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Tag: Wike

  • PDP group slams Ogunlewe’s backing for Wike

    PDP group slams Ogunlewe’s backing for Wike

    The League of Yoruba Professionals in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has condemned former Minister of Works Senator Adeseye Ogunlewe for supporting Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike’s  ”indecent statement against the Yoruba”

    The Group’s Chairman Dr Adegoke Adaranijo, in a statement yesterday said it received with “dismay and total shock  the unwise pronouncements of Senator Ogunlewe in which he virtually derided his own people by defending Wike who insited on not apologising to the Yoruba  following his derided comment before the PDP’s December 9 national convention.

    The Group said “Wike publicly demeaned our people and our leaders as symbols of failure. “Even when all leaders in the Yoruba nation within the PDP fold had denounced Wike’s utterances as crude, uncouth, virtually uncivil and primitive, Ogunlewe, in his characteristic mischievous manner aligned himself with the traducer of his own people.

    “ Is Ogunlewe happy that our people are being lampooned and dishonoured in the market square? A true born Yoruba person will never partake in this crass idiocy.

    ”Former Governor of Ogun State, Aremo Olusegun Osoba even rose above partisan politics to demonstrate his anger against Wike’s immoral pronouncements. That is the way it should be,” the group said.

    The League demanded an immediate retraction of the defence of Wike by Ogunlewe, saying “at once Ogunlewe should tender a public apology to our people”.

  • Tambuwal meets Okowa, Wike, Ibori in Delta

    Tambuwal meets Okowa, Wike, Ibori in Delta

    Sokoto State Governor Aminu Tambuwal yesterday met with Delta State Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike and former Delta State Governor James Ibori at Asaba, the Delta State capital.

    The governors retired to the Delta State Government House after attending a showcase of Delta’s Youths Empowerment Programme.

    Tambuwal, elected on the ticket of the All Progressives Congress (APC), is the immediate past Speaker of the House of Representatives, on the ticket of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

    He defected to the APC at the last minute in 2015 to pick the ticket to run for governor. He won and succeeded Aliyu Wamako, who is now a senator.

    Tambuwal has been speculated as one of those the PDP is prospecting as a possible presidential candidate in the 2019 election. He has not reacted to the speculations which gained more ground after last weekend’s PDP convention.

    There was excitement as Okowa and Ibori rode into the venue.

    The large crowd mostly PDP faithful broke into a chorus as they arrived for the products exhibition and business fair to showcase the Okowa administration’s youth empowerment programme. Many government functionaries also turned up.

    The Okowa administration’s youth empowerment programme centres on its Skills Training &Entrepreneurship Programme (STEP) and the Youth Agricultural Entrepreneurs Programme (YAGEP).

    The twin-scheme has trained 2,324 unemployed youths and established them in their choice enterprises.

    Ibori recalled with nostalgia the day he transferred power on May 29 2007 Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan.

    He said: “I come into this arena Asaba Arcade with a great sense of nostalgia. I remember that it was at this venue on the 29th of May 2007 that I transferred power to Dr Eweta Uduaghan.  Since that time, this is my first outing here and I am indeed very pleased that you have invited me to be with my people. Thank you very much for this opportunity”.

    He praised Okowa for empowering the unemployed youths in the State, while endorsing the incumbent Gov. Okowa for a second term in office

    He said, “The day the people of Delta made that choice to make you their governor, they did it knowing full well that you will deliver and thank God you are delivering. Let me place on record my gratitude to you for remembering our unemployed youths, because at the end of the day when you and I are gone, they will be the ones to take over.

    ”I might be watching from the sidelines, but today I want to make it abundantly clear again that you are doing very well .May God continue to guide you, give you peace and sharpen your vision so that at the end of your tenure in eight years  so that Delta will be the best for it,”

    Tambuwal arrived after the ceremony. He only joined to see the exhibition while Wike was part of the event.

    At the end of the ceremony Tambuwal left for the Government House with Okowa and Ibori

  • Youths to Wike: apologise for anti-Yoruba comment

    Youths to Wike: apologise for anti-Yoruba comment

    Yoruba youths in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)  under the auspices of  Congress of Concerned Sons and Daughters of Oduduwa,  have urged Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike to  apologise to Southwest people.

    According to the group, the governor’s remark about the position of the Southwest in the PDP before last weekend’s convention, is disparaging.

