Addressing newsmen in Awka, Thursday on what he termed the “Wild Accusations from Governor Peter Obi’s Media Aide – Setting the Records Straight,’’ the Senior Special Assistant to Governor Obiano, Hon James Eze pointed at the comments in some national dailies attributed to Obienyem, the alleging that the governor of Anambra State, Chief Willie Obiano has been tarnishing former Governor Obi’s image.
Hon. Eze who spoke in company of the Special Assistant on Media, Hon. Emeka Ozumba and other members of the Governor Obiano Media Team said ‘We are horrified that what has been a silent proxy war, launched by the shadowy agents of former Governor Obi on the social media against Governor Obiano has finally taken a bold physical shape with Mr.Valentine Obienyem, his Media Aide, directly accusing Governor Obiano of instigating crisis in a state he presides over as the Chief Security Officer."
According to Hon. Eze, “We feel strongly restrained to respond to Mr. Obienyem’s accusations on behalf of his boss, Chief Peter Obi, because we hold him in high esteem as the first APGA Governor in Anambra State.”
He disclosed that non-exposure of lies dished out by Obienyem would create the erroneous impression in the minds of some uninformed members of the public who might believe them to be true, and expressed surprise that Obienyem dragged the name of governor Obiano into ‘’a demonstration staged by aggrieved Igbo youths to register their complaints over the handling of the March 28, 2015 National Assembly election in the state. It smacks of mischief for Val Obienyem to point a feeble finger at Governor Obiano without adducing any evidence to substantiate his allegations.”
Hon. Eze categorically dissociated governor Obiano from any attempts to portray him as the brain behind the obvious show of dissatisfaction over the National Assembly elections by aggrieved youths of the state, clarifying that “while the demonstration was on, Governor Obiano was busy flagging off road projects in Ezira, Orumba South Local Government Area and Enugwu-Ukwu respectively.‘’
Continuing, he said: “We are perplexed that Obienyem and his team have continued to concoct lies against the Governor of Anambra State, blaming him for anything under the sun … Obienyem and his team have refused to see that former Governor Obi’s hurried exit from APGA has been widely condemned as a betrayal by many APGA youths who have continued to show their displeasure with that move every now and then.
“We find it incredulous that each time APGA youths had shown their displeasure, Obienyem and his camp had erroneously pointed a finger in the direction of the governor of Anambra State.”
Referring Mr. Obienyem and his team to a statement credited to the Coalition of Igbo Youth Groups who staged the peaceful demonstration on April 8, 2015, Hon. Eze categorically pointed out that ‘there is no single mention of the name of the governor of Anambra State in it. It therefore beats the imagination why Obienyem should accuse him of instigating the demonstration.”
According to Eze, it is embarrassing to note that “the Obi camp has shown scant respect to the office of the Governor of Anambra State which he occupied for 8 years and enjoyed the high regard that is usually associated to it.”
Obiano’s Media Aide expressed disappointment that ‘’after failing to make any impression whatsoever in national politics, Obienyem and his boss have returned to the state they ruled with an iron hand for 8 long years to create disharmony and threaten the peaceful atmosphere that NdiAnambra have enjoyed in the past one year.
He restated the respect the Obiano Team has for the person of the former governor, “for leaving a foundation of good governance in Anambra State which Governor Obiano is building upon to evolve a new and better Anambra State.”
