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Tag: Rivers State

  • Okrika violence: Police vow to arrest culprits

    The policeĀ  vowed yesterday toĀ  arrestĀ  and prosecuteĀ  the brains behindĀ  the recent attack on the APC rally at Okrika, Rivers State during which a police officer was killed

    The Assistant Inspector-General of Police in-charge of Zone 6, Johnson Ogunsakin, called the death of the police officer as sad and painful.

    Everything possible would be done to unmask the perpetrators and bring them to justice, he said on a visit to Port Harcourt in connection with the incident.

    The AIG told journalists that the death of the officer would spur him to ā€œgo to the root of what happened so that his death would not be in vainā€.

    Three other persons , including a journalist, were injured when gunmen opened fire during the rally at Okrika on February 18.

    ā€œThere is no time limit for this investigation but I assure you, it is going to be a thorough investigation as we will cover all the grounds,ā€ he said.

    The AIG said he would summon an enlarged meeting of Okrika people, cutting across political parties, religious bodies, traditional rulers and youth groups.

    According to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Mr. Ogunsakin said the police had engaged relevant stakeholders to ensure that such incident did not occur again in any part of the state.

  • PDP ā€˜ll reclaim Rivers State

    PDP ā€˜ll reclaim Rivers State

    Chief Mike Elechi is a Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) chieftain in Rivers State and a strong supporter of the governorship candidate, Chief Nyesom Wike. In this interview with Precious Dikewoha in Port Harcourt, the state capital, he says PDP will Ā reclaim the state.

    You have very strong feeling in your support for Jonathan, why?

    Firstly, as a Rivers man, and as a Niger Delta man, for President Goodluck Jonathan, this is the first time the Niger Delta man is ruling the country against the thinking of other tribes in Nigeria. As a PDP member I believe that I cannot leave PDP and support another party.Ā  I am supporting Mr. President because there is no better alternative for me than to support him. The opposition canā€™t give us a better alternative, they are talking of change but we are talking of phenomena change. My advice for Rivers people is to keep hope and to believe in God that He will always do his miracle. Of course, God has a way to answer our prayer especially now that our support for Jonathan will bring back all the things we have lost in Rivers State.

    With the look of things, Jonathan versus Buhari would be a very tough game to play, what do you think?

    No, I donā€™t see anything tough in this game. Look, one thousand Buharis is not equal to one Jonathan. It is not possible; we cannot leak our vomit or go back to the days of draculean law, military dictatorship. We are in democracy, the world is on digital age, I think that Buhari belongs to the past; if people can say the truth he should not drag us back to religious bigotry and chauvinism.Ā  Buhari was the chairman of Petroleum Development Trust Fund (PTF) and I know what he did. So, he is not a match for Jonathan. So if opposition had presented a credible candidate, I would have known what to say.

    Ā Are you aware that the Boko Haram insurgency in the Northern part of the country is a very big challenge for Jonathan?

    I sympathise with Mr. President on the issue of Boko Haram, to be honest with you. When he came into power four years ago, I saw him as a man who has no political constituency. Nigerian is a tripod country. Everything we do depends on tribe, religion, military constituency but Jonathan does not belong in any of these. He does not belong to any political group; he is not from Yoruba, Ibo or Hausa, the tribes that people respect in this country. He is just a peasant fisherman without hope. And if by the benevolence of God he became the President of this country. We should support him. Of course, he has proven that he can do it. Look, there is insurgency in all parts of the world, so why are we crucifying Jonathan over the issue of Boko Haram. The western world cannot even help us solve the problem, if the Presidential candidate of the APC,Ā  MohammaduĀ  Buhari said once he becomes the president the issue of insurgency would be a thing of the past, then he should also know that if he loses the election the issue of Boko Haram would also be solve.

    What is the chance of the PDP inĀ  Rivers State?

    I thought you would have asked me what is the chance of APC wining Rivers State. One thing you must know is that Rivers State is a PDP state. If you take your mind back you would know that everybody in the APC today did not willingly or voluntarily resign from the PDP. Therefore, there is still PDP blood ruining in them. Rivers State election will be the most peaceful election in the history of the state contrary to what people are thinking. This is because the electorates are now more educated than before and they know what to do. If some miscreants in PDP has decided to change ship because God has buttered their bread then let us see at the poll.Ā  Without violence, I have this confidence that PDP is going to reclaim the stolen mandate in Rivers State. If the government of Rivers State believes they are popular they should open the State House of Assembly and the judiciary. These are the issues we should be asking questions, in Rivers State are we in the military zoon where people will lock the three arms of Government? If what is happening in Rivers State was to be happening in Abuja, donā€™t you think that they would have been calling for Jonathanā€™s impeachment?Ā  You can see that the press is controlled by the opposition and yet they are operating freely. There is no president that is humble and unassuming like President Goodluck Jonathan. Some who are talking today as past Presidents, we know what they did. They even sent troops to wipe out some community.

    Some of your supporters have argued that picking a woman deputy governor will give your party an edge over the APC in the state…

    I believe it is time to give the women the sense of belonging, donā€™t forget that the deputy governor in waiting comes from the bloc called Riverine. She is from Harryā€™s Town in Buguma and married to a Bony man. She is a good technocrat and she can shape the incoming administration.Ā  It is also a way to allow women participation in the Politics of Rivers State. If a woman can become deputy governor, it shows that one day a woman can become a governor. PDP is made up for good governance, what we are doing is what real Nigerian should do, this is an era where women should be given a chance in everything. The woman who was giving an opportunity as a running mate is not just a woman; she is professionally grounded to make Rivers State heaven on earth.Ā  And that would assist us win APC in the state.

    How would you assess INEC on the distribution of PVCā€™s?

    I said it to the INEC personnel that came to my ward recently that INEC was not prepared for the last exercise of distribution of PVC and registration exercise. This is because it took them from 2011-2014 to complete this exercise and they added five days to do update.Ā  In your sense of reasoning and thinking do you believe that if INEC will delay fromĀ  2011 to 2014 to distribute the PVCĀ  then how many years do you think it will take them to give out PVC to Ā millions of Nigerians who haveĀ  come of age. The funny thing is that, out of these millions they are giving them only five days to update. In ward 4 Elele in Ikwerre Local government area which is my ward, ours was zero capture. So we started ab initio for new registration. They brought the old equipment they used in 2011 registration exercise and at the end of the day half of this ward was not registered. So INEC is not ready for the election. I laugh at them when they say they are using card reader, when they do not have good hands, now they want to use card reader.Ā  Tell me where they would see light to charge the battery; my brother INEC is not ready to conduct the election.Ā  But we are going to wait for them at the Election Day, but with what I saw during the PVC collection and voters card registration I declared INEC unfit to conduct 2015 election.

  • Anglican synod warns against politics of bitterness

    Anglican synod warns against politics of bitterness

    Leaders from within and outside the Evo Diocese of the Anglican Communion in Rivers State converged at its second synod to assess the performance of the church, the state and the country. Precious Dikewoha, who was at the synod, writes.Ā 

    Although the second synod convention of the Anglican Communion, Evo Diocese of Rivers StateĀ  ended last weekend, the memory of the ceremony still lingers in the minds of delegates. The programme, which attracted delegates from all the branches of the church under Evo Diocese, was an opportunity for the church to assess its performance and that of the state and the nation at large.

    Thousands of delegates and church members were at the St Andrewā€™s Anglican Church Rumuobiokani Deanery in Obio/Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State.Ā  The synod in the Anglican Communionā€™s calendar is the time of spiritual rebirth, account of stewardship and a period to examine onesā€™ relationship with God.

    The Synod lasted five days and attracted people from all walks of life and speakers from different professional and religious backgrounds.

    They include Bishop of Sokoto dioceses, Rev. Dr. Mathew HassanĀ  Kukah, Anglican Bishop of Okene Diocese Prof. Emmanuel Ajulo, Mrs. Ijeoma Anagbogu, Governor Rotimi Amaechi and others.

    The Bishop of the Diocese, Rt. Rev Innocent Uchechukwu Ordu, led a courtesy call to His Royal Highness Eze Samuel Nyechi Ejims Wopara, the Paramount Ruler and Nyenweli Rumuobiokani community and presented a copy of the Holy Bible to the monarch. He also used the opportunity to inform him and his subjects to use the occasion of the synod convention to refresh in the Lord and to bring peace to the community.

