>
A former governor of Imo State and Senator representing Imo West, Rochas Okorocha, has asked youths to stop venting their anger on traditional rulers over the perceived failure of the state government.
Okorocha, who spoke on Wednesday at Eziama Obierie in Nkwerre Local Government Area of the state, during the burial service of Jemimah Nwosu, mother of his son-in-law, Uche Nwosu, said, “Imo is bleeding because of insecurity.”
Instead of taking a violent approach, Okorocha asked youths to wait till 2023 and vote out bad governance through an electoral process.
Okorocha, who wept, said that the current Imo is not the state he governed for eight years and handed over in 2019.
He said that six serving governors could not attend the funeral rites because of the insecurity in the state.
“I want to appeal to the youth to stop venting their anger of bad governance by killing innocent citizens. This is not the Imo I used to know. This is not the Imo I was governor for eight years. I don’t support violence but I support protest through a proper channel. I urge you to wait till 2023 and use your PVC to vote out bad governance.
“Six governors called me and told me that they wanted to be here for the funeral but I told them that if they want to be here, they will have to move about in Amorured Personnel Carriers and hence they couldn’t afford it, they stayed back in their respective states,” Okorocha said.
He added that Imo State was “gradually turning to Afghanistan,” urging clerics to be praying for the safety of the state.