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Tag: Magnus Abe

  • Abe lauds Oborevwori, Okowa, others defection, says it’ll strengthen APC in South south zone

    Abe lauds Oborevwori, Okowa, others defection, says it’ll strengthen APC in South south zone

    Chairman of the National Agency for the Great Green Wall (NAGGW), Senator Magnus Abe has said that the defection of Delta State Governor Sheriff Oborevwori, his deputy and the entire state cabinet to the All Progressives Congress (APC), would consolidate and solidify the party’s support base in the Southsouth geopolitical zone.

    Abe also hailed ex-Governor of the State, Dr Ifeanyi Okowa for the decision to join the party, saying that it was a great idea.

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    Abe, who spoke in a statement by his spokesperson, Parry Benson, described the move as a signal that Nigeria’s democracy is actually stronger under the APC-led by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

    He said democracy is strong where every citizen is allowed true freedom of association, and freedom of choice.

    Abe said, “Under President Tinubu, Nigerians have seen a tremendous increase in the resources available to the states, and serious minded Governors have been able to utilise that advantage to the benefit of their people.

    “This is the merit that Sheriff Oborevwori and his team have seen and decided to take advantage of, to move the people of Delta state closer to the centre to accelerate development. It is a step in the right direction and I commend him.”

  • UPDATED: Magnus Abe dumps SDP for APC

    UPDATED: Magnus Abe dumps SDP for APC

    Sen. Magnus Abe, former Senator representing Rivers South-East Senatorial District, said that he is returning to his former party, the All Progressives Congress (APC)to support President Bola Tinubu developmental agenda.

    Abe, who was the former Governorship candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in the 2023 general elections, disclosed this on Wednesday during a stakeholder meeting held in Port Harcourt with some members of the SDP who are loyal to him.

    He said that his returning to the APC would enable him work together with other well meaning Nigerians to support the administration of President Tinubu and to enable Rivers people be part of the development at the centre.

    Abe stated that the responsibility of engendering peace in the party is that all members of the party regardless of their positions should be ready to work for the progress of the party.

    He said that the Chairman Caretaker Committee of the party, Mr Tony Okocha, had been a member of his team when he was in APC and as the party by the National Working Committee decided he becomes the Chairman so be it.

    Read Also: Addax: Senator Magnus Abe affronted Buhari, goofed

    According to Abe, we are not joining the party because of an individual, but they are in the party as the founding members of the party and grassroots supporters of President Tinubu.

    “We believe that it is proper that we are in the party supporting President Tinubu’s developmental agenda.

    “Everybody in the party should have learnt one thing or two as how we can make the party work, we are coming in with open minded ready to work with everybody within the party.

    “We believe that everybody with sincere interest in the progress of the party should be ready to join,” Abe said.

    He stressed his readiness to work with other actors in the party as long as they were ready to work with common grounds and goals.

    In a reaction, the Chairman Caretaker Committee of APC in Rivers, Tony Okocha welcomed Sen. Abe to the party, saying that “what makes a party thick is not a single individual but a whole lot of people”.

    According to Okocha, the beauty of politics is the more the merrier, noting that Abe was counted as the founding of APC in Rivers.

    “I can say that without any fear or contradiction,  but whatever that happened is not new, we are on known part against an intransigent government or leadership of the party, but I didn’t think that the proper thing is to leave the party.

    “But he may have left to pursue his visions under SDP, if he is beating for a retreat, we welcome him with our whole chest and we will work together with him.

    “I  do not think that in this present day politics one head is bigger than 10, every individual from 18 years is eligible to vote, and I am not willing to sacrifice one person for 10, but if any person beating to return genuinely not to destroy the party,we accept,” Okocha said.

    (NAN)

  • Amaechi, Abe renew face-off over Rivers APC congresses

    THE planned congresses in the local wing of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State may renew the face-off between Transportation Minister Rotimi Amaechi and Senator Magnus Abe.

    Amaechi, a former governor and leader of the party in Southsouth zone, had at a reception in Abuja after his inauguration as minister, hinted that the APC national leadership would soon organise congresses in the Southsouth state.

    But Abe, a former Secretary to the State Government (SSG) in the Amaechi’s administration, described the minister’s information on the congresses as unacceptable.

    He spoke when he hosted members of the APC Visionary Media Team at his Port Harcourt home at the weekend.

