The Governor of Imo State, Owelle Rochas Okorocha, has urged the Catholic Archbishop of Owerri, Most Rev. Anthony J.V Obinna, to concentrate on his calling as a cleric and stop dabbling into politics.
Okorocha, who accused Obinna of hiding under the guise of Easter message to play politics, said the archbishop would not succeed in installing an All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) governor in 2019, which he did not succeed in doing in 2015.
The governor made this known in a statement through his spokesman, Sam Onwuemeodo, on Thursday.
The statement read in part, “We have read the latest accusation by Archbishop Anthony Obinna of the Catholic Diocese of Owerri against Governor Okorocha, and we shall continue to show our respect for the achbishop, but, one fact remains sacrosanct, he cannot install a governor of APGA extraction in 2019, because he could not do that in 2015 when he first tried it.
“The archbishop had hidden under his Easter message to continue his onslaught on the governor and his Rescue Mission Government, making it the tenth time in less than two months he had descended on the governor and the administration.
“Of all the allegations the archbishop made against the governor, the most unfortunate was the one he said Governor Okorocha is the only voice which everyone has to listen to and obey, otherwise, arrests and imprisonments would follow. That was the height of blackmail.
“And we humbly wish to challenge the archbishop to mention just one person the governor or government arrested for any reason, including criticising him or anybody, since he came on board as governor in 2011.
“Where the archbishop fails to do this, we ask with every sense of politeness, that he corrects that false claim, and, if he deems it worth-doing, apologise to the governor.
“The overwhelming love of Imo people for the governor means more to us than the weak voice of the opposition in the state made up of few politicians.
“And the archbishop should know that most people have become fed up with his repeated unprovoked and unwarranted attacks on the governor and his government, using every platform and every event available to him.”
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