    The Monarch, while responding to the Bishop, went back memory lane to 1904 when the Anglican Church blazed the trail as the first church ever to set foot on Rumuobiokani soil. He appealed that the church should not adopt an onlooker attitude when the community and the nation are embroiled in unrest and disunity.

    Governor Chibuike Amaechi, who was represented by the Commissioner for Information and Communication Mrs Ibim Semenitari, advised the church to pray for him and the state, as he hoped on God to ensure that the wealth of Rivers people is inĀ  safe hands, adding that criminal who have murdered the people are desperate over Rivers wealth.

    He said as the leader of the Rivers people, ā€œI owe you a duty to clarify on why I joined APC.Ā  Let me say that repeatedly we have heard people wonder why we moved to APC, I know we are in the church but it is important to know that we took the decision to protect the future of Rivers people. At the top of everything I have to do, I must ensure the development of the state. But I promise my enemies, I will finish strongĀ Ā  and I cannot allow the resources of Rivers state to be squandered.Ā  As the governor of Rivers State I owe you greatly toĀ  ensure that anyĀ  decision I take will be for the best interest of Rivers State andĀ  I cannot sell my feelings for a mere porridge.ā€

    Explaining the importance of synod in Anglican communion, Rt. Rev, Innocent Uchechukwu Ordu, said, ā€œSynod is the gathering of the Church leaders, which include the church laities and the Bishops. It is an opportunity where anybody who holds a position in the church will give a written report of his or her stewardship which others arr expected to assess to ensure a balance report. It is also the time of fund raising for the execution of church project.Ā  There is enough spiritual benefit for those who concluded the programme because it will challenge their spirit and their dealings with God as they continue to work in the vineyard of God.

    Rev. Matthew Hassan Kukah and theĀ  Bishop Ordu strongly emphasised on national issues, such as 2015 and the abduction of Chibok girls. InĀ  their various speeches, they warmed politicians to be mindful of what they say about the country, adding that the issue of who becomes the next President of Nigeria in 2015 is in the hands of God and cannotĀ  be manipulated against Godā€™s will.

    Kukah saidĀ  the utterances of some politicians and religions leaders in the country areĀ  diminishing others whose life are in danger, especially on the issue of Boko Haram.

    ā€œThe way we talk about issues affecting Nigeria is making everything to look as if we are at war with one another, we must mind what we say about the President and the country. Other African countries are not happy with us, other developed countries are not happy with us but we are not the worst country. As far as I am concerned the ultimate is the peace of the country,Ā  some people saidĀ  the President is weak, that he is sponsoring impeachment against his enemies and that he is encouraging BoKo Haram all these areĀ  dangerous to our democracy.ā€

    During the reading of 108 page address by Bishop Ordu, which the church called Presidential address, the Bishop made it clear thatĀ  politicians must learn how to stop politics of desperation and bitterness.

    ā€œAnother round of election is here again. The political landscape is agog as usual. However, happenings in the polity give us cause for concern. The desperation by politicians either to capture power or to cling on to it has become all too alarming. The unbridled quest for power has led our political leaders to heat up the polity unnecessarily through their utterances and actions. Those already in political office and seeking re-election have abandoned matters of governance for which we gave them our priceless votes to spend more time on politicking, meetings, rented rallies and gatherings.

    ā€œThey have been seriously distracted, while our land bleeds. Our politicians and leaders through their utterances and carriage have reduced politics and leaders bordering on some measure of pettiness and childishness. Cases of political killings, kidnappings, arson, destruction of public property and waste of financial resource to garner political support, litter the landscape. And we are not even in 2015 yet! The signs are quite familiar and ominous, to say the least. And with the way our leaders are going, one wonders whether we have a sense of history at all. These are the same signs that have in the past truncated our various political journeys as a country. Have we forgotten the 1983 national elections where ā€œlandslideā€ victories at the polls for political parties turned to a hurricane that swept everybody out of office and set us back several decades?.ā€

    On the issue of BokoHaram, the Bishop of Evo Dioceses said recent report emanating from the United State of America in July this year has it that the Boko Haram insurgency has consumed approximately the lives of 12,000 innocent and defenceless Nigerians. ā€œ

    In assessing the performance of Rivers government under the leadership of Governor Chibuike Amaechi the church said despite the political crisis rocking the state the governor through its policies has done greatly in the area of social service delivery.

    ā€œFor one, Port Harcourt has achieved the status of UNESCO World Book Capital.Ā  This is no mean feat and cannot be killed on the altar of political interests. With this our city and state have come to occupy a pride of place among the few cities in the world which have enjoyed this privilege. Again we commend His Excellency for his remarkable efforts at rehabilitating, widening or constructing roads in Rivers State to ease traffic flow. We are sure the incoming administration in the state will only continue from where he has stopped. However, we must draw the attention of His Excellency to the link roads in the state many of which are in very bad shape. Rivers people have continued to suffer untold hardship on these link roads daily and we call on His Excellency to use the remaining part of his tenure to look at these roads again and put them in good order to minimize the harrows of our people on these roads.ā€

    Highpoint of this yearā€™s synod was to evaluate the performance of the church, thanksgiving, and fund raising through the launching of Presidential address.

  • Rivers cottage hospital… From five to 367 babies

    Rivers cottage hospital… From five to 367 babies

    In four years, the storyĀ  of a cottage hospital at Obio community in Obio/Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State has changed, for good. The community thanks the Rivers State government and Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) for the good turn. Residents and beneficiaries could not hide their ecitement during the fourthĀ  anniversary celebration of the hospital.

    It all began whenĀ  inĀ  2011, Obio Primary Health Centre was renamed Obio Cottage Hospital. To date about 45,000 people have benefited from the hospital. Yet, the Health Insurance premium is pegged at N7, 200 Ā per person per year. No wonder the scheme is highly sought.

    Mrs. Ngozi Onyeala, one of the beneficiaries, said she would forever thank SPDC and Rivers State government.

    She said: ā€œMy mouth cannot express what this hospital has done to me and my family. Those who establish it have done greatly on the side of the Lord. When I newly registered with this hospital, I had no money to register for antenatal or to take some necessary medications for me and my unborn baby. But coming down here, my problem was over; I did not pay kobo when I delivered my baby.ā€

    Another beneficiary, Mrs. Rose Nwoka, said: ā€œOne thing about Obio Cottage Hospital is that after the initial registration, the hospital will not demand for anything even in a critical condition that required surgery,Ā  which for other hospital could have been N300, 000 and above but the hospital will take care of the situation without asking forĀ  kobo. So, the women of Obio are saying thank you.ā€

    The Medical officer in-Change of Obio Cottage Hospital, Dr. Umejiego Chigozie, said the major challenge is how to attend to the clients with limited staff.

    He said: ā€œWe used to have 20 patients but today the number has tremendously increased. But, we are also working hard to get more doctors. Before now we have only two doctors but today we have eleven doctors; with the help of the community insurance scheme, we are going to have more doctors.ā€

    On the area of infant mortality, Dr Chigozie said: ā€œIn every centre like this, you must have child mortality, but we have done a lot to reduce child mortality rate. Before now, we used to have five deliveries in a month but now we do have 367 deliveries in a month. This has showed how we have grown since 2010.ā€

    SPDC Acting Regional Community Health Manager, Dr.Ā  Edet ā€“Edet, while addressing reporters, said the need for accessible healthcare informed the idea to partner with Rivers State government for the benefit of the people.

    He said: ā€œThe SPDC with JV partners renovated the facility in 2006/2007 and started working with the I.A GMOU cluster Community Development Board (DCB) in designing and implementing a sustainable health care model that could impact health care in their community. The Obio Community Health Insurance scheme was thus born as a pro-poor programme after Shell conducted an actuarial study which placed the community readiness to pay for Health services at 85 per cent. SPDC in partnership with the Rivers State government and the IA cluster of communities introduced the community Health Insurance Scheme with the goal to develop and implement a scheme which will provide community members with access to efficient and effective healthcare services accessible through sustainably operated healthcare facilities within the communities where they reside.

    ā€œWe have also moved to Rumuokwurusi,Ā Ā  within the state there are request from other state pleading to have the programme in their state. We have a big health insurance scheme. Recently we have a roundtable discussion with the Commissioner of Bayalsa State who has seen what we are doing decided to have it in their state. The scheme is now financially independent from SPDC and underpinned by a commercial viable business model which ensures the schemeā€™s long term sustainability.ā€

    The highpoint of the occasion include a drama presentation, a lecture, dancing and cutting of the 4th anniversary celebration.

