Hoodlums suspected to be political thugs have attacked the home of the People’s Democratic Party(PDP) candidate for Izizi/Abakaliki Federal Constituency, Barnabas Ofoke, and destroyed properties worth millions of naira.
It was gathered that the hoodlums attacked Ofoke’s residence in the early hours of Friday.
The PDP spokesperson in Ebonyi State, Chika Nwoba, who confirmed the incident, accused the ruling All Progressive Congress(APC) in the State of masterminding the attack.
According to Nwoba, Ofoke’s compound, where the house was located was designated as the venue for the PDP Governorship rally in the local government today, Vanguard reports.
The APC governorship candidate and Speaker of Ebonyi State House of Assembly, Francis Nwifuru is from the Local government area.
Nwoba said: “Today is the PDP governorship campaign rally in Izzi LGA of Ebonyi State. Yesterday by 2 o’clock in the night, thugs working for the APC governorship candidate, Francis Nwifuru invaded the compound of the PDP candidate for Izzi/Abakaliki Federal Constituency, Hon. Barnabas Ofoke and shattered the house, vehicles and sent occupants away.
“This was the compound the campaign was meant to hold since the APC governorship candidate and Gov. Umahi declared no open space for PDP in the LGA”.
“This is the LGA of the APC governorship candidate. The father of the PDP House of Representatives candidate whose house was destroyed as shown here was the political godfather of Francis Nwifuru and still alive.”
A member of the APC’s media team and an Aide to Governor David Umahi, Brutus Orogwu, said the incident was self-inflicted by the PDP.
Orogwu said the PDP staged the said attack in an attempt to tarnish the image of the APC and its governorship candidate, Francis Nwifuru, who hails from the area.
He said: PDP secretly sent their boys to destroy those things just to use it to tarnish the APC image in Izzi. Well, all I know is that they have failed already.”
The Director of New Media of the APC Campaign Council and State Spokesperson of APC, Simbad Ogbuatu, who also debunked the accusation, said Nwifuru and the APC had no hand in the said attack and accused the PDP of staging the incident.
Ogbuatu said: This is mere propaganda by the PDP. Nwifuru is a peaceful person, a man who has respect for human life and rule of law and as such can never send anybody for such a despicable act.
“PDP is not on the ground, they stage-managed the attack. Ofoke is not a threat, he has never won his polling unit”
“The media and Ebonyi voters should disregard this propaganda by PDP, it is because they know they don’t have the capacity to defeat APC at the polls that they are coming up with these gimmicks to tarnish the image of APC”
“Nwifuru did not attack anybody and didn’t send anybody to carry out any attack. APC does not have things and does not believe in or engage in thuggery.”