‘You Have Questions To Answer’ — Imo Gov Tells Opposition Politicians Silent About Attacks

Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodinma, said politicians who have refused to speak out against insecurity in the South East and other parts of the country “have questions to answer”.

According to Uzodinma, the country’s security challenges would not have deteriorated to the current level if “aggrieved politicians” in the opposition had been speaking out against activities of criminals.

“I have been saying it and I want to say it again, that cases of insecurity here and there in the country have not been helped by the posture of opposition party and some aggrieved politicians,” Uzodinma told State House correspondents after a closed-door meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday night.

“Reason being that at the time like this in Nigeria, anybody worth his onions as a leader should be able to speak out. How many of them are speaking out? How many of them are condemning what is going on?

“Rather what you see are leaders fanning the embers of insecurity, blaming only government.”

The governor said politicians in the opposition should, “be tired of this blame thing by now and then contribute our own quota towards ensuring that national security is not further threatened in the country.

“So, it is not something for politics. It’s something that if you are a former senate president, and you are a former speaker, or a former deputy senate president, or a former deputy speaker, and things like this are happening in the country, and you are not able to speak out, and we’re not seeing you where you are engaging in addressing the young men and women in your area on the need for united Nigeria.

“And this is a country that have given you opportunity to serve and that level one time or the other, then it is either overtly or covertly, you have a question to answer.’’

Uzodinma also suggested that the All Progressives Congress-led Federal Government had become helpless as regards the country’s worsening insecurity.

“All we hear is that herdsmen and farmers are fighting and for that reason 200 people are kidnapped. People are shot down there, people are killed there. What do you want government to do? We must be realistic.

“I believe in pragmatism. I believe in doing things right. Can anybody come and tell me one, two, three, four reasons why this APC should not win in the next election?

“Nobody has said that, I’ve not read either in any newspaper. All I hear is that because of insecurity this, insecurity that but you send people out in the night to go and cause trouble and use it in day to blame government.

Contrary to reports of daily attacks in Imo, the governor claimed that normalcy had been restored in the state and that socio-economic activities of the people had been reinstated.

“So far, the situation is relatively okay in Imo state than it was…. Imo is okay now, people can come around, do their businesses, normal life and normal activities have resumed in Imo state. The security agencies are on top of the situation,’’ he said.