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Ozichukwu denies assaulting Anenih’s wife
By Paul Mumeh
Senior
Correspondent, Abuja
After more than one year in which he had a brawl with
People’s Democratic Party (PDP) National Woman Leader, Mrs. Josephine
Anenih at the party’s secretariat in Abuja, National Vice Chairman of the
party, South East Zone, Nze Fidelis Ozichukwu has denied beating her.
Mrs. Anenih had wept openly and uncontrollably with tears
flowing freely down her cheeks and claiming that Ozichukwu beat her up for
allegedly organising protesters from Anambra State in the wake of the
inglorious abduction of Governor Chris Ngige by his political foes on July
10,2003.
She rained abuses on Ozichukwu and invoked the Holy Ghost
fire on him, saying he was fuelling the crisis in Anambra ostensibly for some
rewards. Mrs. Anenih, an Anambra by birth and Edo by marriage represents the
latter state in the party’s leadership as its women leader.
Troubled started when Ozichukwu attempted to assert his
authority as the leader of South East zone of the party, stressing that Mrs.
Anenih had no right to mobilise Anambra women (From his zone) without his
knowledge or approval. Exchange of abusive words following which Mrs. Anenih
allegedly stoned Ozichukwu with her mobile phone handset led to degeneration of
the situation.
But Ozichukwu for the first time told reporters in Abuja
that “ I did not slap Mrs. Anenih, more so when she still bears the name
of the revered political leader of our time, Tony Anenih.
I have respect for women, I did not hit her. It was Mrs.
Anenih who flung her cell phone at me. If I had hit her, she would have died. I
won’t do that. Even the Deputy National Chairman, can attest to the fact
that I did not hit her”.
He said the matter has since been resolved by the National
Working Committee (NWC) of the party but that it was absurd for his political
foes in Imo State led by Governor Achike Udenwa to allude to that incident as
one of his low points as the party’s leader in the South East.
Ozichukwu said: “ I am not a violent person, I abhor
it. I have not harassed anybody and no person has died on account of my action
or inaction. I challenge Governor Udenwa and Alex Obi to prove
otherwise”.
He dismissed as false and cheap blackmail allegations by the
Udenwa faction of the PDP in Imo State that he was using the police to harass
and intimidate opponents. Ozichukwu therefore implored the PDP leadership to
call Governor Udenwa and suspended state party Chairman, Alex Obi to order
because they are not above the law.
He remarked that Udenwa masterminded his purported
suspension from the party in the state, a development he described as a fluke
because of their ignorance of the party’s constitution. A faction of the
party loyal to Udenwa were said to have stormed the party’s secretariat
in Abuja demanding that Ozichukwu be probed for alleged anti-party activities.
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