    If he failed to apologise, they said, the PDP would be dead and buried in the region because they would seek alternative political platform.

    President of the  Group, Hon.   Dayo Ogunjebe said Wike insulted the Yoruba on a television programme in Abuja last Friday saying   “We demand an immediate and full apology from Mr. Wike for the kind of language he deployed  against our people”.

    In a statement titled: “The Yoruba People: Time for deep

    reflection” – Ogunjebe said: “Our leaders are being mocked. Our symbols of truth and sincerity are now being derided, snubbed, treated with contempt, disowned.

    “The irreverent, scandalous, arrogant and most myopic statement by the Governor of Rivers State, Mr. Nyesom Wike, is the crowning of all insults upon our people. “This is rather scandalous and very benighted. He even insulted President Olusegun Obasanjo as a failure. This is an aberration”.

    As for us at the Congress of the sons and daughters of Oduduwa, the PDP as presently constituted does not

    appeal to us anymore. We will look for a more favorable platform that will protect the interest of our people.

    “As we see it, the PDP has no future in Yoruba land any more. The party has failed our leaders. It has failed our youths. It has failed our women. It has failed everyone in Yoruba land. Without a redirection, PDP is dead and buried in Yoruba land.

    “The Yoruba people had worked assiduously for the growth and development of PDP. In both financial and moral terms, the Yoruba people have been selfless, making tremendous sacrifices, consistent, devoted to the growth of our party.

    “But we have been cheated. We have been maligned.”

  • FSARS: Wike, other campaigners are crime beneficiaries, says Peterside 

    FSARS: Wike, other campaigners are crime beneficiaries, says Peterside 

    Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) chief Dakuku Peterside yesterday said those behind the #EndFSARS campaign were beneficiaries of crime.

    Peterside took a swipe at Rivers State Governor Nyelsom Wike, alleging that he was wasting the state’s resources on the social campaign against the Federal Special Anti-Robbery Squad (FSARS) because the unit refused his machinations.

    The NIMASA boss spoke on the sideline at a two-day conference of the G7++ Friends of Gulf of Guinea (GoG) Group held in Lagos.

    According to him, Nigerians should support the FSARS, not condemn it, given the strides the unit has recorded in combating violent crimes despite limited resources.

    He advised that the unit should be reformed, just like the police and other agencies of government, to enable it perform optimally.

    Peterside said: “The campaign against the FSARS is being championed by Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State and probably the People’s Democratic Party. They have been shouting that SARS be scrapped.

    “We all know that without the police in a society, we cannot maintain law and order. In order to enforce its mandate, which is the enforcement of law and order, the police create units and the SARS was created as a response to violent crimes such as armed robbery and kidnapping.

    “Unfortunately, these vices are worst in Rivers State. Consistently for the past 18 months, Rivers State has occupied number one position in high profile crimes. There have been recent cases of assassination and armed robbery.

    “The SARS in Rivers State has been very potent in tackling such crimes. But because the government seeks to control the unit and it has refused and insisted that it was an institution of the Federal Government, working for the general good of the people, they are not happy.

    “But if we keep quiet as a people, this issue would assume a life of its own and we would have a society that is brutish and one where there’s a wind of crime.

    “I think we should put things in proper perspective. That Nigerians support the police. We support the FSARS. We support that the police be reformed to perform optimally like other institutions of government.

    “Rather than condemn them, we should advocate that government should give them the tools to do their work.

    “The government of Rivers State has isolated the FSARS for attack because they are used to working in unholy alliance with some of these institutions. This particular unit has refused to compromise and so, they have initiated a campaign of calumny against them. But the ordinary people of Rivers State appreciate the sacrifices of FSARS.

    “They have helped to control high violent crimes in Rivers State. For the state to spend all her resoruces to campaign against a unit of an agency, something must be wrong.”

    Peterside debunked that ship owners called for his sack, describing it as deliberate mischief.

    According to the NIMASA boss, over 80 per cent of the ministerial recommendation for restructuring had been implemented

    On maritime security, Peterside said there was a reduction in crimes, adding that the international community saw in Nigeria the will to tackle these challenges. That is why the conference was hosted in the country, he added.

    Peterside said with a little support,  Nigeria would surmount maritime crime in the GoG. The agency plans to train 280 sea fearers in Egypt and United Kingdom between this month and January 2018, adding that over 2500 persons have been sent to various institutions. About 1400 of them had graduated, Peterside said.