    In an online statement yesterday, Amaechi’s media office wondered why Abe was showing early signs of apprehension for the forthcoming congresses of APC in Rivers.

    The media office said: “Rt. Hon. Amaechi announced to his teeming supporters during the reception in Abuja that followed his inauguration as a second-term minister that they (the supporters) should begin to prepare for congresses, as part of rebuilding and repositioning the APC in Rivers State.

    “Rt. Hon. Amaechi expressed surprise that Senator Abe could resort to unguarded language to express his indisposition and fear for congresses, even when he (Amaechi) did not give date and time of congresses to his supporters.

    “The transportation minister did not give his supporters any date and time for the congresses, being the responsibility of the national secretariat of APC.

    “Senator Abe has no reason to be afraid of congresses. He should tell his supporters to also prepare for congresses, since he says he is very popular. A popular politician should be very happy anytime congresses are on the table.”

    The office also said that the transportation minister declined to respond to sundry comments made by Abe, declaring that such remarks were obvious signs of frustration on the former senator’s part.

    Addressing his supporters, Abe noted that Amaechi said there would be congresses in Rivers APC without cognizance to the existing judicial pronouncements on the subject matter and the need for consultation as it affects the interest of other party members.

    The former senator stated that the minister, rather than concentrating on his national assignment, was creating another avenue for tension and crisis in the political structure of the APC.

    According to him, similar actions affected the party in Rivers during the last general election.

    He urged Amaechi to demonstrate his sincerity in rebuilding Rivers APC by consulting other members of the party and showing respect for the rights and feelings of all stakeholders.

    Read Also: ‘INEC was unfair to Rivers State’

    Abe, who described himself as an advocate of internal democracy and justice within the party, pleaded with APC members in Rivers to be resolute and committed to the growth of the party in the state.

    He assured his supporters that even if he was out of office, he remained committed to the development of the APC, insisting that peace, inclusiveness, progress and the commitment of all members to develop the party were needed.

    Abe said: “Look at the state of our party here today in Rivers State, yet the minister for Transportation, on assumption of office, the first thing he did was to announce congresses in Rivers State and I ask myself, this was the same kind of behaviour that led the party to where it is.

    “Everybody in Nigeria knows that the origin of the crisis in Rivers APC was from the congresses and how the congresses were handled.

    “There are extant judicial pronouncements on the last congresses, which the party was misled to ignore and we have all kept quiet, in the hope that by keeping quiet, we will create room for resolution of some of these challenges, so that the party can move forward.”

    Speaking earlier, the Director-General of Rivers APC Visionary Media Team, Robertson Jack, stated that the visit was necessitated by the need to pledge their unalloyed support to Abe’s peaceful disposition in the pursuit of internal democracy, inclusiveness, justice, and equity in Rivers APC.

    Jack said that the group would play its role to ensure that APC succeeds in the next level.

  • Change in Nigeria’s democracy is still work in progress, says Abe

    The representative of Rivers Southeast Senatorial District in the Seventh and Eighth Senate, Magnus Abe, has stated that the process of change in Nigeria’s democracy is still work in progress.

    He also called on Nigerian politicians to return power to the people by creating clear processes that could galvanise and determine the wishes of the people, stressing that persons in power must learn to submit themselves to the will of the people.

    Abe, a former Secretary to the Rivers State Government (SSG) in the Rotimi Amaechi’s administration, who stated these over the weekend, noted that the time had come for political parties in Nigeria to strictly adhere to the principles of internal democracy, thereby making the parties to work to promote the overall interest of the country and that of its members, rather than serve the narrow interest of a few leaders.

    The senator, who was the Chairman, Committee on Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA) at the 8th Senate, pointed out that strong institutions would boost political stability and discourage violence, bigotry, and rascality, which according to him, was currently playing out in Nigeria’s political environment.

    He said: “The time has come for us to address the issue of Nigeria, the kind of political parties that we have and what we should do to make the parties work better to serve the interest, not just of its members, but the interest of the country at large.

    “We need political parties that are truly democratic, that have clear rules of internal democracy that allows the participation and free expression of will by its members.

    “I am concerned about what we can do to make our systems stronger to avoid the kind of violent situations being experienced in the country, because if you look around not much seems to have changed. The same kind of scenarios that we witnessed in Rivers State and in other states of the federation, where some political parties could not produce a strong internal conflict resolution mechanism, is still ongoing.

