Theodore Orji must stop the thugs and spare the lives of our people before it escalates ::|:: Thugs attack PPA office in Umuahia

From OKEY SAMPSON, Aba

Political thugs suspected to be agents of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have attacked the sub-state office of the Progressive Peoples Alliance (PPA), in Abia State located at Umuopara, Umuahia.

Condemning the attack while speaking with Daily Sun, the PPA chairman in the state, Chief Emeka Okafor, said it was unfortunate that the ruling party in the state had started mobilizing thugs to disrupt meetings and destroy property of opposing political parties in the state in the guise of politicking.

Recounting what happened prior to the incident, Okafor said his party opened the office barely a week ago. “When we paid rent for the office space, somebody, who was acting for the ruling party, came to the caretaker of the house to induce him with double amount of what we paid, so, that he could refund us our money, but the caretaker refused.

“Then, in the evening of the same day, some thugs working for  the PDP in the state came to our office,  cut down the sign post, defaced  the outer walls  that had our party’s colour  before vandalising the entire office,” he said.

Okafor, who recalled that “this was how kidnapping which nearly brought the state on its knees started,” said that it was unfortunate that violence had crept into politics in the state at this point in time.

“It is wrong to empower youths to engage in thuggery in the state in the name of politics.

“This was how kidnapping started because after empowering the youths to do this kind of job and afterwards, there are no jobs for them, they will take to crime,” he said,  adding that it baffled him that PDP which claimed that PPA was dead in the state could go all out to hire thugs to attack its office.

He stressed that no amount of intimidation would stop the party from waxing stronger and taking back the state in 2015.

“The other day, thugs from the same PDP attacked the venue of a meeting of an opposition party in Isiala Ngwa South Local Government and wounded some people. May be, they are trying to create the false impression that no opposition party exists in the state, but it can not work,” he further said.

The PPA state chairman advised the PDP to  find  a way of ensuring that  the government in the state  provides dividends of democracy which the people are  yearning for, instead of dissipating energy in  fighting opposition parties in the state.