     

  • Wike steals the show at PDP convention with unity list

    Wike steals the show at PDP convention with unity list

    The Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, was the cynosure of all eyes at the Eagle Square, Abuja, venue of the national convention of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

    The governor was the rallying point at the convention with a predetermined list of candidates for all the 21 positions in the party’s national executive committee.

    Dubbed the “unity list,” the one-page document, which was widely circulated at the convention venue long before voting commenced, contained the names of the favoured candidates for each position.

    Going by the list, Prince Uche Secondus (Rivers) was listed as the choice for national chairman while Elder Yemi Akinwonmi (Ogun) was penciled down as his deputy (South).

    A former senator, Gamawa Babawo Garba (Bauchi) was anointed as deputy national chairman (North).

    Another former senator, Umar Tsauri (Katsina) was listed as preferred candidate for the National Secretary.

    One Agbo Emmanuel (Benue) was slated for the position of Deputy National Secretary.

    Aribisala Adewale (Ekiti) was chosen as National Treasurer, while one Alhaji Wada Masu (Kano) was penned down as his deputy.

    For Financial Secretary, Abdullahi Husseini Maibasara (Niger) was the choice with Irona Alphonsus Gerald (Imo) as his deputy.

    A candidate from Abia, Col. Austin Akobundu (retd) was the favourite for National Organising Secretary, while Hasan Yakubu (Nasarawa) was tagged as his deputy.

    The position of National Publicity Secretary was to go to Mr. Kola Ologbondiyan (Kogi) while Diran Odeyemi (Osun) was to be voted his deputy.

    For the position of National Legal Adviser, Emmanuel Enoidem (Akwa Ibom) was the unanimous choice with Ahmed Bello Liman (Sokoto) listed as deputy.

     

  • ‘Wike, others backing Secondus for selfish reasons’

    ‘Wike, others backing Secondus for selfish reasons’

    Former Minister for Mines and Steel Elder Wole Oyelese has warned leaders of the PDP and delegates not to fall into the trap set by River State Governor  Nyesom Wike and some governors at Saturday’s convention.

    He told reporters in Abuja that Wike and co were working to install Prince Uche Secondus who “is a  disaster waiting to happen. ”

    He said: ” I will not expect anybody that loves the PDP to support Secondus  because of his antecedents but there is a difference between loving the party and being selfish.

    ” Wike wants to build a political empire using the PDP as a platform hence his support for Secondus. Some governors who are also afraid of their shadows believe that they cannot manipulate Chief Bode George and believe Secondus could easily be manipulated.

    ” Wike and the other governors are unnecessarily anxious, they are not thinking about the future of the party. They should know that there is no room for experimentation, he said”.

    Oyelese also appealed to the PDP leaders in the South – South to see Nigeria as a country that must be united and not divided along any ethnic line.

    “They should begin to see South – South as an integral part of a united country “, Oyelese charged the South South PDP leaders.

    Oyelese challenged Secondus to come out with details of his achievements.

    He said as the organising secretary of the party,  Secondus caused more division in Oyo State PDP when he allegedly accepted three different results from three different groups  during a congress.

    He said he also in 2014 imposed an unpopular candidate for the governorship election in Oyo State making PDP to lose the state.

    “Is that the kind of man that will lead a great party like PDP or any other party for that matter? Anybody that could be so compromised should not be the chairman of PDP”, he said.

    Oyelese said Chief Bode George turned the fortune of the party round when he was the South West Vice Chairman of the party in 2003 winning five out of the six states in the region for the party.

    “George as PDP vice chairman in South West went round all the states about five times and by the next election in 2003, PDP won in five states out of six “. Let Secondus tell us what he achieved for the party.

    ” George is one individual who can sit down and he knows the people to be contacted in Sokoto,  Maiduguri, Calabar who can make the difference in the future of the party”, Oyelese said.

    A group within the PDP, the Committee for Justice and Fairness,  has called for the removal of Dr. Sunday Ornor as Secretary of the Convention Electoral Committee.

    In a statement yesterday by by its Chairman Mr. Etim Nsikak, the group said Onor who joined the party barely two months ago is an ally of Governor Nyesom Wike who is promoting Secondus’ chairmanship aspiration.