    “There are no clear cut, all-inclusive procedures that could allow free expression of will by party members. All Nigerians, not just members of political parties, but all citizens, must be concerned about the direction of party politics.”

    Abe, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), also declared that he had no personal grudges against the 2019 governorship candidate of APC in Rivers, Pastor Tonye Cole, and the leader of the party (APC) in Rivers and South south zone, Rotimi Amaechi, a minister-designate.

    He insisted that his former boss (Amaechi, an ex-governor of Rivers State) should stop seeing himself as the only highway in the APC, such that it is either everybody must follow his (Amaechi’s) decisions or be booted out of the party, stating that there was no such provision in the party’s constitution.

    The senator said: “I do not think that members of the party (APC), even those who are with him (Amaechi), will agree with that attitude. The nature of power in this country is that people see themselves as helpless, when the powers that be, have taken a stand.

    “We need to bring the party back together, because a political party that cannot gather members to win an election is just like a social club.

    “To take over power, you need to have the capacity to build consensus and that is what we have been unable to do in the APC, particularly in Rivers State and we are still open to that possibility.

    Read Also: Abe blames politicians for insecurity

    “I remain committed like other members of the APC to delivering change, not just to the country, but first to the party itself and I believe that within the party, we should focus on giving the power and the voice back to the people.”

    Abe accused the former Transportation Minister (Amaechi) of hiring an alleged propagandist, Chief Eze Chukwuemeka Eze, to falsely malign and demarket him (Abe), in order to justify the unjustifiable injustice that was allegedly perpetrated on Rivers people during the last political dispensation.

    He said: “When people have already done something wrong and realised that what they have done is not defendable, not acceptable and that reasonable people will not accept it, neither can it be defended, they go back to create a narrative that justifies what clearly cannot be justified.

    “I have decided to ignore all those things, because Amaechi knows that they are not true. Chief Eze who is saying them knows that they not true and the majority of reasonable people in the country know that those things are nothing but pure blackmail.”

  • Abe laments rise in out-of-school kids

    Senator Magnus Abe, who represented Rivers South East in the eighth National Assembly has raised an alarm over the rise in the number of out-of-school children in Nigeria.

    He also thanked the people for their support and encouragement throughout his stay in the Red Chambers.

    A statement by his spokesman, Parry Saroh Benson, said Abe spoke in Port Harcourt during an end-of-term support for doctoral students and outstanding journalists from his senatorial district.

    The statement reads: “More than 80 per cent of our public schools are only a place of gathering for children and parents who are thirsty for education. The truth is that nothing is happening in most of our public schools. Over 18 million children are out of school. That is more than the population of Sweden and Hungary.”

    Abe lamented that two councils in Rivers South-East were educationally disadvantaged, and encouraged the people to continue to work hard and improve on their educational attainments.

    “During my time in the Senate, I found out that two councils – Tai and Oyigbo – are weak in education. We must encourage them to be more competitive. We are doing whatever we can to make the point that education is the future. When I was growing up, Rivers State had leaders who valued education.

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    “Today, we must realise that anyone without a working knowledge of the computer and access to the internet in this 21st century will be a functional illiterate. We need to give the children of today the opportunity to excel as we were given that opportunity in our days.”

    The senator said the End-of-Term support was to appreciate the support he received from his constituents.

    “You are here because you believe in what we are doing. I am doing this to thank the people of Rivers South-East for voting me to the Senate for two terms. I believe that what we are doing here today has significance beyond you, and that there is no other way of growing our country than enthroning merit…”

  • Abe: My 2019 gov ambition over

    Senator Magnus Abe (Rivers South-East) has declared an end to his 2019 governorship ambition in Rivers state.

    The declaration followed the last week’s Supreme Court judgement on the matter bordering on the 2019 governorship candidacy for the state All Progressives Congress (APC) in the general elections.

    Abe also noted the Supreme Court pronouncement has also brought to an end to the issue of faction in the state party.

    He called on all members to come together and move the party forward.

    He spoke on Sunday at the APC stakeholders meeting in Port Harcourt, the state capital.

    He equally noted by the development, APC’s dreams for elective political positions in 2019 in Rivers have been laid to rest.

    He vowed to rebuild the party in the state and called on every member to join hands together to achieve the dream.

