UCHE Secondus, national chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has denied federal government’s allegation that he collected N250 million from Office of the National Security Adviser, ONSA, in the build up to the 2015 general elections.

According to the allegation, Secondus obtained the funds in two tranches. He allegedly obtained N200 million from the ONSA with voucher number 0244 through one Chukwurah, his personal assistant.

Secondus, who was national deputy chairman (South) of the then ruling Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, also allegedly personally signed for N50 million in November 2014.

But in a press statement signed by Ike Abonyi, his media adviser, Secondus described the allegation as desperate attempt by the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, to frame him up “with some blatant fabrications ostensibly to distract him from carrying out his responsibility of rebuilding his party.”

The statement said ordinarily the PDP chair would not want to join issues with the government on a matter already in court, but alleged that the Muhammadu Buhari administration had great contempt for the court and the rule of law and because it had chosen to use blackmail and media persecution to defame and discredit its perceived enemies.

Hence, the statement quoted Secondus as saying that the federal government and its agency: “In its desperation to forge documents and defame him, the Minister of Information and Culture Alhaji Lai Mohammad and the EFCC could not reconcile their lies, they couldn’t agree on the date of the purported money collection and whether it was collected by him Secondus or by a faceless fictional Chukwura that has no surname.

“While they may have embarked on a wide search since 2015 for the surname of the so called aide of the National Chairman, Alhaji Mohammad claimed in his press conference on Good Friday March 29, 2018  that Secondus collected the money on 19th of February, 2015, EFCC on their part on April 16th, 2018, eighteen days after said the money was collected on February 9th, 2015 and in another version still quoting the same EFCC claimed February 2, 2015.”

Besides, the PDP national chairman said that nothing, not even the blackmail and intimidation by the federal government, would stop him from carrying out the reform of the PDP and reposition the party to save Nigeria from the APC administration.

He, therefore, challenged the government to come out with the vouchers with which he was said to have signed, adding that such signature would also be subjected to forensic analysis.

“I never collected any money from anywhere. I didn’t ask anyone to collect money for me as well and I didn’t sign any voucher to collect any money. It is pure blackmail which will never work.

“If they are cooking up anything, with the aim of blackmailing me, it will fail. I know that the task of uprooting this non-performing government would be horrendous. But God is always on the side of the people.”

“I can understand the frustration of a party that enjoyed enormous goodwill from Nigerians three years ago but got it squandered with its ‘nepotic’ and insensitive administration.

“No amount of cheap blackmail and treachery will return the APC from the exit gate where Nigerians already pushed them to, awaiting 2019”

“The departure date for the APC has already been announced and the flight schedule would not be cancelled, because Nigerians cannot wait to see them off,” he said.

– Apr. 17, 2018 @ 17:34 GMT

AE