chika Nwoba and ensure that all acts of corruption are exposed, whoever is involved.”
He called on the state governor, Rt. Hon. Francis Ogbonna Nwifuru to ensure that the rule of law is maintained in the state.
Onu, who was the former acting state Chairman of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, also, asked Transparency International to take urgent steps towards unearthing the veracity of the allegations against the appointees of the State Governor.