    He blamed the unfortunate fate that befell the party in the polls on high handedness of some persons in the party who exalted themselves above others members.

    According to him, if every member of the party was given equal right to participate in APC’s activities, the experience would have been different.

    He said the supreme Court judgement is a precedent for future reference, adding that no more will anyone politically suppress it’s party members in the country.

    Read Also: Why Ogoni clean up may fail, by Abe

    Abe said: “With the last week Supreme Court pronouncement on our candidacy matter, I have ended my ambition for 2019 here in Rivers.

    “This time again, the court upheld the Rivers State High Court judgement of Justice Chiwendu Wogu, which authenticates the leadership of Peter Odike as the current APC state chairman where I contested for governorship.

    “We have come to fight for Representation in government, every human being as members of APC should be treated with respect.

    “We have sacrificed so much, we may not be holding anything now but because of what we have done politics will be better in our country.

    “We need to be realistic so that we can move forward. The dream that we have in the state is laid to rest because of the pronouncement of the Supreme Court of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in our suit before it.

    “As a lawyer we know that the Supreme Court is infallible. That pronouncement by the Supreme Court brought to an end our agitation.

    “But God knows the reason, He (God) who knows what we do not know, made His decision.”

    He noted “Peter Odike’s factional APC remains the authentic party in the state. The Congress they held still remains voided. No other person or group can parade as APC executives based on the Supreme Court judgement.”

     

     

     

  • Supreme Court to hear appeals on Rivers’ APC’s dispute April 4

    A seven-man panel of the Supreme Court has scheduled Thursday for hearing of the four appeals relating to the lingering intra-party dispute among members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State.

    The four appeals, it was learnt, are in relation to some interlocutory decisions of the lower courts on the dispute which has polarised the party and affected the outcome of its primaries.

    The Justice Ibrahim Muhammad-led seven-man panel adjourned till April 4 after addressing some preliminary issues on the appeals yesterday.

    The first of the appeals was filed by Magnus Abe and some others, with APC and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) listed among the respondents.

    The court granted the motion by the APC, represented by Jibrin Okutepa (SAN), for permission to merge the different respondents’ briefs, earlier filed by the second to the thirty-fifth respondents, into a single brief.

    It rejected a similar motion filed by the appellants’ lawyer, Henry Bello, for leave to amend the notice of appeal.

    The court noted that the motion was defective because Bello failed to attach the old notice of appeal to the motion, as required. It noted that the lawyer only attached his proposed amended notice of appeal.

    Read also: Rivers: INEC to resume collation of of March 9 elections results

    It adjourned hearing till April 4 before which the appellants are to, within 48 hours, file their reply to the respondents’ brief of argument.

    The other appeals include one by APC, with PDP listed among respondents; another one by APC, with Abe and others as respondents and one by Tonye Cole, with Abe and 48 others as respondents.

    The three appeals were adjourned till April 4 to allow the formal service of hearing notices and all other processes on INEC, which was not represented yesterday.

  • Tonye Cole: God has put our aggressors to shame

    The governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State Tonye Cole has declared all his aggressors, within and outside the party, who celebrated last weekend over a trivial decision at the Supreme Court, have been put to shame by God.

    Cole, a pastor of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), stated this on Monday through spokesman of his campaign organisation, Ogbonna Nwuke, a former member of the House of Representatives.

    The co-founder of Sahara Group said: “We have received a formal brief from our lawyers who were at the Supreme Court this on Monday morning to press the arguments of the APC and its candidates in some cases that are currently pending before the superior court.

    “We have learnt that no less than three different matters were entertained today by the apex court.

    “The first was an application by Senator Magnus Abe’s lawyer against the stay of execution granted Pastor Tonye Cole and candidates of the APC by the Court of Appeal, Port Harcourt.

    “The second matter was based on jurisdiction, while the third matter witnessed the commencement of initial legal arguments in a substantive matter.

    Read Also; Tonye Cole: we’ll overcome temporary setback

    “We are happy with the pace that is being adopted by the Supreme Court. We are particularly pleased that the attempt to frustrate the stay of execution granted by the Court of Appeal at the Supreme Court was on Monday refused.

    “Senator Magnus Abe and his associates have been ordered by the Supreme Court to descend to the court below for the eventual determination of the substantive suit.”

