By CHARLES IWUOHA

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ebonyi State has accused the All Progressives Congress (APC), of plots to arrest, link its prominent stakeholders to recent killings and criminal activities in the state.

Ebonyi State Chairman of the PDP, Chief Tochukwu Okorie, in a press briefing in Abakaliki, alleged that there are plans by the ruling APC to link its party chieftains and other opposition party members to the killings that took place in the various 13 local government areas of the state.

He alleged that the sole aim was to arrest and dent their image ahead of the 2023 general elections approaches.

But in a swift reaction, the Publicity Secretary of the ruling All Progressive Congress, APC, Ebonyi State, Mr. Ogbuatu Simbad, urged the main opposition party in the state to desist from working against the progress of the state government led by Chief David Umahi.

He said that PDP is crying, just because the governor David Umahi dumped them and defected to the ruling APC.

Ogbuatu said that the governor is busy completing the massive projects his administration embarked upon and has no time to respond to the rantings of PDP, Ebonyi state chapter.

Okorie said: “We have it in good authority that on 10th of February 2022, Ebonyi state government called a meeting in which the attendees were essentially the leaders of Ebubeagu militias that operate in Ebonyi State.

“There was a follow up yesterday and this meeting was called to address the nagging issues of security in Ebonyi State.

“The Peoples Democratic Party, PDP Ebonyi Chapter had raised an alarm following the incessant incidents of brutality and killings attributed to Ebubeagu Security operatives.

“Following the alarm we raised, a number of persons have gone to court to challenge the legality or otherwise the law that set-up Ebubeagu and other matters. It is consequent upon those developments, that the said meeting was called.

“And in that meeting, they came out with a resolution that going forward, there is only way to stop the PDP and the opposition in the state from further challenging the brutality that Ebubeagu meted on the citizens of the state.

“The only way to deal with that is now to begin to implicate leaders of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP and other stakeholders who are in opposition parties with crimes and phantom situations in other to demoralize and whittle the popularity and influence that PDP has commanded in the state,” he stated.

Okorie, however, vowed that his party will not fold its arms and watch the ruling APC in the state blackmail, intimidate and attack its members any longer adding that henceforth, it will match APC words to words and actions to actions especially as the 2023 elections approaches.