The Mazi Organisation has launched a counterattack on the Imo State Government over its latest threat-laden statement against Dr. Chima Matthew Amadi, accusing Governor Hope Uzodimma’s administration of “weaponising dead sedition laws” to silence demands for transparency.
In a rejoinder signed by its spokesperson, Cajetan Duke, the organisation described the government’s move as “puerile and scandalous,” warning that any attempt to criminalise lawful criticism would be resisted.
The group noted that in just 48 hours, the Commissioner for Information, Declan Emelumba, had issued two press releases — a pace it labelled “a record for knee-jerk governance” — laced with political insults, constitutional distortions, and threats rooted in “obsolete military-era sedition provisions.”
“That in 2025, in a constitutional democracy, a government would contemplate invoking sedition to silence a citizen whose only ‘crime’ is demanding accountability in the use of billions of naira allocated to local governments is both shocking and disgraceful,” the statement read.
Citing the landmark 1985 Court of Appeal case Arthur Nwankwo v. The State, the organisation reminded the Uzodimma administration that sedition had been struck down as unconstitutional decades ago. “By citing sedition, this government is clinging to the cobwebs of military authoritarianism, ripping a page from the darkest chapters of our political history,” it declared.
The Mazi Organisation accused Uzodimma’s team of exhibiting an “emperor complex” — seeing themselves as untouchable rulers rather than elected public servants. “In civilised societies, leaders welcome scrutiny. Here, insecure leaders brandish empty titles and accuse citizens of sedition for asking legitimate questions,” the statement said.
It stressed that Dr. Amadi’s remarks at the Catholic Men Organisation seminar were not incitement but a constitutionally protected call for transparent governance.
“To suggest that the CMO — a gathering of accomplished professionals including lawyers — would host sedition is an insult to their integrity,” the group stated.
Turning to the heart of the dispute, the organisation alleged that from 2019 to date, Imo’s 27 local government areas had received “hundreds of billions” in FAAC allocations without proper accounting. It challenged the government to publish full LGA-by-LGA receipts since 2019, audited expenditure reports, and project-by-project breakdowns.
“Even using the monthly allocations of Ideato North and South as a benchmark, the sums are enough to pave rural roads, build functional health centres, and secure communities. If every kobo was spent as claimed, why hide the records?” the statement asked.
The group also faulted the state’s handling of maternal mortality data, accusing officials of dismissing its figures without verifiable counter-evidence from official bodies such as the National Bureau of Statistics or the WHO. “If the true figure is 163 deaths per 100,000 live births, then publish the source, methodology, and year-by-year breakdown,” it demanded.
It stated that the government’s reliance on intimidation tactics instead of transparency was “a mark of desperation.” “Dr. Chima Matthew Amadi will not be silenced. He will continue to use his constitutionally guaranteed freedom of speech to press for accountable, responsive, and lawful governance,” the Mazi Organisation vowed.
“If the Uzodimma administration truly believes in its record,” it added, “let it prove it with open books, not open threats.”
