Ihedioha has no right to give directives to banks. Gov. Okorocha blasts Imo governorship elect

Imo State Governor, Rochas Okorocha, has
said that the governor -elect , Emeka
Ihedioha , has no constitutional powers to
issue directives to banks when he has yet
to take over the affairs of the state .
Okorocha, in a statement issued by his
chief press secretary, Sam Onwuemeodo , on
Friday in Owerri , said that the governor-
elect was behaving like a typical member of
the Peoples Democratic Party .
The governor said that Ihedioha was only
interested in the treasury of the state .
Okorocha asked Ihedioha to exercise
patience until May 29 before he would start
issuing directives to banks on the financial
dealings of the state .
He said , “ Emeka Ihedioha , who was
declared winner of the governorship
election in the state by the Prof Francis
Ezeonu, does not have the right or locus
standi yet , to harass or give directives to
the financial Institutions in the state over
their dealings with the state government.
“The media report quoting Ihedioha to have
given such directive is unfortunate and a
sign of ugly things to come . Otherwise,
Ihedioha should not have been the first, of
all the governors -elect in the country , to
issue such directive .

the directive because as a PDP man , his
interest , first and foremost , will be the
treasury of the state , and the policy or the
slogan of share the money will soon come
back , but he should exercise patience and
wait till he is sworn in .
“He shouldn ’ t be in a hurry . There is a
government in place and until May 29,
2019, that government should continue . ”
Meanwhile, the leader of the Movement for
the Actualisation of the Sovereign State of
Biafra and Biafra Independence Movement ,
Chief Ralph Uwazuruike , has appealed to
politicians in the state not to contest
Ihedioha ’ s victory at the tribunal.
He said challenging the result of the
election in court would distract Ihedioha
when he assumes office .
Uwazuruike , who spoke in Owerri, said ,
“Instead of dragging him to court , let them
join hands with him to move the state
forward . There are many wraths to clear in
the state . Dragging him to court will
distract him and draw the state far
backwards . ”
The MASSOB leader said he was speaking as
a concerned Imo citizen , noting that
Ihedioha was not his candidate .
He said , “ Before the election , all the
governorship candidates came to my
residence to plead with me for
endorsement but I instructed my followers
to vote according to their conscience .
“As loyal followers, they respected me and
voted candidates of their choice .
“As Ihedioha won the election in the end , I
thought that other governorship contenders
should have all congratulated him , instead
of thinking of going to court . ”
Admitting that the defeated candidates have
the right to go to court , Uwazuruike
observed that such a development would
not help the state .
Uwazuruike said , “ If they go to court , it
will distract him the more . He should be
allowed to carry out his duties without
disturbance , so that if he fails to perform,
there will not be any excuse he will give for
not delivering and at the end of four years,
he will be shown the way out like others . ”
He further contended that if Ihedioha was
taken to court , he would use the state ’ s
resources to fight the legal battle , thereby
endangering the state ’ s economy to the
detriment of the citizens .
Uwazuruike also called for the application
of the Imo Charter of Equity , which
provides for the rotation of the
governorship position among the three
senatorial zones.

“If God in his infinite mercies has given
Ihedioha , who is from Owerri Zone the
chance to govern for four years, let all of us
support him so that when he leaves office ,
another zone will be given the chance to
govern , ” he said .
He, therefore , advised the governor -elect to
show political magnanimity by carrying
everybody along .
He also urged him to pave the way for the
Imo Charter of Equity to prevail.