“So, it is not about IPOB. Yes, we agree, we have aggrieved IPOB members but I can tell you those who are doing this destruction, most of them were brought in from outside Imo State.”
Imo State Governor, Hope Uzodinma, has said aggrieved politicians sponsored the attacks on police headquarters and correctional centre in Owerri, the state capital, on Monday.
Uzodinma spoke on Wednesday during a programme on Channels Television, monitored by Sahara Reporters.
A correctional centre and a police command were attacked by gunmen, who made use of explosives and also burnt many vehicles.
The Nigerian Correctional Service has said 1,844 inmates were set free during the attack on its facility.
Meanwhile, the police have accused the Indigenous People of Biafra and its security outfit, Eastern Security Network of being responsible for the attack, an allegation the group has denied.
But Uzodinma on Wednesday said aggrieved politicians were behind the attacks to destabilise his party, the All Progressives Congress.
He said, “Their tactics is that they try to identify grievances of people in a particular area. If it is in Imo State and probably there are some IPOB people who are not happy, they hire hoodlums from outside Imo State, they bring them in pretending to be IPOB and they commit these crimes and they go away.
“So, it is not about IPOB. Yes, we agree, we have aggrieved IPOB members but I can tell you those who are doing this destruction, most of them were brought in from outside Imo State.”
Also blaming it on politicians, the governor said, “What is important for Nigerians to know is the plot by a group of aggrieved politicians to destabilise the government of APC (All Progressives Congress).
“I have done some thorough investigation and I have some credible leads as to those who are sponsoring these activities of these hoodlums.
“I don’t want to pre-empt the investigations of other security agencies but I can tell you we are working hard to ensure the sponsors of these dastardly acts must be brought to book.”