  • Wike, Makarfi conspiring against Southwest, says Babatope

    Wike, Makarfi conspiring against Southwest, says Babatope

    Southwest leaders of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) yesterday alleged that Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike and National Caretaker Committee (NCC) Chairman Ahmed Makarfi were conspiring to frustrate national chairmanship aspirants from the zone out of the contest.

    The stakeholders warned that the opposition party may risk the prospect of a post-convention crisis, if the trend of deliberate marginalisation of the Southwest is sustained.

    According to them, the adoption of a national chairmanship aspirant, Prince Uche Secondus, by the Southsouth stakeholders was in bad faith, adding that it was meant to frustrate the push for micro-zoning by the Southwest.

    Six chairmanship aspirants from the Southwest are in the race. They are former Deputy National Chairman Chief Olabode George, former Education Minister Prof. Tunde Adeniran, former Lagos State PDP governorship candidate Jimi Agbaje, former Sports and Special Duties Minister Prof. Taoheed Adedoja, former Ogun State Governor Gbenga Daniel and former Oyo State Governor Rashidi Ladoja.

    The zone has said that it is its turn to produce the chairman, which has been zoned to the larger South, pointing out that since 1999, no chieftain from Southwest has been chairman.

    Southsouth leaders, including Wike and former Foreign Minister Chief      Tom Ikimi, have objected to micro-zoning to Southwest, claiming that the party was sustained by Southsouth stakeholders during its period of distress.

    The spokesman of Southwest leaders, Chief Ebenezer Babatope, said the remarks by the Southsouth leaders were provocative and capable of sowing the seeds of division in the party.

    He said: “The so-called adoption of Mr Uche Secondus by some stakeholders in the Southsouth in Port Harcourt is a brazen call to arms against the Yoruba people. The crass insistence and the insulting protestation of Governor Nyesom Wike that the Southsouth is the zone providing succor to PDP is rather crude and insensitive. It is not true.

    “Right from the formation of the party, the Yoruba people have been consistent in their devotion and loyalty to the party. And they have been very supportive in financial fillip to the party. But, Wike is not really the one to blame. The fault solely lies with Senator Ahmed Makarfi, who is blinded by personal ambition and apparent greed that could not make him think clearly and selflessly about the issue at hand.

    “It is Makarfi who has deliberately mangled and distorted the micro-zoning tradition of our great party which has given the PDP well over 16 years of inclusive and all-embracing accommodating nature.”

    Babatope, a former Minister of Transport and Aviation, said the basis for party’s unity had been destroyed, adding that Southsouth leaders were fuelling suspicion and ruptured confidence.

    He stressed: “The pronouncement of the Southsouth stakeholders is not only provocative, it is divisive, skewed, untidy, and a blatant slide into tribal political arrangement. Do they think the good people of Oduduwa land will just sit down and take it? They are dead wrong.

    “The Yoruba people will never play a second fiddle to anyone. We will never be servile to anyone at all. And most importantly, we will never compromise on the position of the National Chairman of our great party. It is our turn. And this much must be respected.

    “Anything less than this is outrightly unacceptable. This is why Makarfi must recuse himself from the composition of all committees of the convention. Makarfi is not honest. He is working for Wike. That is the absolute truth.”

  • Convention: PDP leaders mount pressure on Wike to dump Secondus

    Convention: PDP leaders mount pressure on Wike to dump Secondus

    Some leaders of the Peoples Democratic Party ( PDP ) and other stakeholders within and outside the opposition party, want  Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State to switch  off his  support for Prince Uche Secondus, a  frontline contestant for the position of the national chairman of the party.

    Secondus, a former acting national chairman of the PDP, like Wike, is from Rivers State.

    It was learnt that the position of the PDP leaders, most of whom are members of the party’s Board of Trustees (BoT), as well as former political office holders in previous PDP administrations at the federal level, was conveyed to the Rivers State governor through some of his allies within the party who have been busy in the last few weeks trying to explain Wike’s roles in the build up to the party’s December convention.

    Party leaders, according to reliable sources, are of the opinion that the national chairmanship should be conceded to the Southwest in the interest of party unity and cohesion.

    “It is on the strength of this that some of our leaders have been appealing to the Governor to dump Secondus and support the Southwest’s bid to produce the national chairman,” a source told The Nation.