  • Jonathan has abandoned Rivers State

    Jonathan has abandoned Rivers State

    Rivers State Governor, Rotimi Amaechi, like most second term governors is on the last lap ahead handing over to a successor in 2015. That run-in promises to be turbulent and exihilirating given his political battles on several fronts. But despite the formidable nature of foes confronting him, he is confident that he can realise his policy and development targets in the time left, and, along with his colleagues, lead his party – the All Progressives Congresses (APC) to capture power at the centre and retain his power base in Rivers State. He spoke with Festus Eriye and Taiwo Ogundipe.

    During the recent Freedom House lecture, you said part of this moneyĀ  the country generate should be given directly to the people.

    I didnā€™t say they should give anybody money directly. I said Nigerians donā€™t abhor corruption. I made that point based on the frustration I have gotten from Nigerians. And, therefore, I think what Nigerians are up to is basically that they feel that if you stay for like six months, like I have been governor for eight years, why should I be governor for eight years? If I have been governor for like six months and I take like maybe N1billion or N2billion and I go, when the next Nigerian comes in and he takes his own billion and goes and probably it will go roundĀ  all Nigerians, and I agree to that that we should domesticate and democratise corruption in such a way that everybody has an opportunity of being corrupt, so that when you do that, you have excess money chasing very little goods and then the economy will explode, then we realise that by the time you wake up everybody is poor, then we will stop corruption. Because those who are going to stop corruption are not state manly enough to stop corruption.

    Going into the election, we saw what experience you passed through in Ekiti State, how much do you fearĀ  of the federal government using security forces, the military, police to unduly direct the election?

    What the PDP has done in Ekiti is to show you what they will do in other elections. I have said it and I will continue to say it that we donā€™t have a democracy, we have a diarchy. I said that at the Freedom House lecture: government of the civilians and the military where military officers issue government instructions and enforce them by the force of the gun. The military has no business stopping me on my way to Ekiti. I was there, a serving minister, Minister of State, drove pass where I was. I was there, the Minister for Police Affairs drove pass where I was. So, would you say the election in Ekiti State was free and fair?Ā  The soldiers were escorting PDP members to distribute rice, wrappers (cloth) and money on the day of election. Was that free and fair? Nigerians must rise against another state of dictatorship in the name of diarchy because there is no difference between what Abacha did and what is currently being done. Your newspapers were impounded and you people didnā€™t do anything.

    We shouted.

    What is shouting? You should go beyond shouting to physical demonstration on the streets. Once you start protesting, they will know you will resist the militarisation of the country.

    Your aircraft was prevented from flying in Kano and a couple of other places, and you were stopped from going into Ekiti, it looks as if you were particularly targeted, do you feel humiliated by this?

    No. I was a student leader. There is nothing President Goodluck Jonathan is doing to me now that I didnā€™t suffer when I was a student leader.Ā  That is not humiliation; I see that as dictatorship, what you can call autocracy. I should be asking you, what have you done? Because it is not about Amaechi, the struggle is not about me, what I am struggling for is not about me. Iā€™ve told people, what else am I looking for from God other than long life. I was governor at age 42, I was speaker at age 34 and I was in government at age 26. What else am I looking for?

    You are likely to move higher.

    I donā€™t know about that. Letā€™s leave that in the hand of God.

    Your critics have been accusing you of non-performance because of some lapses in the provisions of certain infrastructure.

    What are the lapses?

    I read somewhere where you were reacting to criticisms that some projects awarded by the government have not been completed.

    I along with some journalists and foreigners (white men) have just come back from some trips of some of the projects the state government is executing. The white men were clapping – let me speak like the president, who said when he went to Kenya that the Kenyans were awed by the number of Nigerians who have aircraft. The visitors were wondering and clapping. I took them on the monorail for them to see that I have completed it; it is just that we want to complete the terminal. So, where are those critics? I tell the country that when I took over as governor that there were 1,300 primary schools in Rivers State and these primary schools were of six classroom blocks, built by the following groups: Rivers State Government, Local Government Councils, all the oil companies (Shell, Chevron, Total, Agip, etc). All of them put together including NGOs built only 1,300 primary schools of six classrooms blocks.

    During my eight years of governorship I have completed 500 primary schools. There are also about nearly 100 that are uncompleted. We are about furnishing 300 of them. And the furnishing is not cheap; to furnish one with ICT costs about N34million. When I took the white men there, they were shocked that there were schools in third world country that are like these – with computers, libraries, auditorium, music instruments in the auditorium, Ā sick bays, reception classes from where you go to primary one and all the classrooms have computers for the teachers to use to teach. I also took them to the secondary schools we have built. We were to build 23 but we didnā€™t have enough money to do that. We have been able to build only seven. I took them to one. In one of the classes we have virtual class where you study using instruments. The teacher does nothing rather than to punch those computers and you will hear somebody talking and identifying what he is teaching.

    By the time we went round – President John Kuffor was present ā€“ He asked me where did the vision come from? I told him the vision to build the secondary schools came from Achimota Secondary School. I told him I drove into Achimota one day and I saw the expanse of land and I said I will build a school that has the same kind of land. I borrowed the idea of the number of structures from my childrenā€™s school when they were in England. The people I took on the tour were shocked when they saw the projects.

    People are not saying I did not perform. All they are saying Amaechi is all about the first term as if my father killed me in my first term. This time I decided to take them to the only projects I have completed in my second term. And I could give him example, I said I completed 75 primary schools in my first term and in my second term I have done 400 and 25 to make it 500 and I am furnishing 300 of the schools. In which term would you say Iā€™ve performed better?

    The difference basically is because my first term, you saw me on the streets jumping, shouting and running. I was pursuing criminals to secure the city. Now the city appears to be secured and I am no longer 42. I cannot jump any longer because one day I may fall. In my second term, Iā€™ve improved power supply. I want the federal government to let the public know that the power we are enjoying here comes from the Rivers State government and they donā€™t pay us any money. We buy gas every month to supply the power and the federal government reduced the revenue for the past seven years I have been governor.Ā  So, what are the critics saying?Ā  Do you know what I call those critics? They are stomach infrastructure critics.

    When I tell people I donā€™t have a house, they tell me to stop saying that, that it is I who donā€™t want a house. That is what my critics say. Ā They are not afraid, they have houses everywhere; they are not scared of the consequences because there is no anti- corruption policy. Nobody is pursuing anybody. The impunity with which the stealing is going on, small ministers are living in mansions they just built. From being ordinary chairmen of councils they now live in mansions. Nobody is asking.

    Most things government need to realise is that when you deny people the necessary infrastructure that will keep them alive, when they die you should be charged for manslaughter. If you are supposed to build the hospital that will keep people alive because they have handed their resources over you to build the hospital and you divert the resources into your pocket, when they die, and no one charges you of manslaughter, when God comes, He will charge you for manslaughter.

    Letā€™s talk about your party, APC. Are you satisfied with the outcome of the convention?

    Yes I am.

    We learnt that the governors in APC were rooting for your former colleague, an ex-governor.

    It is not true. We met, we agreed completely. That is why when I heard that somebody published that they interviewed me, I was surprised. l had left Abuja since 6am that day for UK, I didnā€™t even have a ticket. There was no prior ticket. I bought a ticket right there. It was an economy ticket then. They laterĀ  managed to take me to the business class.Ā  I got to the UK that day. The next day in UK I was reading on the internet that somebody said he interviewed me.

    Some people believe that the victory of PDP in Ekiti State will create momentum for the party that will cut across especiallyĀ  the South- West axis.

    Why not we wait? Itā€™s about performance. A change is coming. For me, the election of 2015 will be a referendum on our presidentā€™s government. It is not going to be a referendum on my own because the campaign wonā€™t be about Amaechi. Is Amechi running for presidency?

    He might be.

    Well if Iā€™m running for presidency and Iā€™m on a ticket as a presidential candidate, Ā I wonā€™t say judge me by what I have done in the country, I will say judge me by what I have done in the state. And I will show you what I have done in virtually diverse areas, especially in the area of sports. Port Harcourt has one of the best stadia in the country. I took the visitors to the sport complex because I heard one of these critics say that my colleague and brother has built a better stadium and how cheap mine is. The entire sport complex is N33billion and it includes two Olympic size swimming pools and two diving pools, hockey pitch, basketball, handball, long tennis, squash courts, shooting range and indoor game. It is an athletic stadium. All of them put together cost us N34billion. They should compare us to the rest where we are hearing the costs of their sport infrastructures are much higher.

