The Rivers State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) says information at its disposal has revealed secret plans to frame up incriminating charges against the party’s State Publicity Secretary, Samuel Nwanosike, Roland Sekibo, Odiari Princewill and other PDP chieftains unlawfully arrested by the military during last weekend’s re-run election in Etche Local Government Area.

Alarmed by the desperation of those who want the PDP’s Publicity Secretary silenced by any means, the state PDP Chairman, Bro Felix Obuah in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Jerry Needam, insisted his party’s chieftains and officials legally accredited for the election were innocent, alleging that their transfer to the State Criminal Investigation Department (CID) was influenced by a well-known All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftain in the state who had always wanted Nwanosike dead.

Obuah believes the dust being thrown into the eyes of the investigating Police Officers is born out of hate and bitterness against the arrested PDP chieftains and the singular desire to find cause to nail Nwanosike for refusing the APC to carry out their sinister plans especially in the Rivers East Senatorial District during the elections.

He said, “Even as they are being illegally detained under inhuman conditions at the state CID, pressures are being mounted on the security men to transfer them to Abuja in order to deny them further access to their families,” the state PDP boss noted.

“We insist Mr Samuel Nwanosike and the three others are innocent and were officially in Etche during the re-run election as our party agents for the purpose of monitoring the election and duly acted within the ambit of the law.

“Their arrest no doubt, is a clear case of a witch-hunt and the identity of the person behind all the trumped-up charges and travails of the party officers is not lost on us.

“We hold him and his cohorts strictly responsible for whatever happens to Mr. Nwanosike and the other three chieftains.

“We are however, convinced that our security men are now wiser and know those raising the dust in the state for their selfish interests, and wish to appeal to them to thread the path of reasonableness by releasing all the party chieftains unconditionally,” Obuah said.