Raphael Ede, Enugu
Director General of the Voice of Nigeria (VON), Mr. Osita Okechukwu, on Wednesday, said that he did not meant to disparage Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo State in his appeal on the governor to stop pitting the Catholic Church with the All Progressive Congress (APC) and by extension President Muhammadu Buhari.
Okechukwu stated this in press release in a reaction to an earlier one released by Governor Okorocha, on Wednesday, through his Chief Press Secretary, Sam Onwuemeodo, titled: ‘VON DG was wrong: Governor Okorocha is not pitting Catholic Church against APC’.
According to Okechukwu, “I still maintain my appeal to His Excellency Owelle Rochas Okorocha to climb down from his high horse, address the main issue at stake and cultivate harmonious relationships with the great Catholic Church.
“This is whether His Excellency Okorocha was forced or not to take Islamisation or Ogboni Oath at Assumpta Cathedral during the 2015 campaign. In fact the oath if ever taken could have been the lubricant and our Imo presidential result in 2015 with an incumbent governor wouldn’t be meager 18 per cent.
“Sincerely speaking my effort is an appeal to His Excellency Owelle Rochas Okorocha to stop pitting our great party the APC with the great Catholic Church. My intendment is not to pull down our leader.
“To insinuate that, ‘Mr. Okechukwu is one of those who have the erroneous feeling that the only way they can grow in APC is by attacking or pulling down Governor Rochas Okorocha’ is a big lie”, Okechukwu said.