Okorocha Lied on Live TV about his EFCC Arrest – former aide

Mr. Onwuasoanya FCC Jones, a former aide of the embattled former governor of Imo State, Rochas Okorocha have dismissed Okorocha’s claims on live TV, that the EFCC was sent to stop him from attending his presidential screening.

The Orlu zone Senator had claimed that his arrest by the anti graft Commission, was politically motivated to stop him to participating in the APC presidential primaries.

The former publicity secretary of the Imo State All Progressives Congress APC in a post on his Facebook page, dismissed Okorocha’s claims as lies.

His post reads as follows:

ON EFCC STOPPING ROCHAS’ PRESIDENTIAL BID

ONWUASOANYA FCC JONES

By now, it has become clearer that the story of my former governor been on his way to attend the APC presidential screening yesterday was a big lie told to distract the EFCC from carrying out their legitimate duty. There was no screening scheduled for yesterday, the Party was yet to officially invite aspirants to any screening exercise. That is why we saw serious aspirants continuing with their campaign to delegates yesterday. Just yesterday, Imo State APC hosted three presidential aspirants.

If my former governor and beloved Ideato kinsman had told us that he was planning to kickstart his consultation with APC delegates that yesterday, maybe, it would have been a smarter lie to tell. The truth is that he knew that there were no plans to screen any aspirants yesterday. So, the EFCC could as well note that as an evidence that he is not to be trusted.

Few years ago, Owelle would have been the most formidable aspirant to Nigerian presidency, but he unfortunately bungled all the goodwill he enjoyed, not just as a result of his debatable poor performance in Imo State, but mostly as a result of hiring the wrong people and listening to sycophants. The former governor is not the worst of former governors, but his major failure is in the management of his personality and image. Owelle is not a factor in this presidential race. He poses no threat to the person who will eventually clinch the ticket. Owelle cannot boast of a single delegate from Imo where he hails from, and any delegate who will have to vote for him in the Primaries will have to be bought. He is one of the aspirants who can’t boast of one single delegate that he produced during the delegates Congress that has just been concluded. So, where is the threat he poses?

I can tell you that there is hardly any politician worth his name that doesn’t have an active file in the EFCC. Most of those currently gunning for the presidency are actually on bail with the EFCC, but they won’t face the kind of embarrassment Owelle faced because they respect themselves, they don’t jump bail, and they don’t ignore EFCC invitations.

Owelle’s detention at the EFCC will not stop him from participating in the primaries. After all, we have records of some individuals who won election while in prison. The current National Secretary of our Party, Senator Omisore is one of those who won election from prison. Also, a PDP candidate recently won primaries to the National Assembly while still in the custody of bandits. Owelle can send his lawyers to represent him at the screening and get his political campaign team to execute his plan for the Primaries and still clinch the presidential ticket if they actually had a plan.

But, for a man who bought nomination forms and has sat down in his house without moving out to canvass support of delegates, the impression any reasonable person, who is not in his payroll or political family would have is that he just bought the forms as a bargaining chip for political security.

I feel ashamed that Owelle’s people are brandishing orders from court where they purport that courts granted injunctions against EFCC arresting. It is shameful that someone who served in public office would be proud to say that he is seeking perpetual immunity from been questioned over his activities while in office.

I cannot say that Owelle stole Imo’s money, there is yet to be any proof to that effect, but his desperation to shield himself from being investigated by the appropriate authorities leaves a lot to be questioned about his innocence. The impression he gives about his character when he brandishes these court orders is that of a man who is desperate to evade investigation, and that’s not what I can say about him.

If he were serious about his presidential bid, he would have been more interested in projecting an image of a man who is law abiding and not of one desperately seeking immunity from the law. He would cooperated with the EFCC and the different panels that investigated his activities as governor, which I vehemently defended from 2017 until 2021.

On the argument that he is being persecuted because of his insistence that a Southeastern person should be the next President of Nigeria, we do not forget his declaration speech where he made it clear that he is not a candidate of zoning. He actually denounced the agitation for a president of Nigeria of Southeast extraction. Owelle is not one of the most vocal advocates for a Southeasterner to become Nigeria’s President. If anything, he is simply flowing along with the campaign because it has gained serious traction.