    It was gathered that two groups of PDP leaders reached out to the Governor during the week while a former President also urged him to consider withdrawing his support for Secondus in the interest of the party.

    The source said:”Following concerns over what could happen to the PDP after the convention if the Southwest is denied the national chairmanship, party stakeholders resolved to put their differences aside and reach out to all the gladiators in the ongoing politics of zoning with a view to appealing to them all to put the party first. One person that the leaders are currently mounting pressure on is Governor Nyesom Wike.

    “It is strongly believed that his alleged support for Secondus is the major hindrance to the resolution of the current impasse. And following denials by both the national chairman of the caretaker committee, Senator Ahmed Makarfi, and the Governor of Ekiti State, Ayodele Fayose, that they are not favouring Secondus, Wike, who has never denied supporting Secondus, is seen as the man to appeal to.

    “Some party chieftains from across the country have reached out to him. More people, even from outside the party, are also talking to him on the need for him to support the Southwest in producing the next national chairman. While it is not certain if he will agree, talks are still on and the events of the next few days will point to the direction the Governor is willing to go,” a PDP BoT member told The Nation on at the weekend.

    The Nation gathered that while many of the leaders and stakeholders are appreciative of the efforts and sacrifices of both Wike and Secondus in keeping the party together, especially during the trying periods, there is a strong belief among chieftains of the PDP that the loss of the national chairmanship by the Southwest at the convention is capable of igniting a fresh crisis in the party.

    Based on what many of the concerned chieftains are describing as the realities of the current era, permutations are that the PDP needs the Southwest in its fold in its quest to defeat the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in  the 2019 presidential election, and as such, everything must be done to keep the zone happy and committed to the party till then.

    A top source in the PDP said; “Secondus is a great guy. He is eminently qualified to lead the party at a time like this. But the realities of our situation suggest that we consider the Southwest for the position if we are to go to the 2019 presidential election as a united, virile and formidable political party. That informs the appeal to Governor Wike to reconsider his choice of candidate.

    “Governor Wike, Secondus and others in that camp are being appealed to. They are reputable statesmen and dependable party men and women. We have resolved to seek an amicable resolution of the logjam before the convention date. That is why party leaders and other statesmen are talking to all those involved in the current zoning issue. We are more optimistic than we were two weeks ago as the talks continue.”

  • PDP chairmanship: Jonathan, Wike fall apart over Secondus

    PDP chairmanship: Jonathan, Wike fall apart over Secondus

    Ahead of the make or break convention of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on December 9, former President Goodluck Jonathan and Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers State are at daggers drawn over Prince Uche Secondus’ bid to become the party’s national chairman.

    Jonathan, our correspondent gathered, is mobilising serious opposition against Secondus, a frontline chairmanship aspirant in the party who hails from the Ijaw-speaking part of Rivers State.

    The former President is said to be determined to shut down the ambition of Secondus, who enjoys the support of Wike and other South-South governors.

    The Nation investigation revealed that Wike is a key supporter of Secondus, a former  acting Chairman of the PDP National Working Committee (NWC).

    He was said to be angry that instead of closing ranks with him and other South-South governors to ensure that his fellow Ijaw brother becomes the next chairman, the former President was busy working against Secondus.

    It was gathered that Jonathan’s moves against Secondus were borne out of his cold war with Wike and another South-South governor, following his belief that the duo frustrated an initial plot by his key loyalists to return him as PDP’s Presidential candidate in 2019.

    Credible party sources said there was a failed grand plan by Jonathan’s loyalists, especially former ministers and other key aides who served under him, to hijack the party’s structure and pave the way for him to return as its standard bearer.

    A stalwart of the PDP, who spoke in confidence, said: “Jonathan has continued to blame the failure of the plan on Wike and the other South-South governor. He believes that the duo frustrated his ambition to return as the party’s presidential candidate.

    “His next move is to stop any aspirant for the position of national chairman who has links with Wike.

    “He does not want Secondus, knowing that Wike is the one behind his ambition.

    “Unknown to many people, Jonathan and Wike have fallen apart and Jonathan’s wife is no longer close to the governor of Rivers State.

    “If Secondus is out of the way, Jonathan and his wife, Patience, will go for the structures of the PDP, especially in Bayelsa  and Rivers states, to enable them to play key roles in the 2019 elections.”

    It was gathered that Jonathan was aligning with the PDP elements in the north against Secondus.

