By CHIDI NKWOPARA

OWERRI—THE 27 elected local government chairmen and councillors, who were sacked by Governor Rochas Okorocha at the inception of his administration, were yesterday reinstated, following the order of the Appeal Court.

The council chairmen and councillors, who got the reprieve about two weeks ago, were however refused entry into their offices, sequel to what the State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Chief Soronnadi Njoku, termed “pending appeal in the Supreme Court”.

Speaking to Vanguard, the Chairman of Owerri Municipal Council, Chief Emmanuel Odor, said: “We were edged out in the past one year and the court saw the glaring injustice meted out to us and ordered our reinstatement. We are happy to be back.”

However, the celebration was short lived as government immediately announced three days public holidays for local government workers, while the Directors of Administration and General Services, DAGS, and Treasurers were ordered to attend a seminar in Owerri.

A staff of Ezinihitte Mbaise local council area, who spoke on condition of anonymity, reasoned that “the unsolicited public holidays and the seminar arranged for the management staff of the councils were crafted to stall activities in the local government areas.”

Meanwhile, the State  Commissioner for Justice said Imo  government was not in breach of the judgment of the Court of Appeal, stressing that “the advice of the Attorney General of the Federation does not arise at all.

Advising Imo State government to obey the court order in the circumstance is more like playing politics with the law. It is the position of Imo State government that all the parties must allow the judicial process to run its full course as government is prepared, willing and ready to abide by whatever order the court makes in the end.”