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| Charley Boy and Governor Rochas Okorocha of Imo State |
- Charley boy stops Governor Okorocha from giving speech
- Accuses Imo State government of lying that they gave the Oputa family N20million for burial
The burial of late Justice Chukwudifu Oputa was yesterday interrupted by his son, Charles Oputa, popularly known as Charley Boy when he prevented the Imo State Governor, Rochas Okorocha from paying tribute to his late father.
Our reporters have informed us that while Governor Okorocha was giving his speech as permitted by Rt Rev. Matthew Hassan Kukah, Catholic Bishop of Sokoto Diocese, Charley Boy showed his anger by openly approaching the Bishop to ask him why he granted the Governor a speaking audience.
While the Governor was speaking, Charley Boy walked up to the alter and snatched the micro-phone from the Governor, making it an open disgrace as prominent personalities and dignitaries were all seated.
Among the dignitaries present were representative of President Goodluck Jonathan, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator Anyim Pius Anyim, Governors Willie Obiano of Anambra State, Theodore Orji of Abia State. Including Chief Emeka Ihedioha, the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives and former governors of Anambra State, Mr Peter Obi and Senator Chris Ngige, just to name a few.
It is understood that Charley Boy said no politician would be allowed by him to take advantage of his father’s burial to attain selfish political goals therefore, he strongly insisted that the Governor would not speak at the burial.
The embarrassment prompted Governor Okorocha and his entourage to quickly leave the service mid-way despite persuasions from the Bishop that they should stay to the end.
We also gathered that what contributed to Charley Boy's annoyance was a recent statement from the Imo State Government house which said the Oputa family were given N20 million in support of their father's burial arrangements which the family didn't receive as announced.
In a statement by the Bishop, he said:
"Oputa before he died, was worried about the quality of Nigerian lawyers and judges because he believed in the judiciary as the last hope of the nation. Today, his legacies are beyond his immediate family."Meanwhile, the state government has labelled the incident as "ugly and regrettable."
Following the incident, Mr Sam Onwuemodo who is the Seniour Special Assistant, SSA, Media, to Governor Okorocha, said:
“It is highly regrettable that the son of the late Justice, Mr Charles Emeka Oputa, aka, Charly Boy, threw caution to the wind and turned the church service into a political theatre that saw him acting or playing out the script he drafted in Abuja with some Imo politicians, who have remained cowed by the overwhelming popularity of Governor Rochas Okorocha.”He also insisted that the Imo State government had supported the Optua family with funds for the burial although he didn't categorically state the N20million.
“We assisted with substantial financial input and also organized a special day of tributes for the late Justice Oputa at the expense of state government with Charly Boy also present with other members of the family.
"We condemn that ugly incident and also wish to advise politicians from the state to stop heating up the polity over power since God is the giver of power. In 2015, God will decide who will be governor of Imo State and when God decides that, there is nothing anybody can do about it.”That was surely embarrassing.
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