    One thing that seems to be driving corruption and impunity among government officials is the provision of immunity against prosecution in the constitution.

    Do ministers have immunity? You people target governors alone. Do ministers have immunity? How many ministers have been prosecuted?

    Port Harcourt has been branded the World Book Capital. You have invested much on literature and education in the state, what do you stand to benefit from this?

    Nothing but the literariness of the reading public. We need to encourage people to read. The problem we have here in the country is the fact that most people donā€™t want to acquire education for the purpose of knowledge. They acquire education for the purpose of seeking employment etc. We donā€™t think education is just to enhance their capacity for employment. We think you should also acquire education for knowledge. So, we are trying to open the public space for people to seek education for the sake of knowledge. We are building libraries and there will be libraries all over the state. In every local government headquarters there must be a library. Then in the city we are building reading rooms where there are books as well.

    We are going to build a major library that will belong to the state. But even at that, there is an NGO that is building privately, independent of government, the Port Harcourt Book Centre. There is a library, writersā€™ village and an event centre that will help fund the centre when they complete it. Everything there is about books.

    It seems your apparent love of books came out of your background as an English Literature or Language graduate and we can see that you have a very striking relationship with Prof. Wole Soyinka, could you please talk a little about your relationship with him?

    The Prof. is turning 80 in the next few weeks, the Rivers State government is trying to see how they can buy into it to see how we can convince him to give us a date to host him for his 80thĀ but we have not gotten a date yet.

    What is the nature of your relationship with Prof, how did this friendship develop?

    A: I met Prof Soyinka when I was at the University but I met him through Yemi Ogunbiyi and we established a friendship.

    Do you accept the position that some people take that the APC seems to have lost the momentum it had at the time that five governors came from the PDP? You have the direction of defection has changed. People are moving towards the PDP. APC just lost an election in Ekiti State in its own very backyard, do you accept that going forward that the APC seems to be losing momentum?

    A: How can we be losing momentum? Donā€™t forget that the first thing you need to deal with in APC is a combination of regional parties. The only party was national was the new PDP that came in. Now with the new PDP coming, APC has taken the position of a national party. There is no where you will go now in the country that you donā€™t have APC

    If PDP could defeat CPC with 10million votes and CPC was just a regional party based in the North – and the PDP defeated General Buhari with just 10million votes, he didnā€™t have money, donā€™t forget. He may have CPC chapters in the south but it was non existence ā€¦.

    Are you saying General Buhari is running for presidency?

    Iā€™m not saying General Buhari is running presidency or not. He has never told me whether he wants to run or not, but let us just use him as an example for the purpose of exemplifying what we are talking about. If he were to be a candidate now with APC in the South West, donā€™t forget that the PDP won everywhere apart from Osun State. So, who is losing now, PDP or APC?

    There was no APC in Rivers State. Instead what they do is to go pay people to go and destroy our billboards. Here, PDP scored 2.1milliom vote, no opposition, there was none. Other parties looked for people to field candidates for them. Now there is a strong APC presence, there are two senators from APC, there are eight members of the House of Representatives out of 13, there are 25 or 26 APC members in the House of Assembly.

    PDP has also defined APC very well by trying to make it look like it is a religious party, that it has favoured one religion. And the PDP has virtually tried to force down this question of a Muslim-Muslim ticket that they say APC is trying to push forward ā€¦.

    Why not wait until pick our presidential candidate and vice presidential candidate. Once we do that, you will know whether are Muslim-Muslim ticket. They were using the party structure to accuse us, now the party structure has changed into the hand of a Christian; they have pulled out of that. Wait until we get there.

    When they say PDP is making waves, PDP is making no wave. They already have a presidential candidate, and they are running without APC running because APC is obeying the law and PDP is not obeying the law because the president has been campaigning. When we do start our campaignā€¦look at the geopolitics, Lagos is not a PDP, it is heavily populated by voters, Kano is not PDP, Rivers is not PDP, and it has an APC governor. If we vote today, let us assume for the purpose of argument that everybody comes here and say no donā€™t vote against him, he is our brother -the president is not my brother, I am an Ikwerre man and the president is an Ijaw man.Ā  So, the Ikwerre man will vote according to his conscience.

    The last election was the ā€˜Breath of Fresh Airā€™; he is our brother from the South-South. That our brother from the South-South has gone to this war, he has returned without any booty for me. Do I still identify with him? The president is a nice man. But look at the state of the Port Harcourt International Airport. It is horrible. It has been abandoned by the PDP government. The federal roads have also been abandoned. There must be something Rivers people have done against the president that he doesnā€™t like. If I were to be in PDP, these are the things Iā€™m going to look at, that the president won South-South/South East 100 percent, 13 to 14 million votes. He also won South-West. Can you say now that even if the president uses soldiers, he would win South-West?

     

     

  • Suspension of Rivers CJ: NJC is clearly partisan – Amaechi

    Suspension of Rivers CJ: NJC is clearly partisan – Amaechi

    The Rotimi Amaechiā€™s administration in Rivers State has described the National Judicial Council (NJC) as clearly partisan, self-interested and self serving, over its suspension of the stateā€™s Chief Judge, Justice Peter Agumagu.

    It insisted that the NJC had chosen the path of unconstitutional bullying, lawlessness and injudicious racketeering, describing Wednesday, when the council members took the decision to suspend Agumagu, as a dark day for Nigeria, when the most senior justices and lawyers in the country resorted to high-handed self help, instead of judicial redress.

    Rivers government also accused a former President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), O. C. J. Okocha, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) and an NJC member, who is a younger brother to Justice Daisy Okocha, recommended by the NJC as the Rivers chief judge, of influencing the councilā€™s decision.

    The SAN (OCJ), in his reaction Friday in Port Harcourt, however, described the Rivers governmentā€™s allegation as absolute balderdash, hogwash, nonsense, falsehood and totally irresponsible.

    Amaechiā€™s administration, through the Rivers Commissioner for Information and Communications, Mrs. Ibim Semenitari, Friday in Port Harcourt, also accused the NJC of highhandedness and intolerance, unacceptable for a body charged with the responsibility of protecting the integrity of the judiciary.

    NJCā€™s Acting Director, Information, Soji Oye, in Abuja on Thursday, declared that the council would not recognise Agumagu as the chief judge of Rivers state; would not deal with him in that capacity, in addition to suspending him as a judge.

    NJC, according to Oye, also issued Agumagu a query, directing him to explain in writing, within four days, why he should not be removed from office as a judge for his alleged failure to abide by his oath of office to uphold the Constitution and Laws of the country, especially for going against Section 271 (1) of the Constitution.

    The Chief of Staff, Government House, Port Harcourt, Chief Tony Okocha, however, stated that the NJC acted in error over Agumaguā€™s suspension, which he said would not stand, in view of the pending suit at the Court of Appeal in Port Harcourt, filed by Daisy.

    Chief of staff also noted that the NJC, headed by the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Aloma Mariam Mukhtar, should have waited for the decision of the appellate court, accusing the council of taking sides.

     

    Agumagu, the then President of the Rivers State Customary Court of Appeal and the most senior judge of the Rivers judiciary, who earlier acted as Rivers chief judge, was cleared on March 18, through the judgment of Justice Lambo Akanbi of the Federal High Court, Port Harcourt.

    The suspended judge was immediately screened by the members of the Rivers House of Assembly and subsequently inaugurated at the Government House, Port Harcourt on the same day by Amaechi.

    Semenitari said Friday: ā€œThe attention of the Rivers State Government has been drawn to a statement by the Spokesperson of the National Judicial Council purporting to suspend the Rivers State Chief Judge, Justice P.N.C Agumagu by the NJC.

    ā€œIf this is true, then clearly, the NJC appears not to have taken into consideration the judgment delivered by Justice Lambo Akanbi of the Federal High court, Port Harcourt in which it is a party.

    ā€œThe state government finds this position of the NJC rather curious especially as Justice Agumagu is the most senior judge in the Rivers State judiciary and a very respected judicial officer.

    ā€œThe Rivers state government had gone to the courts to seek interpretation of Section 271 (3-5) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as regard the appointment of a chief judge of the state.Ā  That section of the constitution clearly states that ā€˜A person shall not be qualified to hold office of a Judge of a High Court of a State unless he is qualified to practice as a legal practitioner in Nigeria and has been so qualified for a period of not less than ten years.ā€™

    ā€œTo enable it to act within the confines of the law, the Rivers State Government sought the courtā€™s interpretation. The learned Justice Akanbi, in delivering his judgment faulted the deliberate omission of Justice Agumaguā€™s name among the list of senior judges qualified to be Chief Judge of Rivers State.

