ABDULRAZAQ Momoh, the PDP member of the Edo state
assembly who is now in a coma at the University of Benin Teaching
Hospital after he was attacked by thugs at the Legislators' Quarters in
Benin City on Monday night may be flown abroad for further treatment.
The lawmaker representing Etsako East 1 in
the assembly who according to sources is on danger list at the hospital arising from injuries to his skull from the deep machete cuts to his head sustained in the attack on Monday night at about 8.46pm.
The decision to fly the lawmaker abroad was
said to be the nucleus of a high caliber meeting of the State PDP Exco and the National secretariat of the party which was briefed on Tuesday about how Momoh the first APC Lawmaker in the state to decamp to the PDP in June was attacked.
The party was told that at about 8.30pm,
"heavily-armed thugs invaded the quarters, shot into the air and scared away policemen on guard duty before they broke into Momoh's residence and beat him with blows and machetes until he fell down and feigned death".
It was gathered that not satisfied that he
was dead the thugs allegedly threw the lawmaker onto the Ihama road, on which the quarters is located to be run over by oncoming vehicles only for a good Nigerian who almost ran him over, identified him and called for help.
Acting Speaker of the PDP Faction of the
Assembly, Chief Festus Ebea who was informed of the development soon after said he went to the scene and met the seemingly lifeless body of Momoh and had to take the lawmaker, first to the Central Hospital before the UBTH, due to the severity of his situation.
Ebea said, "Momoh has been residing in
the legislative quarters along with other APC members like Philip Shaibu anf Uyi Igbe, amongst others since he was sworn along with the rest of us in 2011, before the June crisis when some of us left the APC for the PDP".
He said Momoh lived with his family in the
quarters that were at Auchi for the Sallah festival unlike other PDP lawmakers and has shunned all entreaties to vacate the residence like other APC lawmakers who dumped the party for the PDP because, "he said his tenancy has not expired".
The lawmaker said, "those who wanted to
kill Momoh have just murdered sleep", adding "they would pay dearly" because the PDP assembly sitting at the Assembly Complex will get employ the services of the Nigerian Police Force, "to get the root of this inhuman and dastardly act of cowardice by persons who think they control the instruments of violence and bloodbath".
Ebea who condemned the attack and linked it
to the lingering Edo assembly crisis which has polarized the assembly with lawmakers holding parallel plenary along party lines at separate locations in Benin City said, "if thugs can attack and maim a lawmaker at will with the support of state agents, the plight of the ordinary Edo man on the streets can be imagined assuring assured Edo people to remain calm and go about their lawful duties as the matter was being investigated by the Police.
Momoh, a trade unionist and former Lecturer
at the Federal Polytechnic Auchi, asked in an interview a few months ago about his joining the PDP said, "I was actually never a member of the APC".
He said, "Although I nosed around to
find out what the APC was made up of and I found out that it was the same crop of leadership in the ACN that suddenly hijacked the process and naturally I just stepped aside and that is it".
The lawmaker made headlines in June 2013
when he was remanded in prison custody by an Auchi Magistrates' court in Etsako West local government over allegations of illegal possession of firearms during the local government elections in the locality
The lawmaker representing Etsako East 1 in
the assembly who according to sources is on danger list at the hospital arising from injuries to his skull from the deep machete cuts to his head sustained in the attack on Monday night at about 8.46pm.
The decision to fly the lawmaker abroad was
said to be the nucleus of a high caliber meeting of the State PDP Exco and the National secretariat of the party which was briefed on Tuesday about how Momoh the first APC Lawmaker in the state to decamp to the PDP in June was attacked.
The party was told that at about 8.30pm,
"heavily-armed thugs invaded the quarters, shot into the air and scared away policemen on guard duty before they broke into Momoh's residence and beat him with blows and machetes until he fell down and feigned death".
It was gathered that not satisfied that he
was dead the thugs allegedly threw the lawmaker onto the Ihama road, on which the quarters is located to be run over by oncoming vehicles only for a good Nigerian who almost ran him over, identified him and called for help.
Acting Speaker of the PDP Faction of the
Assembly, Chief Festus Ebea who was informed of the development soon after said he went to the scene and met the seemingly lifeless body of Momoh and had to take the lawmaker, first to the Central Hospital before the UBTH, due to the severity of his situation.
Ebea said, "Momoh has been residing in
the legislative quarters along with other APC members like Philip Shaibu anf Uyi Igbe, amongst others since he was sworn along with the rest of us in 2011, before the June crisis when some of us left the APC for the PDP".
He said Momoh lived with his family in the
quarters that were at Auchi for the Sallah festival unlike other PDP lawmakers and has shunned all entreaties to vacate the residence like other APC lawmakers who dumped the party for the PDP because, "he said his tenancy has not expired".
The lawmaker said, "those who wanted to
kill Momoh have just murdered sleep", adding "they would pay dearly" because the PDP assembly sitting at the Assembly Complex will get employ the services of the Nigerian Police Force, "to get the root of this inhuman and dastardly act of cowardice by persons who think they control the instruments of violence and bloodbath".
Ebea who condemned the attack and linked it
to the lingering Edo assembly crisis which has polarized the assembly with lawmakers holding parallel plenary along party lines at separate locations in Benin City said, "if thugs can attack and maim a lawmaker at will with the support of state agents, the plight of the ordinary Edo man on the streets can be imagined assuring assured Edo people to remain calm and go about their lawful duties as the matter was being investigated by the Police.
Momoh, a trade unionist and former Lecturer
at the Federal Polytechnic Auchi, asked in an interview a few months ago about his joining the PDP said, "I was actually never a member of the APC".
He said, "Although I nosed around to
find out what the APC was made up of and I found out that it was the same crop of leadership in the ACN that suddenly hijacked the process and naturally I just stepped aside and that is it".
The lawmaker made headlines in June 2013
when he was remanded in prison custody by an Auchi Magistrates' court in Etsako West local government over allegations of illegal possession of firearms during the local government elections in the locality
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