LP faults Soludo, demands probe of Anambra lawmaker’s murder
The leadership of the Labour Party, on Thursday, expressed shock over the murder of the lawmaker representing Onitsha 1 North Constituency in the Anambra State House of Assembly, Justice Azuka.
While describing his death as a deliberate assassination, the party berated Governor Charles Soludo for not doing enough to stem the tide of killings and insecurity in the state.
Azuka was abducted on December 24, 2024 along Ugwunaobankpa Road in Onitsha while returning home for Christmas.
However, 44 days later, his lifeless body was discovered at the roadside along the Second Niger Bridge by security operatives in the early hours of Thursday, February 6, 2025.
The slain lawmaker, a chieftain of the Labour Party, had reclaimed his mandate through a court ruling that ousted Douglas Egbuna of the Peoples Democratic Party, who was initially declared the winner of the 2023 election.
In a statement released in Abuja on Thursday, the National Publicity Secretary of LP, Obiora Ifoh, decried that they are presently traumatised by his death.
He said, “His death and other ones have become a daily occurrence in Anambra, a state that is gradually assuming a Hobbesian status under Prof Charles Soludo.
“Anambra has fully assumed the state of war, where life has suddenly become nasty, brutish and short because the present leadership has completely lost the willpower to enforce law and sanity.
“We are pained because not long ago, the Labour Party candidate in the last governorship election in Anambra State, Obiora Agbasimelo, was abducted while campaigning, and as we speak, his whereabouts are still unknown. Neither the security agencies nor the government could account for his disappearance ,and his family is left traumatized.
“The whole essence of a government is to provide security and well-being for the people; that constitutional provision is lacking in Anambra State at present. It is unbelievable and unspeakable that a personality as high as a legislator could be abducted for over a month, and the government was incapable of rescuing him.’
Although the LP spokesman acknowledged that the police are presently grilling some suspects, he called for a proper probe, saying no stone should be left unturned until the real culprits are unravelled.
Ifoh also urged LP members in the state to remain calm and allow the law to take its cause.
“We are not in any way suggesting political motive. That would be left for the security agencies to determine. However, we are not unmindful of the circumstances that led to his regaining his mandate after a court ruling ousted the previous winner, from another party who was initially declared the winner of the 2023 election.
“We are therefore calling on all our party members in Anambra State to maintain peace and allow the security agencies to diligently carry out their duties. We also encourage them not to be dampened by this unfortunate incident but rather remain focused on the activities ahead,” he pleaded.
