Tensions flared during the Anambra South Senatorial District by-election on Saturday as violence broke out, leading to alleged attacks on the Deputy Governor of Anambra State, Dr. Onyekachukwu Ibezim and the Commissioner for Environment, Engr. Felix Odumegwu.
According to eyewitness reports, angry youths in the area confronted and held the deputy governor hostage, accusing him of engaging in vote-buying.
The mob also allegedly attacked Commissioner Odumegwu, who was said to have accompanied the deputy governor to the scene.
Reacting to the incident shortly after casting his vote in Isuofia, Aguata Local Government Area, Governor Charles Soludo condemned the attack, accusing Prince Nicholas Ukachukwu, the APC gubernatorial candidate, of masterminding the assault.
“This is an act of thuggery,” Soludo said. “Government officials, including the Deputy Governor and the Commissioner for Environment, were attacked. It’s unacceptable.”
Adding his voice, Mazi Ejimofor Opara, National Publicity Secretary of APGA, also blamed the APC candidate for the chaos.
“That shows you that thugs are out to govern Anambra State and that is the kind of governor he would be if, in the unlikely event, he is elected,” Opara stated.
“I can confirm to you that the Commissioner for Environment, Engr. Felix Odumegwu, was attacked by APC thugs sent by their gubernatorial candidate. If not for the security operatives at his country home in Ezinifite, Aguata, it would have been a different story today.”
“How can Ukachukwu leave his home in Osumenyi, Nnewi South Local Government Area, and go to Ezinifite in Aguata to attack the Commissioner for Environment?” he asked.
In a swift rebuttal, Comrade Tony Uche, an aide to Prince Nicholas Ukachukwu, denied that the APC candidate ordered any attacks. Instead, he accused the Deputy Governor and Commissioner of arriving in Osumenyi with a heavily armed security team to influence the outcome of the by-election.
“If you see the number of vigilante personnel that came with them, over twenty trucks, you’d understand the youths’ reaction,” Uche claimed.
“Ukachukwu never ordered anyone to attack the Deputy Governor or the Commissioner. The youths simply resisted what they saw as an attempt to hijack the election.”
As at the time of filing this report, the Anambra State Police Public Relations Officer, SP Tochukwu Ikenga, had not issued an official statement on the incident.