    ā€œJustice P.N.C Agumagu is the most senior judge in the Rivers State judiciary and was seconded to establish the Customary Court of Appeal in 2008.

    ā€œThe Rivers State government is well aware that there is no constitutional provision compelling the Governor to appoint a Chief Judge based on his or her seniority or even the arm of the judiciary to which such a person belongs. What the constitution requires is a minimum of 10 years post-call qualification.

    ā€œThis is evidenced even by the appointment of the immediate past Chief Judge of the state, Justice Iche Ndu, who was appointed Chief Judge over his senior at the bench. At the time of Justice Nduā€™s appointment, the Justice Sotonye Denton-West was the most senior judge in the Rivers State judiciary, yet the NJC did not compel the governor at the time to announce her as Chief Judge.ā€

     

    The Amaechiā€™s administration also stated that the refusal of the NJC to abide by the recommendations of the Rivers State Judicial Service Commission on the appointment of the stateā€™s Chief Judge and its insistence on a particular candidate (Daisy) was a cause of worry for the Rivers government.

    Semenitari said: ā€œSuch insistence may appear to mark the NJC out as clearly partisan, self-interested and self serving, in a case in which it is a party. The NJC has shown such over-weaning personal interest in this matter, thereby raising serious and fundamental questions as to how justifiable is it for the NJC to interpose itself in a case in which it clearly has more thanĀ  a passing interest. It is a well known principle of administrative law that a party cannot be a judge in its own cause.

    ā€œWhen Honorable Justice Akanbi of the Federal high Court, Port Harcourt struck down the decision of the NJC to preclude Justice Agumagu from considerationĀ  for the position of the Chief Judge, the Rivers State Government fully expected the NJC, as a law abiding institution, to choose the path of civility and appeal if it was dis-satisfied with the decision.

    ā€œRather than do so, the NJC has chosen the path of unconstitutional bullying, lawlessness and injudicious racketeering. It is a dark day for our country when the most senior Justices and lawyers in our country resort to high-handed self help instead of judicial redress.

    ā€œThe Rivers State Government finds that the decision of the NJC to suspend Justice Agumagu, despite aĀ decision of the Federal High Court on the issue of who should be Chief Judge of Rivers State suggests a highhandedness and intolerance that is unacceptable for a body charged with the responsibility of protecting the integrity of the judiciary.

    ā€œThe attitude of the body has laid credence to the fears of the Rivers State Government that the body has been influenced by one of its members, O.C.J Okocha (SAN), who has filial ties with the NJCā€™s preferred candidate, Justice Daisy Okocha.

    ā€œThe impression is that the NJC in using its old boys and influence networks and could not be bothered about the propriety or constitutionality of usurping the role of the governor of Rivers state in the appointment of a chief judge for the state or respecting the niceties of separation of powers. The NJC seeks to unleash an assault on the fundamental value of separation of powers in our constitutional system.ā€

    The Amaechiā€™s administration also restated its respect and admiration for the judiciary, but respectfully reminded the NJC that it is a statutory body, not a court, while requesting the council not to allow itself to become a tool in the hands of advocates of nepotism and sectional interest.

    The Rivers state government also urged the NJC to respect the ruling of the Federal High Court, Port Harcourt and indeed the constitution of Nigeria, which it insisted the council had a responsibility to uphold, in the interest of justice, fair play and fair mindedness.

    Amaechiā€™s administration maintained that by the way it had acted, the NJC sought to put itself above the law and respectfully reminded the council that it was not above the law, stressing that the path of legality for the NJC was to seek redress in the courts.

    The former president of the NBA (OCJ), who is a Port Harcourt-based lawyer, said: ā€œAs at the time when in July 2013, NJC met and took a decision to recommend Justice Okocha (Daisy) over Justice Agumagu, I was not in the meeting. I had to excuse myself.

    ā€œEverybody knows that in keeping with due process, if you have a personal interest in a matter and of course, the personal relationship is enough to indicate that OCJ Okocha must have a personal interest. So, I left the room.

    ā€œThe allegation by the Rivers State Government that the NJC has been hijacked by political jobbers for selfish interest is absolute balderdash, hogwash and absolute nonsense. NJC is constituted by the most eminent judges in this country. The CJN is the chairman.

    ā€œIf they are accusing the entire NJC of being politicised, let them point to the particular member that is believed is a politician or being influenced by politicians. It is absolute falsehood and a totally irresponsible statement.

    ā€œAgumagu is now being investigated. While his investigation is going on, it is only fair and right that he has to step aside, to allow for due process to be carried out. Agumagu is being investigated for what the NJC considers to be a bridge of his oath of office and a bridge of the code of conduct of a judicial officer. He has been asked to step aside and I hope that at the end of the day, we will all hear the outcome.ā€

    It will be recalled that Amaechi, who is also the Chairman of the Nigeria Governorsā€™ Forum (NGF), while inaugurating Agumagu as the substantive chief judge, urged him to be dedicated in the official discharge of his responsibilities.

    Recalling that Agumagu was inaugurated after series of legal battles, the NGF chairman pleaded with the new chief judge to see beyond the contest and be fair and treat everybody equally.

    The Rivers governor said: ā€œMy Lord, let me congratulate you on this your appointment.Ā  The actual phrase would be ā€˜at lastā€™ and to say that I was a bit worried with the way people in the judiciary fought over who would be the Chief Judge of the State.

    ā€œI was more than worried when there was an attempt to take away the power of the governor to appoint a Chief Judge and rest it somewhere else and I was wondering if there was no need to ask for the interpretation of the constitution.

    ā€œWe recognise and accept in total, the judgement of the Federal High Court of Nigeria and we say to you congratulations.

    ā€œDo not forget that in every office in Nigeria, not even a bishop is appointed without a contest. So, I hope that you would see what happened as a mere contest and treat everybody equally and be fair and ensure that you remain as dedicated as you have always beenā€.

    Amaechi also lauded the Federal High Court in Port Harcourt for ensuring that justice was done on the matter.

    The NGF chairman said: ā€œI would on behalf of Rivers State thank the Federal High Court for helping us out of this bondage.Ā  I would say to the Federal High Court that our brothers, who by privilege of their position in high office, should not abuse their office again.

    ā€œThey should learn to treat such things on merit not based on cronyism and hope that this will settle once and for all the challenges and disagreements in the judiciary. I pray that political interference will not come in any moreā€.

    Agumagu promised to ensure that justice delivery would be given its pride of place.

    The new chief judge said: ā€œMy agenda for the judiciary is to see a better judiciary, to make sure that justice delivery is given the pride of place and also to make sure that all staff of the judiciary get the best during my tenure.ā€

     

  • Amaechiā€¦Rebel with a cause

    Amaechiā€¦Rebel with a cause

    When the Presidency decided to take on Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi, it perhaps did not bargain for what it is getting. Amaechi has proved to be a fighter. His appearance at the Bori rally of the Save Rivers Movement (SRM) has further confirmed his image as ā€˜a rebel with a causeā€™, writes Bisi Olaniyi, Port Harcourt

    The battleline was long drawn between the pro-Governor Rotimi Amaechiā€™s Save Rivers Movement (SRM) and the Grassroots Development Initiative (GDI), which has as grand patron, the Supervising Minister of Education, Chief Nyesom Wike.

    GDI leaders and members have been moving round the 23 local government areas of Rivers State with full police protection and without attack by militants, unlike the rallies of the SRM.

    Wike insisted that the GDI leaders were moving round the state for thanksgiving and inauguration of the wards and LGAsā€™ executives of the GDI, as well as sensitising the members of the socio-political organisation and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to support President Goodluck Jonathan, whenever he declares to seek re-election.

    The Chief of Staff, Government House, Port Harcourt, Chief Tony Okocha, who doubles as the Political Adviser to Amaechi, who is the Chairman of the Nigeria Governorsā€™ Forum (NGF), insisted that Wike was busy with his 2015 governorship campaign and using President Goodluck Jonathan as a smokescreen.

    Okocha stated that Wike is too desperate to be the next governor of Rivers state, in spite of being an Ikwerre like Amaechi. The NGF chairman is from Ubima in Ikwerre LGA, while the minister of state for education hails from Rumueprikom in Obio/Akpor council.

    The Rivers political crisis actually commenced when the youthful Rivers governor declared that it would not be proper for another Ikwerre person to succeed him, having been the Speaker of the Rivers House of Assembly for eight years (1999 ā€“ 2007) and to be governor for eight years in 2015.

