The Imo State Task Force on Recovery of Government Property has raided the House of Freeda, a mega plaza owned by the daughter of immediate-past governor of the state, Uloma Uche Nwosu. The task force, led by a detachment of security men, on Thursday carted away chairs, television sets and other household goods they could lay their hands on. The members of the task force literally ripped the plaza bare and it took the personal intervention of the Police Commissioner, Rabiu Ladodo, for sanity to be restored. The task force cordoned off the Port Harcourt road location of the business outfit, causing heavy logjam along the Owerri – Port Harcourt road. Reacting to the incident, the governorship candidate of Action Alliance in the 2019 election, Ugwumba Uche Nwosu, described the incident as absurd. In a statement signed by the Director General of Ugwumba Uche Nwosu Campaign Organisation, Onwuasoanya Jones FCC, Nwosu challenged the task force to show proof that those items looted from the plaza belonged to the state government. He also wants the state government to return all the looted goods and apologize to the proprietor. The statement said, “Yesterday, some obviously hired and uncouth thugs invaded the business premises of the wife of His Excellency Ugwumba Uche Nwosu, along Port-Harcout Road, Owerri. “These thugs who identified themselves as hirelings of the Imo State governor, Chief Emeka Ihedioha, assaulted and harassed the proprietress, customers and staff of the House of Freeda, an entertainment outfit owned by Mrs. Uloma Nwosu, wife of the AA governorship candidate in the last general elections. “It is important to also inform the public that these thugs did not provide any search warrant, permitting them to search this privately owned investment of more than three years standing. “They rudely interrupted business activities in the premises and forcefully made away with properties of the outfit worth several millions of Naira. “For record purposes, some of the things looted from the House of Freeda are: Refrigerators, power generating set, vehicles, wristwatches, fabrics, shirts, frozen chicken parts, television sets, chairs, tables and other properties acquired and registered in the name of the company. “Some of these properties have been owned by the House of Freeda for more than three years now, and there are papers to prove this. “In the light of the above, we make the following demands of the Imo State Government: “That the Imo State Government should, within, forty-eight hours of this publication return all that it looted from the House of Freeda. “That the Imo State Government should in not more than twelve hours, after this publication, declare and display before the public, items looted from the House of Freeda, and attach evidences proving that these items were or are properties of the Imo State Government. “That the Imo State Government should, within 72 hours of this press statement, tender an unreserved apology to Mrs. Uloma Nwosu, all staff of her establishment, customers and His Excellency, Ugwumba Uche Nwosu. “That Governor Emeka Ihedioha should reprimand everyone involved in that thug action against the spouse of our governorship candidate”, the statement added.
