Ebonyi APGA Guber Candidate decries destruction of campaign billboards
The Governorship candidate of All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA) Prof. Benard Ifeanyichukwu Odoh has decried the attacks and destruction of his campaign billboards in Ebonyi by thugs believed to be agents of the State government.
In a statement signed and issued by the APGA Gubernatorial candidate himself in Abakaliki on Tuesday, Prof Odoh accused agents and thugs of the State government as responsible for the act.
According to the statement issued: “The genesis of the mindless attacks on our campaign billboards which occurred last night, Sunday, August 21, 2022 (because we saw it still hanging hours after the professional handlers, Rocana Nigeria Ltd had hung them) was that the State government, obviously jittery of the momentum gained by our consultative engagements in the State so far pasted a “Remove Ads” notices on them”.
“The “Remove Ads” was as a result of our advertising handlers refusal to surrender the billboards which we had already paid for to the APC Candidate who had earlier requested for them at all cost. ROCANA are not in any way and form owing the state government .
“As law abiding citizens who understands the place of professional engagements in matters such as this, it was only incumbent that we reach out and inform the advertising agency- Rocana, which has professionally operated in the state and the entire south east in the last few decades about the “remove ads” notices placed by the Ebonyi State Government on the billboards with it’s official seal. They promised to reach the state government and get back to us as soon as practicable”.
“Some hours after, we discovered that the billboards have already been torn and removed forcefully, suspectedly by desperate agents of the state government. Some of the billboards are still hanging, facing downwards and there have been no explanation offered the professional advertising agent- Rocana who has maintained that it has been paying the Ebonyi State Government it’s taxes, dues and other rates as and when due”.
“This to us is an act of cowardice by Governor Umahi and his army of political bandits. To prove our fears and suspicion right about the ill-intentions of these dastard and coward actors, we discovered that other places where the same Rocana had billboards of other products were not touched and neither was the same “remove ads” notices placed on them”.
Meanwhile, the APGA Guber Candidate has called the security authorities, the Nigerian Police Force, Ebonyi State Command to commence thoroughly investigations, arrest and prosecute those suspected to be behind this unlawful conduct, while urged the police to leave no stone unturned in regard of their wrongful way by disrupting public peace in the State.