    He welcomed the verdict of the apex court while maintaining his faith in the judiciary remained unassailable, praying that persons with penchant for twisting reports from the judiciary would refrain from engaging in such acts.

    He said: “From what transpired today, hearing in some cases which were argued, would continue tomorrow at the Supreme Court.

    “Against this background, we urge Rivers people and our teeming party supporters to kindly remain focused and law abiding.

    “We have confidence in our lawyers and enormous faith in our God. They (the unnamed aggressors) had lied to an unsuspecting public that ongoing litigation at the Supreme Court had been settled.

    “We are wondering what they are still trying to do in court, if there are no issues before the Supreme Court.

    “For us, it is not over, until it is over. We shall continue to push for equity, fairness and justice. It does not matter whatever our opponents do, we know that justice will eventually prevail.”

    Cole, his running mate, Chief Victor Giadom and other candidates of APC in Rivers state are urging the apex court to allow their names to be relisted by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to enable them to vie in the February 16 and March 2 elections.

  • Wike, Abe conspiring to defame me – Amaechi

    The Minister for Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, has stated that his successor, Nyesom Wike, and the lawmaker representing Rivers Southeast Senatorial District, Senator Magnus Abe, are conniving and conspiring to disparage and defame him. 

    He declared that Rivers State governor (Wike), a chieftain of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), and Abe, a governorship aspirant on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC), were plotting to use his former cabinet members to tell fake, concocted and distorted stories to the media that were meant to denigrate him, impugn his unblemished integrity and paint a very terrible image of him to members of the public.

    Amaechi, the Director-General of Buhari/Osinbajo Re-election Campaign Organisation, who is also the leader of APC in Rivers state and the Southsouth zone, stated this on Friday in an online statement by his media office.

    The immediate past governor of Rivers state revealed that the plot against him was already far-gone and persons were being coached on what to say and how to say it. 

    Wike, a lawyer, was the Chief of Staff, Government House, Port Harcourt between 2007 and 2011, when Amaechi was governor of Rivers state, while the then governor also appointed the former Chairman of Obio/Akpor Local Government Council (Wike) as the Director-General of Amaechi Re-election Campaign Organisation in 2011, before later recommending him the same year to the then President Goodluck Jonathan for ministerial appointment.

    Abe, also a lawyer, was appointed by Amaechi as Secretary to the Rivers State Government (SSG) from 2007 to 2011, before proceeding to the Senate in 2011. The former Rivers Information Commissioner (Abe) aspired to be the standard bearer of APC in 2015, but a former member of the House of Representatives, Dr. Dakuku Peterside, emerged as the candidate of the then ruling party (APC), but he was “defeated” by Wike in a massively-rigged and bloody election.

    Amaechi, on September 16 this year in Port Harcourt, accused Wike of sponsoring unnamed APC members to cause confusing in the party, but he declared that the Rivers governor would be sacked next year by the state’s electorate, to put an end to his poor performance and bad governance.

    Read Also: Amaechi to Abe: ‘I am not your leader’

    The senator (Abe), who earlier inaugurated a parallel secretariat of APC at Waterlines Bus Stop in Port Harcourt, on September 17 in the Rivers state capital, said: “Whoever God has said will be governor of Rivers State will be governor of Rivers State and there is nothing Amaechi can do about it.

    “I am not being sponsored by Governor Nyesom Wike. I decided to fight for my right, not only as a citizen of Rivers State, but as a member of the APC. Amaechi also fought for his right up to the Supreme Court to be governor in 2007 and we stood by him. The then Governor Peter Odili never accused Amaechi that he was a betrayer or being sponsored by anybody.

    “I am fighting for my right. I want to be governor of Rivers State. I will fight in any way that is constitutionally allowed, both by the party (APC) and our Constitution. Whatever God says at the end, I will accept in good faith. Nobody can deny me the right to fight for my right.”

    The transportation minister, however, insisted that Abe was not sincere with his claims.

    Amaechi said: “I am aware that two former commissioners who served in the State Executive Council when I was governor have been procured by Wike and Abe, jointly and collaboratively, to carry out the hatchet job of ‘hack Amaechi down’ campaign. The plan is to throw as much dirt at me as possible and rubbish my image.

