[JUST IN] Rivers: Reprisal against PDP as thugs destroy SDP secretariat

THE Social Democratic Party (SDP) Secretariat in Nonwa Ue-dume, Tai Local Government Area, Rivers state was on Monday vandalised by suspected thugs ahead of unveiling by Sen Magnus Abe, governorship candidate of the party.

SDP faithful in the locality overseeing finishing preparations for a tumultuous welcome for candidate Abe woke up Monday morning to meet destructions over the decorated party secretary along with the podium, chairs and tables set for the event.

Spokesman to Abe, Parry Benson, in a reflection on the incident quoted the guber candidate as saying, “The several attacks and threats to life and property will not deter him from campaigning in Tai and other local government areas of the state.”

Benson’s statement called on the the Commissioner of Police, Rivers Command, CP Okon Effiong and other security agencies to investigate the incident and bring an end escalating violence in the state.

While the party blamed Monday’s incident which truncated the day’s event on faceless thugs, a source from the community indicated that the latest development attracted a reprisal targeted at nearby Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) secretariat in the area.

The source told Vanguard, “Who else would have destroyed the SDP office. All fingers point at PDP. They boast all about that they will invoke Executive Orders 21 and 22 on the opposition and they have been disrupting opposition activities. Today, people got angry and invaded their local secretariat here too. The impunity has got to stop.”

The PDP and the Police in Rivers were yet to respond to the development at the time of filing this report.