    The former President reportedly held various meetings with PDP stakeholders in the north, which has significant number of the delegates for the convention, to extract commitment from them that they would not cast their votes for Secondus.

    The party source added: “Jonathan is serious with his anti-Secondus campaign in the north. The north has many of the delegates and presidential aspirants, and Jonathan is reaching out to all of them.

    “While he is openly backing a former minister, Nenadi Usman, to become the national secretary of  the PDP, Jonathan wants any chairmanship aspirant other than Secondus to emerge victorious at the party’s national convention.

    “His actions are creating divisions in the party ahead of the convention. The Ijaw stakeholders in the party and the South-South are not happy with the former President for not supporting their own.

    “But like he failed in his previous plots, he will definitely fail again, because Secondus is unstoppable.”

    A group, the South-South Coalition for Good Governance, yesterday confirmed that Jonathan’s clandestine moves against Secondus was real, and condemned the actions of the former President.

    ýThe group, in a statement signed by its Co-ordinator, Mr. John Boma-Harrison, said theý grand plot was being hatched by Jonathan, using some of his northern allies.

    The group said that the former president was mobilising northern delegates against the candidacy of Secondus, despite Secondus being a southerner and a proud son of the Niger Delta.

    While condemning the former President’s “divisive attitude”, they wondered why he would move against his own Ijaw brother who enjoyed the overwhelming support of  majority of PDP supporters across the country.

    They observed that Secondus was tipped as the possible winner because of his popularity and his rich profile in party politics, adding that nothing would stop him.

    They advised the former president to desist from his anti-Secondus campaign, especially his attempt to mobilise northern delegates to vote against the candidacy of Secondus.

    They also called on the former president to concentrate on playing the role of a statesman rather than engage in “subterfuge and unbridled politickingý” that would further dent his image.

    They said: “We have uncovered a plot by former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan to scuttle the chances of the most accepted candidate for the position of national chairman of the PDP, Prince Uche Secondusý.

    “We have it on good authority that the former president is using northern delegates to mobilise against Secondus who hails from the south, and an Ijaw man like him.

    “We are disappointed in him, but we want to use this medium to advise him to retrace his steps.

    “He is a statesman, and he should play that role.”

  • Why Wike, Rivers Reps, others are after us — F-SARS Commander

    Why Wike, Rivers Reps, others are after us — F-SARS Commander

    The Commander of the Federal Special Anti-Robbery Squad (F-SARS) in Rivers State, Mr. Akin Fakorede, has revealed why Governor Nyesom Wike, PDP House of Representatives members from Rivers State and other PDP leaders in the state have declared war against him and operatives of F-SARS in the Niger Delta state.

    Fakorede, a Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP) and indigene of Ekiti State, reacting to the “politically-motivated” allegations levelled against him in a letter the PDP lawmakers wrote to the Inspector-General of Police (IGP) Ibrahim Idris recently, said his decision to uphold professionalism and always place emphasis on policing with integrity, pitted the political leaders against him and F-SARS operatives in the state.

    In a letter he wrote to the IGP and obtained exclusively by our correspot Harcourt yesterday, Fakorede said he had refused to aid or support the mindless killings of Rivers citizens by hired assassins and supporters of PDP in Rivers, adding that between 2015 and 2017, no fewer than 250 persons were either killed, severely injured or kidnapped by agents of Rivers State government.

    Fakorede said: “The only offence committed by the F-SARS Commander in Rivers State, which has remained a source of anger, irritation and vexation to the Rivers State Government, is denying the officials and their agents the opportunity and space to kill, maim, destroy and vandalise the lives and property of political opponents. This was the case before now, but not anymore.

    “The ongoing campaign of calumny, persecution and attacks in the print and electronic media against the Commander and operatives of F-SARS in Rivers State by the Rivers State Government and PDP supporters are attributed to the refusal of CSP Fakorede to support and aid the mindless killing of Rivers citizens by hired assassins and supporters of the PDP in Rivers State.

    “Whenever F-SARS is detailed to provide security patrol or establish presence at events organised by the members of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Governor Wike and his supporters in PDP get furious and infuriated.

    “F-SARS in Rivers State has never arrested, harassed or in any way impeded members of Governor Wike’s PDP from peacefully and lawfully conducting their political engagements.

