THE DETAILS ON APC GOVERNORS MEETING WITH ENUGU GOVERNOR UGWUANYI

Governors elected on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) on Tuesday stormed Enugu State to commiserate with Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi and the people of the state over the recent havoc wrought by Fulani herdsmen in Nimbo community.

Several lives were lost and property worth millions of naira was destroyed by the rampaging Fulani militiamen.
The governors were led by the Imo State Governor, Owelle Rochas Okorocha, who is also the chairman of the APC Governors’ Forum.

Among the visiting governors were the Borno State Governor, Alhaji Kashim Shettima, his Ji-gawa State counterpart, Alhaji Badaru Abubakar and the Osun State Governor, Ogbeni Rauf Ar-egbesola. Their Kogi and Yobe States’ counterparts were, how¬ever, represented by their depu-ties, Simeon Achuba and Abuba¬kar Ali, respectively.

Okorocha said that they were in Enugu to commiserate with Governor Ugwuanyi irrespective of party affiliation, “since death is a natural phenomenon, no matter the circumstances under which it occurred.”

He said: “Death is death, no matter how it comes. But the most painful is the death that is man-made. We are APC governors and you are of the PDP. But in death, we are one. We are here to com¬miserate with you and the people of Enugu State.”

Okorocha commended Gov¬ernor Ugwuanyi and the people of the state for their maturity and the sincerity of purpose they ex¬hibited since the ugly incident oc¬curred by not retaliating the at¬tacks.

The governor noted that in some other places, the reaction would have been different and might have resulted to a nation¬al crisis.

Okorocha said the APC governors, as a body, condemned the Nimbo attack and support all judicial processes to expose and prosecute the perpetrators.

In his reaction, Gov. Shettima, who doubles as the chairman of the Northern States Governors’ Forum, corroborated Okorocha’s statement and described Enugu as a very hospitable state for all Ni¬gerians, irrespective of tribe and religion.

He recalled that a northerner from Katsina State once held the position of the Mayor of Enugu Metropolis. He also commended the Igbo race for their versatility and for being the most enterpris¬ing tribe in all the towns in the country.

Shettima pleaded for the con¬tinuous peaceful co-existence of Nigeria as one nation, stating that “the issues that bind us together as one nation are far greater than those that are trying to divide us.”

In his response, Governor Ug¬wuanyi described the incident as very unfortunate, despite all the efforts he made to avoid it. He noted that his administration has resolved to constitute a judicial commission of inquiry into the at¬tack with a view to finding a last¬ing solution to it.

The governors were received by members of the Enugu State Council of Traditional Rulers led by the Chairman, Igwe Lawrence Agubuzo, the Catholic Bishop of Nsukka, Prof. I. Onah and the Archbishop of Enugu Ecclesiasti¬cal Province, His Grace, Rt. Rev. Dr. Emmanuel Olisa Chukwuma.

And for his inability to put the activities of the Fulani herdsmen under control, the Enugu State Commissioner of Police, Nwodi¬bo Ekechukwu, has been relieved of his appointment.

He has been replaced by the former Commissioner of Police in charge of Kogi State and also the immediate past Force Public Relations Officer, Mr. Emmanuel Ojukwu.

Ojukwu supervised the re¬cent governorship elections in Kogi State. He was, however, re-deployed after the elections.

The Force Spokesperson, Ola¬bisi Kolawole, an Assistant Com¬missioner of Police, confirmed Ojukwu’s appointment to The AUTHORITY in Abuja on Tues¬day.

Kolawole said: “Yes, the Enu¬gu CP has been replaced for offi¬cial reasons.”

She did not say where the former Enugu CP has been rede¬ployed to.

Northern Govs didn’t defend Fu¬lani herdsmen – Benue Dep Gov
Meanwhile, the Benue State Deputy Governor, Benson Abounu has described as “total¬ly misleading, false, inciting and uncalled-for”, reports in some sections of the media alluding to the fact that Northern Governors during their last meeting in Ka¬duna defended Fulani herdsmen linked with wreaking havoc on communities in several parts of the country.