By Citizen Ikenna Samuelson Iwuoha

This Article Was To Be Written Two Days Ago, 23/08/2021, After Reading The Press Statement Of The Honourable Commissioner For Information, Mr Declan Emelumba. However, I Decided To Match My Brakes So As Not To Spoil Things.

Honestly, I Felt Bad After Reading The Commissioner’s Press Statement. He Didn’t Show Love, Care, Concern And Sympathy For The Petrol/Gas Dealer (Marketer) Whose Business Outfit Was Heartlessly Demolished By The Imo State Government ( Then Led By Governor Rochas Okorocha). If I Had Written The Said Article, I Would Have Descended Ruthlessly, Decisively And Mercilessly On Declan Emelumba For Being Uncaring In His Press Statement. But I Shelved It And Waited For 48 Hrs, So As To Come Up With An Article That Has No Expression Of Anger.

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In The First Place, The Administration Of His Excellency Distinguished Senator Hope Uzodinma Did Not Demolish The Said Petrol And Gas Station In Orlu, Which Later Resulted In The Owner Dragging Government To Court And Obtaining Judgement Against The Imo State Government. But Government Is A Continuum. The Emeka Ihedioha Led Administration Inherited Both Assets And Liabilities From The Defunct Rochas Okorocha Administration. Few Months Later, Hope Uzodinma Came On Board, And Naturally Inherited Same Assets And Liabilities From The Sacked Emeka Ihedioha Administration. One Had Therefore Expected That A Matter Of This Nature, Between The Said Marketer (With Support And Solidarity From The Imo State Branch Of Independent Petroleum Marketers Association, IPMAN) And Imo State Government Would Have Been Handled In A More Mature Manner Without Allowing Ndimo, Who Are Now At The Receiving End, To Feel The Severe Pains Of The Ongoing Strike By Petroleum Marketers.

As Far As I Am Concerned, Declan Emelumba’s Press Statement Inflamed And Worsened The Whole Crisis. If He Had Smartly Approached Or Responsibly Appealed To These Marketers To Sheathe Their Sword And Invite Them To Come For A Round Table Talk, While Genuinely Sympathising With The Injured And Aggrieved Orlu Based Petrol Marketer, Perhaps, Common Sense Would Have Prevailed. Rather, He Brazenly Announced That The Court Judgement Was Hidden From The Current Administration, And When It Found Out, It Was Appealed. To Me, I See It As An Offensive Approach. Not Only That, Declan Emelumba Declared That Government Would Drag The Matter To The Highest Court In The Land, And Would Abide By Whatever Decision Of The Supreme Court.

Hhhhmmmm, This Is Nonsensical Rubbish And Heartlessness From Declan Emelumba. So You Mean You Are Only Interested In Pouring Salt To An Injured Man, Who Incurred Loses And His Workers, Out Of Jobs? Even If Government Had Appealed The Judgement Of The Lower Court, Must Emelumba Rob It On The Man And All Of Us, Imolites? So This Injured Marketer Who Lost His Business As A Result Of The Carelessness Of Then Government, Should Continue To Wait In Hunger, Till The Supreme Court Rules On The Matter? Declan Emelumba Should Not Let Me Descend On Him, Because His Attitude In The Offensive Press Statement Shows He Is Demarketing The Government Of Governor Hope Uzodinma.

As The Image Maker Of The State Government, Declan Emelumba Should Have Known That There Are Ways Of Handling And Resolving Conflicts, Such As This…… Conflict Resolution Has Three Legs, Namely….

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  1. WIN–WIN SOLUTION STRATEGY
  2. WIN– LOSE SOLUTION STRATEGY
  3. LOSE– WIN SOLUTION STRATEGY.

A More Sensible Declan Emelumba Would Have Applied The WIN-WIN SOLUTION STRATEGY, Which Would Have Benefitted The State Government, The Striking Petrol Marketers And The People Of Imo State. But Unfortunately, Declan Emelumba, In His Press Statement, Applied The LOSE-WIN Strategy, And Almost Everybody In The State Is Now Suffering The Consequences Of His Press Release.