    Amaechi prefers somebody from another ethnic group or senatorial district to succeed him in 2015, which the supervising minister of education was not comfortable with.

    Wike is a former Chief of Staff, Government House, Port Harcourt and doubled as the Director-General of Amaechi Campaign Organisation in 2011, before the Rivers governor recommended him to President Jonathan for appointment as a minister, which he (Wike) denied in a recent interview in his newly-built mansion, behind the seat of power in the Rivers state capital, when his friends and associates organised for him a surprise birthday party.

    The Supervising Minister of Education is a two-term Chairman of Obio/Akpor Local Government Area and an ex-National President of the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON).

    Amaechi told journalists in Port Harcourt that he facilitated the re-election of Wike as Obio/Akpor LG council chairman, declaring that his people rejected him for second term for poor performance, arrogance and lack of respect for elders, but the governor said he personally intervened and had to plead with the people to allow him.

    The NGF chairman maintained that the minister of state for education betrayed him, in spite of his contributions to his political career, especially when President Jonathan rejected his (Wikeā€™s) ministerial nomination, for not being well known to him the President), with Amaechi still vouching for him (Wike).

    Wike, however, insisted that he got the ministerial appointment on merit and not based on Amaechiā€™s nomination or efforts, wondering why as the governorā€™s Chief of Staff and Director-General of his campaign organisation, he could be made just a Minister of State, instead of a substantive minister, if the governor was that influential.

    He said Amaechi should be grateful to him, for fully supporting him to be the Rivers governor on October 26, 2007, after the landmark judgment of the Supreme Court the previous day, which sacked his cousin, Sir Celestine Omehia.

    He noted that with the ex-president Olusegun Obasanjo declaring that Amaechiā€™s governorship candidature had K-leg, at the Liberation Stadium, Port Harcourt in early 2007, while presenting PDPā€™s flags to other governorship candidates; it became obvious that the ex-speaker must fight hard to regain his stolen mandate.

    Trouble started brewing when Okocha (chief of staff); the President of the SRM, Charles Aholu, a legal practitioner; and the groupā€™s Coordinator, Igo Aguma, a former member of the House of Representatives from Rivers state; began a week earlier to announce on many radio and television stations, including newspaper advertisements, that Obio/Akpor LG rally of SRM would hold on January 12.

    Since Wike is from Obio/Akpor LGA, political watchers were actually envisaging crisis, for the minister of state for education to prove that he is still in charge of the politics of the council and to impress President Jonathan and his wife, Dame Patience, an indigene of Okrika, headquarters of Okrika LGA of Rivers state.

    On January 11, the canopies, chairs, tables and podium had been arranged at the playground of the Rivers State College of Arts and Science, Rumuola, Port Harcourt, to avoid any hitch during the elaborate SRM inauguration for Obio/Akpor Local Government Area of the following day.

    As early as 4 am, policemen, on the orders of Mbu, invaded with Armoured Personnel Carriers (APCs), many patrol vehicles and battle-ready personnel, the Rivers College of Arts and Science and upturned the canopies, chairs, tables and podium, dispersing with teargas and gunshots, the people who were putting finishing touches to the arrangements.

    Okocha and the representative of the Rivers South-east Senatorial District, Magnus Ngei Abe, were contacted by their associates on the ground and they quickly moved to the venue of the rally, with the dualised road already barricaded by the police and teargas canisters still being shot, but they were undeterred.

    Overzealous policemen, however, shot twice on the chest with rubber bullets, Abe, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Petroleum (Downstream), while the chief of staff was also injured by the policemen on the leg and still unable to walk very well, with worshippers and passersby having heavy dose of teargas and disturbing noise of sporadic gunshots on the Sunday.

    The pro-Amaechiā€™s rally was later relocated to the Civic Centre at Rumuigbo, Port Harcourt, on the dualised and ever-busy Ikwerre Road, with policemen again taking over the new venue and scattering the white plastic chairs, with passersby forced to raise their hands.

    In order to show their displeasure over the action of the policemen, youths in Rumuigbo made bonfires on Ikwerre Road, especially at Obi Wali Road Junction, which was littered with broken bottles, stones and other missiles, but policemen later cleared them.

    Amaechi was billed to attend the SRMā€™s disrupted rally at the Rivers College of Arts and Science or the Civic Centre at Rumuigbo.

    Abe, 49, from Bera-Ogoni in Gokana Local Government Area, who is an ex-Secretary to the Rivers State Government (SSG), is still recuperating in a London hospital.

    Rivers Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Ahmad Mohammad, a Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), however, claimed that members of a rival group (GDI/PDP) invaded the Rivers College of Arts and Science, while engaging the SRM members in a supremacy battle and policemen decided to disperse them with teargas, to prevent the breakdown of law and order, which the chief of staff described as false and misleading.

    Okocha said: ā€œAbout few minutes past 12 am on Sunday (January 12), I received a call from somebody, highly placed, informing me that the Rivers Commissioner of Police (Mbu) had been reached by the Supervising Minister for Education, Nyesom Wike, and that he had accepted a huge sum of money to dislodge our people and I could not place it.

    ā€œSRM is an organisation that insists that Rivers State must be saved, out to salvage the state from political buccaneers, who want to put Rivers State into their pockets. That is what we are doing. We are in the business of sensitising our people from LGA to LGA.

    ā€œYou are aware of a group called the GDI. The members go through all the LGAs with convoys of police, giving them all kinds of protection, including the Commissioner of Police (Mbu). He (CP) is always in the convoys, providing security for them and ensuring that all the things they do in the LGAs are trouble free.ā€

    The supervising minister of education, in his reaction, stated that persons dragging his name to the policeā€™s action should be ignored and that the SRMā€™s rallies were not enough proof of the popularity of Amaechi or to win elections in the Niger Delta state.

    Wike was earlier the same January 12 at the Port Harcourt International Airport, Omagwa, to receive Dame Patience Jonathan, who was travelling to Bayelsa State.

    A former Petroleum Minister, Prof. Tam David-West (from Buguma-Kalabari, the headquarters of Asari-Toru Local Government Area ), expressed worry over the worsening political climate in his Rivers state, while condemning the shooting of Abe, whom he described as a complete gentleman, whom he said never deserved the treatment he got from the police.

    The lawyer to the SRM, Ken Atsuwete, a renowned human rights activist, insisted that the police were informed in writing of the groupā€™s rallies in Obio/Akpor and Khana LGAs, while hinting that the Bori rally would go on as planned, on January 19, which became worse.

    Militants backed by policemen, amid sporadic gunshots, on January 19, disrupted the pro-Amaechiā€™s SRM rally again at Bori, the traditional headquarters of Ogoni land and the seat of Khana Local Government Area of Rivers state.

    The Secretary to the Rivers State Government (SSG), George Feyii, an Ogoni; Okocha and many allies of Amaechi narrowly escape death, with their vehicles riddled with bullets and some were vandalised.

    Two persons were feared shot dead by the rampaging militants, who started shooting from 4 am and took over the venue of the SRM rally at the playground of the All Saintsā€™ Anglican Church, Bori, not far from the Rivers State Polytechnic, Bori-Ogoni.

    The NGF chairman, who planned to attend the SRMā€™s January 19 disrupted rally at Bori, later in an interview at the Government House, Port Harcourt, after inspecting the shot and vandalised vehicles, declared that President Jonathanā€™s government was worse than the regime of the late dictator, Gen. Sani Abacha.

    The Rivers governor also accused that Federal Government of desperation over the 2015 elections, declaring that President Jonathan wanted to win at all costs, even if all the human beings die.

    Amaechi insisted that the disrupted Bori rally of the SRM must be repeated on Saturday, January 25, while declaring that he would attend and available to be shot.

    Some Rivers commissioners, Amaechiā€™s allies, top Rivers government officials, leaders and supporters of the SRM had to scale the high fence and run into the bush to prevent being shot by the rampaging militants, with their vehicles abandoned and vandalised, while Bori people and students scampered to safety.

    Police, however, gave protection to the rally by the GDI at Degema, the headquarters of Degema Local Government Area on the same January 19.

    The Rivers PDP, through its Spokesman, Pastor Jerry Needam, accused the main opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) of resorting to violence.

    The Rivers police spokesman claimed that the pro-Amaechi group (SRM) did not apply for police protection, while Wikeā€™s GDI leaders applied for police protection and was granted, stating that the shooting at Bori was being investigated.