    “While one (former commissioner) is being coached in Rivers State Government House (Port Harcourt) of what to say to the press and how to say it, to do maximum damage; the other one is busy distorting, concocting and fabricating fake screenshots, text messages, documents and all sorts in Senator Abe’s Freedom House campaign office in Port Harcourt; that they intend to release to the media to tarnish my image.

    “I want to alert the media and members of the public of the smear plot by these two political collaborators (Wike and Abe) to unjustly discredit and smear me for their selfish political reasons.” 

    The former Rivers governor also stated that he would not be distracted by any cheap and fake smear campaign of calumny against him, while urging Rivers people to pay no heed to the desperate attention-seeking duo of Wike and Abe and all of their fabricated lies, but to focus on the goal of ensuring that Rivers state gets a better leader that would turn around the fortunes of the state and its people for good, in 2019.

    The transportation minister insisted that no amount of sabotage and fake stories would deter him and all genuine APC members, supporters and Rivers people from changing and voting out the inept Wike’s government in Rivers State, next year.

  • I’m not Abe’s headache, says Senator Uchendu

    The representative of Rivers East Senatorial District, Senator Andrew Uchendu, of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has stated that he is not the headache of his counterpart in the National Assembly, Senator Magnus Abe (Rivers Southeast).

    He admonished Abe, a former Secretary to the Rivers State Government (SSG), who is also a governorship aspirant on APC platform in Rivers, to go back home and find a solution to his political problems.

    Uchendu, the Acting Chairman, Senate Committee on Public Procurement, gave this admonition, according to his media aide, Solomon Okocha, in an online statement on Thursday, while reacting to a statement by Abe, that he (Uchendu) reneged on his promise to spend only one term in the Senate.

    He said: “I understand that my good friend, Senator Magnus Abe, made some remarks concerning me. It is regrettable and sad. Abe is getting too desperate with his ambition. In the pursuit of his ambition, which he is entitled to, he must learn not to be quarrelsome.

    “As a candidate of the APC in the 2015 election in Rivers East Senatorial District, I pledged that I would run for only one term. One term is made up of four years. Nigerians know that I never went into the Senate until the later part of 2017. I do not know whether one year and six months in Abe’s own arithmetic is four years?

    “I have always maintained that if my party says that I should run, I will run, and If they say that I should stop, I will stop. Mine is not a do-or-die thing. I have always been a team player and an establishment person. I obey the rules. In the spirit of equity, my party has asked me to run again and I am running, in due obedience to my party, because one term in the Nigerian Constitution is four years.

    “I was drafted into politics by Ogbakor Ikwerre Cultural Organisation in 1994, and ever since, my party has consistently asked me to run various elections. My party always tells me to run, because it believes that I am a credible candidate that can win elections. Election is about winning.”

    Read Also: Rivers APC: Sen. Abe faction adopts direct primaries

    Uchendu also stated that Abe’s political problem started in his Bera-Ogoni hometown in Gokana Local Government Area of Rivers state, because he (Abe) was not in touch with his people.

    The lawmaker representing Rivers East said: “I am not Abe’s headache. His headache lies in his hometown. His people alleged that he is an ingrate and a serial betrayer.

    “He (Abe) should find out why he was stoned in his own hometown during the anniversary of Ken Saro-Wiwa’s execution. Why was he stoned by his own people? That is a very serious matter.

    “Abe should look for the solution to his problems somewhere else, because Senator Andrew Uchendu is not his headache. He should find out what is going on in his hometown.

    “When Abe met me sometime in 2014 to advise him on his governorship ambition, which he has severally acknowleged, I told him to go back home and make peace with his people. I think something is wrong somewhere.

    “I told him to build a solid home base. He should start politics from his hometown. I started politics from my hometown and I have built a solid home base. 

    “His (Abe’s) governorship ambition, which he is entitled to, seems to be driving him to desperation. Politics is a team thing, but he decided not to be a team player. If that is his nature, I wish him luck.”

    Uchendu also stated that he was fulfilling the promise of effective representation which he made to his constituents before the 2015 elections.

    He said: “I assured my people that if I got to the Senate, I would speak for them. I told them that I would be the voice of the voiceless and oppressed people. I have been doing that consistently. Go and check my records. That is representation.”

    The representative of Rivers East senatorial district also urged discerning minds to always ignore the destructive criticisms of the former Rivers commissioner for information (Abe), while assuring that he would continue to give effective representation, which he said made his constituents to ask him to vie again.