The Petrol Marketers Are Private Businessmen And They Pay Tax. Many Of Them Are Multi-Millionaires With Multiple Branches And Other Businesses Outside The State. So The Attempt By Declan Emelumba To Humiliate And Embarrass Them Through That Irresponsible Press Release Was Taken As A Challenge By These Marketers, Who Are In Solidarity With Their Injured And Aggrieved Member…………… Now, What If This Petrol Marketers Strike Extends To One Month, Thereby Grounding The Economy Of The State? A Litre Of Petrol Is N165, But Blackmarketers Are Selling Now At N650 Per Litre. And This Is Just The First Day Of The Ongoing Strike By Petroleum Marketers. I Don’t Want To Talk Too Much Here.

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Let Me At This Point Most Respectfully Call On His Excellency Distinguished Senator Hope Uzodinma To Quickly Direct The Following People To Go And Meet With The Petroleum Marketers And Resolve This Problem Without Further Delay.

  1. Deputy Governor Of Imo State, His Excellency Professor Placid Njoku
  2. Secretary To The Government, Chief Cosmos Iwu
  3. Chief Of Staff, Sir Barrister Nnamdi Anyaehie
  4. Attorney General And Commissioner For Justice, Barrister COC Akaolisa
  5. Managing Director Of Imo Transport Company Ltd, Chief Emeka Duru
  6. Three Stakeholders In The State.

I Am Also Appealing To The Petroleum Marketers In Imo State To Sheathe Their Sword. Many Of Them Are My Friends. The People Of Imo State Are Begging Them To Sheathe Their Sword. Abeg, Edon Do.

Finally, The Commissioner For Information And Strategy, Mr Declan Emelumba Should Be Seriously Cautioned And Advised To Always Read Through His Press Statements Before Releasing Them To The Public. If He Makes This Mistake Again, I Will Descend On Him.

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I Rest My Pen.

Hon Dr Citizen Ikenna Samuelson Iwuoha Fcai Mkda (Ekenwohia Ndigbo)
25/08/2021

Hon Dr Citizen Ikenna Samuelson Iwuoha

IMO STATE GOVERNMENT ANNOUNCEMENT

Imo State Government is aware of the plan by petroleum marketers in the state to embark upon a strike action from tomorrow, Tuesday, August 24, 2021.

Their grouse is an alleged refusal of the state government to obey a court judgment on payment of compensation to their member whose filling station at Orlu was demolished by the Rochas Okorocha’s administration.

However, the Government has reasons to believe that there is more to the planned Strike than meets the eye. First the judgment itself was hidden from the current administration and no effort was made to dialogue with the government by the aggrieved member. Inspite of this, when the government found out about the judgment, it responded appropriately as a law abiding government by proceeding on appeal.

Secondly and curiously, the petroleum marketers have made desperate efforts to hoodwink tanker drivers to stop the supply of petroleum products to the state by midnight of Monday August 23rd, obviously using the influence of the affected member who was once a tanker driver himself. Why should the marketers succumb to involving Petroleum and Natural Gas Association of Nigeria (PENGASAN), in a local affair that has nothing to do with that association? This clearly suggests that there are other motives behind the planned strike. The petroleum marketers must therefore be mindful of being dragged into a strike they do not know its full motive.

Since the matter is still in court, it amounts to self help for petroleum marketers to embark on a strike which in the eyes of the law is totally illegal.

Having submitted himself to the rule of law, the affected person ought to wait for the ruling of the higher court before proceeding on any further action.

It therefore goes without saying that the planned strike action by petroleum marketers in Imo state is prejudicial to the extant case and therefore subjudice.

Government is not unmindful of the consequential effects of such an illegal action on the state economy and on innocent residents of the state.

While the Government has the responsibility to ensure the maintenance of law and order, it regrets to note that the planned strike in this volatile security situation in the country is ill advised, more so when it is glaring that it is an affront to the law.

However, as a law abiding Government, this administration is assuring the petroleum marketers that it will abide by any decision of the highest court when the matter is fully determined.

Since the affected owner of the demolished filling station is yet to exhaust all legal options available and since there exists a pendancy of appeal on the matter, any strike in whatever form and by whosoever named remains illegal and will be treated as such

Finally, Government hereby advises those planning the strike to respect the law in the interest of peace and economic well being of the people.

Signed

Hon Declan Emelumba
Commissioner for Information and Strategy