    Aguma and Atsuwete, however, described Muhammad (PPRO) as a liar, insisting that the SRM notified the police of the Bori rally and applied for police protection, since obtaining police permit is illegal, as confirmed by a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Femi Falana.

    The SRM rally was fixed for 2 pm on January 19, with the canopies, chairs, tables and podium arranged and the chief of staff was in Bori on January 18, to ensure hitch-free arrangement, but upturned by the militants, who turned the venue into a theatre of war.

    The Channels Television was billed to transmit the rally live, but its Mercedes Benz Outside Broadcasting (OB) van (Lagos FST 928 BX) and a Toyota Hiace bus, with registration number: Lagos: AGL 250 AP, were vandalised, while the organisation also lost an expensive camera, with the crew members, who were setting the OB van, losing valuable items and cash to the attackers.

    Some of the vandalised and shot vehicles are: Toyota Fortuner, with registration number: Rivers KRK 396 BX and two Toyota Landcruiser V8, with registration numbers: Rivers ES 353 PHC and Lagos AAA 448 AA.

    Other shot and vandalised vehicles are Lexus LX 570, with registration number: Rivers KNM 815 AA, Brilliance salon car, with Abuja ABC 830 AL as registration number, Toyota Tundra: Abuja ABJ 587 AE and Chevrolet Avalanche: Lagos EH 193 LSR.

    Besides the divisional police headquarters, Bori has police area command, while there is MOPOL 56 at nearby Saakpenwa-Ogoni, but all the security personnel looked the other way, while the attackers, who were sponsored by desperate politicians, were having a field day.

    After the masked militants had visited thrice with guns and machetes, the All Saintsā€™ Anglican Church, venue of the January 19 rally of SRM and left, policemen later barricaded the main Hospital Road that leads to Kono Waterside and sealed off the expansive premises.

    Amaechi said: ā€œWhen they say President Obasanjo (Olusegun) is lying about snipers and one thousand names, they say Nigerian Police have no rubber bullets. From where did the rubber bullets come? Is it one of the snipers that shot at Magnus (Abe)? Could it be that they were aiming it at me? For the first time, I will want to expose myself. I will be there (Boriā€™s rally). I will be there on Saturday (January 25), let them come and shoot.

    ā€œThere is serious danger for democracy. What you are seeing here (in Rivers State) is close to what Abacha was doing. This is an Abachaā€™s government. Tell me the difference. Lives were being lost, people were being shot. Journalists were being arrested. This is worse, because even governors were not arrested under Abacha, but as a governor, hmmnn!

    ā€œOfficers of the Rivers State Police Command met at the Police Officersā€™ Mess and Mbu declared war against the Rivers State Government and Rivers people. That he is determined to ensure that they are not protected and he warned them (policemen) in advance not to come to protect anybody at the rally.

    ā€œThe implication of that is that he (Mbu) knew there was going to be an attack and he must have been part of the process of the attack. If not, when the people started shooting, what did the police do.ā€

    The NGF chairman also stated that the rampaging militants would have killed the journalists, who covered the rally, but managed to escape from the gunshots at Bori.

    Amaechi said: ā€œIs President (Jonathan) saying he has lost control of Mbu? He cannot remove Mbu. He cannot tell Mbu what to do or is it that Mr. President had directed Mbu to kill me and kill others?ā€

    True to his earlier promise, Amaechi attended the rescheduled rally of the SRM in Bori-Ogoni on January 25, and as usual, did not spare the Federal Government, President Jonathan and Mbu.

    The Rivers governor stated that the militants his administration chased away with the military were now back in the state, fuelled by the Rivers police commissioner and his ā€œcohortsā€ in Abuja.

    Amaechi spoke amid tight security provided by the police, at the same venue (the playground of the All Saintsā€™ Anglican Church, Bori) where the hired militants were a week earlier shooting sporadically, with the rescheduled rally well-attended and the inauguration of the Khana LGA chapter with 19 wards, of the SRM, performed by Aguma.

    The NGF chairman, who attended the SRM rally for the first time, was accompanied by the representative of the Andoni-Opobo/Nkoro constituency of Rivers state in the House of Representatives, Dakuku Peterside.

    Shops, business outfits and corporate organisations in Bori were shut on January 25 by apprehensive persons, who envisaged a repeat of the violence of January 19. It was gathered that some militants still shot sporadically in Bori in the early hours of January 25, but were repelled by the police.

    The Rivers chapter of the PDP, through Pastor Jerry Needam, the Special Adviser, Media to the state Chairman, Chief Felix Obuah, however, urged Amaechi to do the right things at all times and save himself of avoidable embarrassment.

    Mbu had earlier insisted that he remained a professional police officer, not taking sides and not a politician. In spite of the calls for Mbuā€™s redeployment for acting like a politician, by the NGF chairman and separate resolutions last year by the Senate and the House of Representatives, the Inspector-General of Police, Mohammed Abubakar, said the Rivers police commissioner had been told to be a professional police officer.

    Abubakar is now under intense pressure to redeploy Mbu, especially with the call on President Jonathan by the members of the National Assembly to remove him (IGP), who has (Abubakar) been summoned by the senators to come and explain his roles in the Rivers crisis.

    Amaechi said in Bori on January 25: ā€œI always tell my Priest that the Bible is a very versatile book. There is nothing you are looking for in the Bible that you will not see. Bible enjoins all of us to be peaceful. The same Bible says the kingdom of God suffereth violence and the violent taketh it by force.

    ā€œI do not want to come back to Ogoni to hear that you were shattered. I do not want you to take the law into your own hands, but I want you to make sure that nobody shoots at you. They (gun-wielding militants) are all human beings. They are not ghosts. They are neither angels nor devil. They are human beings like you. If a man slaps you and gets away with it, tomorrow, he will come back.

    ā€œI will allow members of the SRM to continue with their rallies. Anything that requires the law, they must comply with the law. I do not have to be part of the rallies. The only reason why I came to todayā€™s (January 25) rally is because I need to prove to you, not to Nigerians, that you should not run away from violence.

    ā€œYou do not go to war carrying white handkerchiefs. If a man is carrying AK-47, you will carry machine gun. Then, he will say let us talk peace. As much as possible, I will not support violence, but I do not want you dead. Stay alive, because if you die, nobody will vote for us. I wish you Godā€™s blessings and I will assure you, I will stand by you.ā€

    The NGF chairman also berated the Rivers Commissioner of Police, Mbu Joseph Mbu, an indigene of Cross River State, who has put in 30 years into the police service, for taking sides and not acting like a professional police officer, but a politician.

    Amaechi said: ā€œPDP claims to be the biggest party in Nigeria. APC is the fastest growing party in Nigeria. Then, there was no ACN, no CPC, only PDP in Rivers State. Now, they have seen another party, why are they afraid? Why are they fighting? Why are they shooting? Why are they using policemen? They should allow voting to take place.

    ā€œLet me start by apologising to you, on behalf of Mbu and those who came here (Bori) to shoot guns last Sunday (January 19). From here, I will go to the hospital to see one of the persons they shot. Mbu said nobody was shot. I am going there to see the person myself.

    ā€œAs the Governor of Rivers state, I am governor for every Local Government Area. Nobody can stop me from coming to Khana Local Government. Not even those children that issued press statement, threatening and they said they would shoot me and I said ā€˜let me come and be shotā€™.

    ā€œThis (January 25) morning, many persons called me and said ā€˜do not go (to Bori)ā€™ and I told them to give me reasons why I should not go. I should send over 3,000 persons to Bori, for them to be shot and I will not be there to be shot. Will that be fair? If they are going to shoot you, they should shoot me first.

    ā€œI want to thank the IGP. I had to call him and I told IGP that I would be going to Khana LG and I thank him for sending security. I reassure him that Rivers people are peace loving.

    ā€œMbu said he did very well in Oyo State. I have spoken with the Governor of Oyo State (Abiola Ajimobi) and he said Mbu did not do well. Whatever he was doing there was a smaller scale. Why he is doing a larger scale here is because there are very important people in Abuja that are fuelling him. He is making me say it in public. Mbu cannot say he has done well. He has done nothing.ā€

    The Rivers governor also berated an ex-militant General, Solomon Ndigbara, aka Osama Bin Laden, an Ogoni, whom he said was behind the shootings of January 19 in Bori.

