By Olugbenga Salami
President Bola Tinubu has been advised to be careful with the Imo State governor, Hope Uzodinma because of the alleged role he played over the choice principal officers of the 10th National Assembly, which almost caused friction between the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC and the legislative arm of government on one hand and the party and the Presidency on the other hand.
A member of the House of Representatives, Hon. Ikenga Imo Ugochinyere representing Ideato Federal Constituency of Imo State, who gave the advice in a statement issued on Tuesday, described Uzodinma as “evil governor.”
Uzodinma, who is the chairman of Progressives Governors’ Forum, PGF, recently led his colleagues to a meeting with APC national chairman, Abdullahi Adamu, over the choice principal officers of the 10th National Assembly.
This was immediately after the elections of National Assembly’s principal officers as announced by the Senate President Godswill Akpabio and House Speaker, Honourable Tajudeen Abbas.
Subsequently after the meeting, Adamu, the APC chairman disassociated the party from the election exercise in the two chambers of the National Assembly, saying that the party was not aware of the exercise. He claimed that he only heard of such events as rumours.
But, Ugochinyere described the development as the voice of ‘Jacob but the hands of Esau’, heaping instead the blame of such pronouncements by APC party chairman on Uzodinma, saying, “I think the ruling party made a wrong decision in choosing Uzodinma as chairman of Progressives Governors’ Forum.”
Meanwhile, Uzodinma’s posture after the meeting with APC national chairman appeared to contradict Ugochinyere’s allegations against him.
Recall that Uzodinma as the chairman of APC Governors Forum emerged from the meeting to address the press, saying that they were not against the principal officers election in National Assembly.
He explained that APC is a family and if there are any disagreement, the party has internal mechanisms of resolving such issues.
But, Ugochinyere dismissed such posture, emphasising that it’s the carry-over of the bitterness and hatred which both Uzodinma and Adamu nursed against Tinubu even from the party’s presidential primary election that was still being played out.
He accused the governor of working with Adamu to undermine the efforts of President Tinubu government.
Ugochinyere stated that the whole thing was a misplaced anger saying, “Uzodinma is still licking the wounds of his failed agenda before APC primaries, to stop the emergence of Tinubu to favour his longtime ally, Ahmed Lawan who Uzodinma was alleged to have dreamt of running with as President and Vice.”
According to Ugochinyere, all lawmakers have confidence in the 10th National Assembly leadership and were in support of the principal officers as chosen by Akpabio and Abbas.
He also accused Uzodinma of having worked to support a Senate presidential candidate different from the choice of the All Progressives Congress, saying that he only changed his mind when he discovered that his choice was not going to go through.
The lawmaker, who described Uzodinma’s antics as futile, boasted that the members were comfortable with the principal officers of the 10th NASS and that nobody except the members themselves as spelt out under Order 7 Rule 4 of the standing orders of the House can change it.
He called on President Tinubu to be wary of Uzodinma, asking instead, the Department of State Services, DSS to clip his wings and be very careful in dealing with him before he derails the system.
Citing the security crisis in Imo State, Ugochinyere noted that the state, under Uzodinma, human lives have been reduced to nothing.
