His Excellency, Senator Chief Anyim Pius Anyim Grand Commander of the Order of Niger (GCON) recently visited Ebonyi his home state alongside members of the National Assembly from the state and other bigwigs of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Such visit was necessary to assure the home front that recapturing power from the All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2023 was a task that must be accomplished.

The visit was also to prove that the former Senate President and one of the foremost statesmen of the country, is the father of PDP in Ebonyi. He is the rallying point of the party in the state and has consistently shown that aside from pursuing his divine presidential bid, the affairs of the party in the state was close to his heart and the task of liberating Ebonyi from the bondage of misrule was paramount.

The burning issues niggling the party in the state and which were being tackled headlong by the former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) and other stakeholders were the issues of the purpoted removal of the Deputy Speaker of the State House
of Assembly, Chief Obasi Odefa by a cabal membership of the House. The other was the continued incaceration of the state's Publicity Secretary of the party, Mr Chika Nwoba for allegedly violating the state government's cybercrime law.

The Odefa issue is mind-boggling. Just for his refusal to decamp to the APC, a letter of his purpoted resignation from the House and subsequently, as the deputy speaker was read at the floor of the House by the Speaker, Hon Francis Nwifuru. He was immediately replaced as the deputy speaker while the seats of two other PDP members: Oliver Osi and Ngozi Eziulo, were also declared vacant also for their refusal to defect to the APC.

Odefa and the PDP in the state have maintained that the purpoted resignation letter was forged and they would explore all legal means to seek redress against to such grievious act.

Anyim while addressing party faithful during its stakeholders meeting assured that the APC/ Ebonyi government's innocuous game plan was dead on arrival and this was a monumental nail in its coffin.

"By next month, more lawmakers of the state APC will defect to the PDP and I am saying this it with utmost optimism.
The PDP will go further than that and soon take over the leadership of the House of Assembly.

"Without the nine lawmkers, there will no 2/3rd majority in the Ebonyi House of Assembly for the APC lawmakers to do anything.
The 15 lawmakers of the APC cannot be allowed to control the affairs of the House as I urge party faithful to remain committed to the sole agenda of the party.

The issue of the incaceration and recent bail given to Nwoba Chka Nwoba, state Publicity Secretary of the PDP, also attracted the attention of the ebullient presidential hopeful. Anyim in his message to party faithful and generality of Ebonyi people, said that though Nwoba's release called for celebrations, it should also elicit deep thoughts about the danger in which democracy was running into in Ebonyi.

In his admonition, he recalled that Nwoba was abducted in a commando-style on January 9, 2021, by known officers and agents of the Ebonyi government under the dreaded Ebubeagu security outfit. The swift intervention of the state PDP deputy chairman, who invited the police to the scene, saved Nwoba from being killed by his abductors.

"However, to the bewilderment of all, rather than arresting the culprits, the police turned round to detain Nwoba until January 26 when he was arraigned in court; citing the following offence:

“That you Nwoba Chika Nwoba “M” on the 23rd day of September 2020 at Ikwo L.G.A. within the jurisdiction of this honourable court did knowingly and intentionally publish and circulate message via your Facebook Profile (known as Nwoba Chika Nwoba) and falsely credited it to David Umahi, which is a statement, grossly offensive and likely to disturb public peace knowing or having reason to believe that such statement, report is false which statement reads,"

Anyim noted that the truth remains that the people in Governor David Umahi’s government are not happy. They have a lot of vital information to leak to the public and their problem overtime has been who will have the guts to air it out and the source not uncovered.

"The offence for which Nwoba was charged brings to the fore, the fact that any fair comment on Ebonyi State government talk less mentioning the name of the governor is certain to be punishable by either death or torture or unlawful incarceration or indefinite detention via the instrumentation of a subdued magistrate under a charge that has no place in a democratic society," .

Anyim noted that the celebration of Nwoba's release was not just because Nwoba has been granted bail but because he is alive and that the PDP state Deputy Chairman was available and intervened to disrupt the abduction.

"Nwoba’s abduction is only one of the cases of intimidation of the opposition or any person that holds dissent opinion in Ebonyi since the governor defected from the PDP to the APC in 2020,".

He noted that in another bizarre development, the governor on January 25, 2022, without reason or cause, directed that Linus Okorie, a former member of the House of Representatives, be declared wanted.

"As a leader of a party built on the rule of law and a defender of democracy, I remain resolute in conjunction with other aggrieved victims of the nefarious activities of the state government.
If the House of Assembly members of the APC and their master cares, they can declare the whole of House of Assembly vacant; that will however, not change the resolve of the 9 out of 24 members that have vowed to remain in PDP.

"In the same vein, no amount of torture or abduction will change the resolve of all well-meaning citizens of Ebonyi state from remaining in the party of their choice--the PDP," .

He however urged all Ebonyi citizens to remain steadfast; even in the face of intimidation and suppression, as all necessary actions are being taken to ensure that the state is rescued and made greater in 2023.

"The will of God and the minds of the people working together, are stronger than the combination of guns rampaging the state.

"I welcome Nwoba back to freedom and the warmth and love of his immediate family that has been truncated by a government we all worked hard to install in the hope that it will ensure our welfare and security.

"He must not be intimidated into silence because of this experience for success always comes after much struggles.
Let me reassure all that. We shall overcome.

The presidential hopeful has spoken. The people have been re-assured. The coming days though challenging, ushers new hope of redemption for Ebonyi state and Nigeria.