  • Lynching democracy in Rivers State

    Lynching democracy in Rivers State

    Anti-democratic forces are slowly lynching democracy inĀ Rivers State. They include the rogues that vandalised a HighĀ Court in the state and burnt down another. They also include those that have undermined the integrity and independence of the judiciary and the legislature in Rivers State. Furthermore, those who have made security and governance tenuous in the state are among these disgruntled elements. Now with the legislature stymied, their target is to obfuscate the judiciary, and thereby render democracy in the state comatose.

    Agreed, disagreement in politics is ordinary; but that do not extend to emasculating the very institutions on which the democratic edifice is built. To do so is akin to pulling the rug from oneā€™s feet. And the result will be a fatal fall. No doubt, the main dramatis personae in the state crisis are mostly from the state. From the state Governor, Rotimi Amaechiā€™s new political camp, the All Progressives Congress (APC), which is the majority party in the state, the alleged culprits in the crisis are led by the Minister of State for Education, Nyesom Wike, of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

    This camp includes the renegade speaker of the state assembly, Evans Bipi, who is obviously leading a minority group, in the state House of Assembly. This group is allegedly doing the bidding of the wife of the President, Dame Patience Jonathan, and by extension the President. According to the state Commissioner for Information, Mrs Ibim Semenitari and the APC spokesperson, Andy Nweye, the police should beam its search light on the PDP and their patrons, for burning down the court. They are perceived to have burnt the High Court to stop it from granting an interlocutory injunction against Mr. Bipi, having already granted an interim order, restraining him from parading himself as the House Speaker. The Ahaoda court was burnt on the eve of hearing the interlocutory application.

    The allegation against Bipi and his supporters should be investigated, considering that if he is supported by minority members of the state assembly, it is plausible that the court may stop him from parading himself as the authentic speaker of the state Assembly. So based on the fact in the public domain, the court most likely would have granted an interlocutory injunction against him. But that is mere suspicion; and what is important is for the police to follow the lead and other leads to determine those responsible for this reprehensible desecration of the temple of justice; even when some disenchanted persons in the state rather call it ā€˜temple of injusticeā€™.

    The opponents of Governor Amaechi also hold him responsible for some of the crisis; as they insist that it was his supporters that allegedly burnt the High Court, to stop the court from vacating the interim injunction. While this argument is weaker, Governor Amaechi surely has contributed to the crisis in the judiciary in his state. Part of the challenges facing the judiciary in Rivers State was caused by Governor Amaechiā€™s avoidable squabbles with the National Judicial Commission. Regrettably, against the express provisions of the 1999 Constitution in Section 271(4); Governor Amaechi ill-advisedly appointed a Justice of the state Customary Court of Appeal to act as the Chief Judge.

    The tenuous argument of the state Attorney-General, who should know better was that, the judge appointed was the most senior in the judiciary; despite the express use of the word, ā€˜the most senior Judge of the High Courtā€™ by the constitution. Now that the term of the unlawfully appointed acting Chief Judge has expired, it is in the interest of Governor Amaechi and the people of Rivers that the provisions of the constitution are respected in subsequent appointments. It is also left for the appellate courts to deal with the fall outs of things done by the illegitimate Chief Judge while purportedly in office.

    Rivers is surely in troubled times. However, to the chagrin of his political opponents, Governor Amaechi was able to corral the state legislature to pass the 2014 Appropriation Bill within the precincts of the Governorā€™s office, considering that the legislative chamber has been rendered unsafe. While the Governorā€™s supporters would deem it a master stroke, as politicians like to call such maneuvres, his opponents in the PDP are raising hell. In their opinion, the Act cannot stand the test of a judicial enquiry. Unfortunately for them, with the Speaker of the state Assembly reportedly presiding at the ā€˜arranged sittingā€™, the only argument that can affect the Act is where the extant procedure for summoning the House was not properly followed; and those left out, kick.

    But how did the state degenerate into this political asphyxiation? According to Governor Amaechiā€™s camp, the blame should lie at the door step of the wife of the President, who they allege, is seeking to control the affairs of the state, where she hails from. Another argument is that the Presidency is working to strangulate Governor Amaechi for daring to dream of contesting for Vice-President with a Northern presidential candidate, in 2015. While the Presidentā€™s wife and his staff have denied these allegations, there is no doubt that arising from disagreements between the two political interests, what is euphemistically referred to as the federal might, has been unleashed to unsettle the governor. The governor, on his part, has turned a political guerrilla, and in the unmatched battle, is employing guerrilla tactics and propaganda to his aid.

    While the political combatants in Rivers are entitled to fight for the political soul of the state, they cannot justifiably destroy the very foundations of democracy in the process.

    Dear reader, here is wishing you, a happy New Year

     

     

     

     

     

  • The sacrilege in Rivers

    The sacrilege in Rivers

    Those who bombed courts in the state have goneĀ beyond the limits and should be fished out and punished

    The bombing and burning of two courts, respectively, in Rivers State last week is ominous, and those responsible for this degeneration to anarchy in the state must stop on their track. Importantly, the full arsenal of our country as a modern state must be marshalled to duty, to stop this descent into anarchy in the state and also to bring to justice the perpetrators of this dastardly act. Let nobody be fooled, the resort to bombing and burning of the very hallowed chambers of the temple of justice which is designed in any modern society, to arbitrate centrifugal forces of partisanship in governance, is akin to unsettling the very equilibrium on which the society stands.

    We commend the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) for its timely condemnation of this brazen desecration of the judiciary, and recommend that it unflinchingly follows up its demand from the security agencies of the Federal Government. The demand that the National Security Adviser (NSA) and the Inspector-General of Police should fish out the perpetrators of this crime within the next 30 days should be insisted on by all Nigerians. As the lawyers stated, the Nigerian people will not accept a lackadaisical investigation of this heinous crime, or the police tendency to keep this serious criminal infraction against the state under investigation for eternity.

    It is also very important that an independent enquiry, independent of the state police command, which is in a running battle with the state governor, be given this responsibility. As we have severally argued, it is important that the ongoing madness in Rivers State be stopped. It is a crying shame that for whatever reasons political partisanship is fingered as the root cause of this breach of national security. There is therefore the urgent need for President Goodluck Jonathan who is the commander-in-chief of the armed forces and the chief security officer of the country to transparently extricate himself, his wife, his minister of state for education and his party from the partisan interests alleged by the governor and his group to be at the root of the crisis in the state.

    In investigating this clearly unacceptable descent into impunity, the police should beam their searchlight on the claim by the Rivers State government that the courts were burnt down by those opposed to the interim injunction granted by the courts in favour of Amachree Otelemaba as the legitimate speaker of the state house of assembly. According to that allegation, the courts were burnt by elements beholden to the Minister of State for Education, Chief Nyesom Wike, and the illegitimate surrogate speaker, Evans Bipi; fighting a proxy war on behalf of the wife of President Jonathan. We urge the police to thoroughly investigate this lead that the destruction was carried out to frustrate the courtsā€™ adjudication of the impasse in the state assembly.

    We also urge Governor Rotimi Amaechi and the political leadership in the state, to show clearly that they are above the allegation by the opposition in the state, that they are responsible for this willful desecration of the third arm of the tripod in the state. In investigating this criminality visited on the courts, the police should spare no leads, but must ensure that they do not fall into the advancement of partisan interests against their constitutional responsibility to protect the state. Unfortunately, the current leadership of the police in the state has been so embroiled in a tug-of-war with the state government such that it will be against the principles of natural justice to expect them to be neutral in their investigation, which is very embarrassing for the institution of police.

    Unfortunately too, in our distorted federation, the governor of a state merely answers the chief security officer, when in fact he is not effectively in charge of the security apparatus of the state. So, the responsibility of ensuring that this criminal infraction against Rivers State and the constitution of our country lies with President Jonathan and the federal authorities, and it is important that they discharge that responsibility vigorously. As we have stated severally, it is important for our democracy that President Jonathan should rise above the fray in Rivers State politics, to ensure that the culprits behind the desecration of the courts are brought to justice in the overall interest of our country. Let no one make any mistake about the repercussions of neglecting the arson and assault on the temple of justice in Rivers State, for that will amount to playing the ostrich, when the national edifice is on the brink.

  • Two teenage girls confess to aiding cult members

    Two teenage girls (names withheld), from Ahoada East Local Government Area of Rivers State have allegedly confessed to assisting cult members to commit crimes.

    They have surrendered to the People Encouragers Initiative (PEIN), a non-government organisation (NGO) in the locality, for rehabilitation.

    The girls, suspected to belong to the Greenlanders and Meloin cult groups, said they were initiated into cult activities by friends.