Umahi: Some politicians using south-east bandits to destabilise Nigeria

David Umahi, governor of Ebonyi state, says desperate politicians are aligning with bandits in the south-east to destabilise the country.

Umahi said this on Tuesday after a virtual meeting with the five governors of the south-east region at the government house, Abakaliki.

Umahi, who is also the chairman of the South-East Governors Forum, said the governors are worried about the insecurity in the region.

He asked the governors to speak out and condemn killings within their domain.

“The governors are so worried about the killings and kidnappings that are going on by our people in the south-east, killing our own people and the security agencies,” he said.

“The situation is being heightened by the activities of very desperate politicians, this time irrespective of party affiliations.

“There are so many desperate politicians in all the political parties that are so desperate for power and they have aligned with some bandits in the south-east to destabilise the nation.”

Umahi also tried to clarify the viral video making the rounds about an alleged expulsion of a Fulani pastoral community from an area in Ebonyi.

The governor had said the video was fake and ordered security agencies to investigate its source and arrest the circulators.

He said: “Politicians, as we have intelligence gathering, went to put a voice and said it is the Igbos that are chasing away the herdsmen from Ebonyi state.

“Such a video went very wide and was causing panic in other parts of the country. That was very much uncalled for because we also have over 11 million of our people living in the north.

“We have so many of our people living in south-south and south-west. When people do this, they think they are doing it to pull down a particular governor, not knowing that they are doing it to start killings against our people.”

Umahi defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC) in November 2020.

He had said he left the major opposition party because of “injustice” done to the south-east PDP.