    “Whenever the Rivers government or PDP members have any state function, operatives of F-SARS are always available to provide security when directed to do so.

    “On November 11, 2017, Governor Wike personally led his Chief Security Officer (CSO) to physically assault, injure and disarm operatives of F-SARS in Rivers State, who were in the convoy of the Minister of Transportation, Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, at Trans-Amadi Industrial Layout in Port Harcourt, only for Governor Wike to turn round and allege assassination attempt on his life.”

    Ten PDP members of the House of Representatives from Rivers State had sponsored a motion allegedly pushed by the representative of Obio/Akpor constituency in the House of Representatives, Kingsley Chinda, an ally of Wike, culminating in a letter that was written to the IGP, titled “Need to Investigate Acts of Harassment, Torture, Extra-Judicial Killings and other Unwholesome Practices of the F-SARS in Rivers State (HR.98/2017.”

    The letter with reference number NASS/CNA/105/Vol. 23/123, signed by the Acting Clerk to the National Assembly, Olayide Adelami, reads in part:: “The purpose of this letter is to convey the resolution of the House to you for further necessary action.

    “The House of Representatives deliberated on the above subject matter and consequently resolved to condemn in very strong terms the acts of harassment, torture, extra-judicial killings and other unwholesome practices by operatives of F-SARS in Rivers State and indeed other parts of the country.”

    Fakorede, responding to the allegations levelled against him by the federal PDP lawmakers in a letter to the IGP through the Commander, Special Tactical Squad, Force Headquarters, Abuja, declared that none of the allegations levelled against him and his men was true.

    In the letter with reference number CB:3380/RVS/ARS/VOL.2/26, Fakorede said: “F-SARS in Rivers State does not engage in the unwholesome practices of harassment, torture and extra-judicial killing of innocent citizens.

    “F-SARS in Rivers State observes at all times, places and in all its operations, (observes) high level of professionalism and human rights standard. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Rivers State office and other frequent visitors to F-SARS, Port Harcourt can attest to these.

    “While guns, otherwise referred to as personal weapons, are properly issued accoutrement for the performance of police duties, machetes and axes are not part of the police working tools. Machetes or axes seen with F-SARS operatives are those recovered from criminal elements at various distress points and crime scenes.

    “The allegation of Point Of Sale (POS) machines in possession of F-SARS operatives is false and malicious, as only commercial banks issue POS machines to designated customers and the unlawful use of POS is easily verifiable.

    “Also, the allegation of kidnapping and extorting N500,000 at ATM point in Port Harcourt is not true.

    “CSP Fakorede, being a lawyer of more than ten years post call, is very familiar with the relevant constitutional provisions, as observed by the House of Representatives.

    “I have consistently and continuously acted at all times and in all situations within the existing legal and professional framework.

    “During the December 10, 2016 rerun in Rivers State, CSP Fakorede did not harass, manhandle or intimidate any official of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

    “Ajibade Ademisoye was the head of a notorious armed robbery syndicate that had terrorised the East-West Road for a long time. He met his waterloo on September 25, 2017, when he led his gang in a gun battle against the police F-SARS team.

    “During the encounter, Ademisoye shot and wounded Sgt. Okoroma Gift (F/No. 443206).

    “Ademisoye died the way he lived – violently and brutally. Since the death of Ademisoye, reports of kidnapping and armed robbery on the Rivers-Bayelsa axis of the East-West Road have declined, almost to zero.

    “The allegations levelled against me (Fakorede) and operatives of F-SARS in Rivers State are false, malicious and wicked. They contain no iota of truth and are part of the evil propaganda orchestrated by some political actors, whose criminal antecedents are well known to Nigerians and who are no longer allowed to kill fellow citizens to further their political fortunes.”

    Commander of F-SARS in Rivers also reiterated that the Rivers governor had earlier alleged that he (Fakorede) was fighting him and posted to the state to kill him, while Wike also alleged that Rivers Police Commissioner, Zaki Ahmed, and the IGP equally planned to assassinate him and planting incriminating evidence against him, which were described by the police chiefs as tissue of lies.

    It will be recalled that the Rivers police commissioner described as “minor traffic infraction,” the bloody clash involving policemen attached to Wike and Amaechi, stressing that meeting of the two eminent personalities’ convoys was coincidental, while insisting that nobody’s life was threatened and that there was no attempt to assassinate any of the two Ikwerre sons.