Following repeated plots by few disgruntled youths in Oguta LGA who arbitrarily engage in continuous cheap blackmail against the person of Rt Hon Goodluck Nanah Opiah, a group has sent out a warning signal to the perpetrators.
For a week now, few selected print media houses in Owerri have been reeling out sheer falsehood and campaign of calumny against Opiah, orchestrated by some suspected APC chieftains from Oguta and part of the Ohaji/Egbema LGA of Imo State.
These media houses, according to investigations are in the payroll of few irascible leaders of Oguta APC who sponsored the cheap blackmail.
Alarmed by these developments which has sent out wrong signals, a pro-democracy group, Leadership Alliance Front, (LAF), has frowned at the activities of some Oguta leaders who surreptitiously engineer outlawed youths to choose the media as a launch pad against Opiah.
LAF in a statement discovered that one of those behind the blackmail against Opiah is a contractor who benefitted well from the former Speakers good will during his days in Imo Assembly and the House of Reps as member who represented Ohaji/Egbema, Oguta, Oru West Fed Constituency.
The group also described as laughable one of the lies being peddled by the cheap blackmailers that one Eugene Dibiagwu contributed money to Opiah’s campaign in 2015. According to the LAF from their findings, Dibiagwu never dropped a dime for Opiah’s electoral fortunes. Rather, it was Dibiagwu who benefited immensely from Opiah’s good will.
The statement signed by Nze Charles Ossai and Comrade Franklin Nwadede, chairman and secretary respectively, not only condemned the act of the few Oguta leaders but also accused them of showing high level jealousy of the political profile of Opiah.
“it is a known fact that Eugene Dibiagwu didn’t give Opiah a kobo in 2015. It is quite amusing the blackmailers decided to come up with half baked truth. Instead of stating the obvious that Dibiagwu should be grateful to Opiah for enhancing road contract his company got when Opiah was in the Federal House, they are coming up with fictitious tales.
LAF also fingered another journalist and newspaper owner from Oguta LGA to be behind the spread of false information. The journalist reported to have also benefitted immensely is said to be the purveyor of falsehood. Why worried about the attitude of the media operator cum government appointee who is yet to be assigned a portfolio, the group expressed reservation on the kind of negative image the appointee’s conduct would attract to Governor Hope Uzodinma now he is involved in cheap blackmail against his leaders.
The group however observed that those fanning the embers of this discord in the oil producing areas of Imo State were those who worked against the interest of Governor Uzodinma during the 2019 election in Oguta and Ohaji/Egbema LGA. LAF also said that they went ahead to embrace the short-lived administration of Emeka Ihedioha which Supreme Court removed.
LAF further added that the hallmark of their lies was claims that Opiah who was APC candidate and went to Tribunal and Appeal Court to challenge his loss worked for another candidate during the House of Reps election he was a key partaker.
LAF further discovered that a section of Oguta leaders and their Ohaji/Egbema extraction, disturbed about Opiah’s rich pedigree are only suffering from self destructive tendencies, greed, avarice and selfishness.
The group warned those using the media to discredit Opiah to desist henceforth or their misdeeds shall be exposed in the public in due course.
