PRESS STATEMENT
Re-Resign, Ebonyi Lawmakers Tell Governor Obi
Our attention has been drawn to a report in the VANGUARD newspaper of
Thursday, May 15, 2008 (page 14), captioned: “Resign, Ebonyi Lawmakers
tell Governor Obi.”
According to this report, members of the Ebonyi State House of Assembly“have asked Governor Peter Obi of Anambra State to resign his position”
for allegedly saying that South East Governors were failures. It added
that the ire of these legislators was drawn by the publication made by
the National Mirror Newspaper of Monday May 12, 2007 with the Caption“South East Governors are failures.”
This allegation against the Governor (Mr. Peter Obi) to say the least,
is most unfounded, baseless, malicious, in bad faith and untrue. The
Governor, who is the Chairman of the South East Governors Forum would
not have condemned the entire South East helmsmen as failures in a most
generalized manner.
We find it extremely difficult to fathom the reason why Ebonyi
legislators left serious matters affecting their State to malign our
Governor for an offence he never committed.
The only near plausible reason for these rather unguarded and
disrespected remarks from the Ebonyi lawmakers may be the statement made
by Governor Obi in Enugu at the recent event organized by the Rev. Dr.
William Okoye – led African forum on Religion and Government (AFREG).
Noticing the fewness of South East Governors at this occasion, a
concerned Governor Obi had wondered why Ndigbo often shunned their own
occasions, but were quick to attend events of other geo-political zones.
He cited as an instance a recent occasion organized by the former Senate
President, Chief Ken Nnamani which was virtually deserted by prominent
Igbo People.
Similarly, apart from Governor Chime of Enugu, none of the South-East
Governors attended the recent reception organized by the Anambra State
Government for the first Head of Service of the Federation, from the
South East, Engr Ebele Okeke.
It should be noted that Governor Obi was not alone in this condemnation
of the attitude of Igbo people in this respect. This is the bitter truth
which Ebonyi lawmakers should not turn to mean a blanket condemnation of
the Governors of the South East.
Infact this same view was expressed by other prominent persons who
attended the same event. It has since attracted commendation and
applause from a cross-section of the Nigerian elite.
How could Ebonyi lawmakers have based their anger merely upon a
publication made by National Mirror in 2007 which report they did not
clarify with or confirm from the Anambra Governor? None of these
lawmakers had a first hand information regarding the alleged “atrocity”
allegedly committed by the Anambra Governor. Yet they had the effrontery
to castigate him on the floor of their hallowed chambers.
In the light of the foregoing, the Anambra State Government demands an
unreserved apology from the Ebonyi legislators for their disrespectful
remarks against Governor Obi. If they do not have respect for their
Governor, they should not extend the same rudeness to Governor Obi.
As for the publishers of National Mirror, we can only advise them to
shun sensational journalism and embrace journalism of development which,
they had amply demonstrated in the past.
Finally, the Anambra State Government calls on the Ebonyi State Governor
to seriously caution members of the State’s House of Assembly and
educate them on the need for them to observe decorum in their
utterances.
Mike Udah
Chief Press Secretary to Governor Peter Obi