OMEHIA Vs AMAECHI: DECONSTRUCTING PDP’S MINDSET IN RIVERS

Rivers State for some time now has continued to dominate headline news in national media both print and electronic and from the situation on ground, the state may not likely relinquish such position of shame in a hurry. The political situation remains fluid and extremely uncertain, not least because Supreme Court rulings with crucial implications for Celestine Omehia’s installation are expected at any moment. Despite continuing speculation about a peace deal with the former Speaker of the State House of Assembly and claimant to the title- deed of the PDP gubernatorial ticket in the last April poll, all manner of unexpected outcomes remain possible.

Unfolding events in the state are not only laughable but could rightly be described as act of perfecting evil genius. How else can anybody explain the strange happenings from Odili’s going to court to stop the EFCC from arresting him to account for his eight-year tenure to the proposed local government polls amid plethora of election-related court/tribunal cases?

Recent media reports had it that the former governor of the state, Dr Peter Odili dragged the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to court begging the Attorney General of the Federation to stop the Chairman of the commission, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu from arresting him for alleged financial crimes committed during his eight-year reign as the state chief executive.

That Odili went to court was very normal as the new president has been hammering on the rule of law and due process. However, most Nigerians did not observe the evil mischief perpetuated in the media reporting of the Odili’s case. Political analysts have been asking to know what actually happened and what exactly the court said because there were obvious mischiefs in blurring the true position of the court in the case as reported in the media.

The ex-governor had approached the court through an ex-parte application dated September 13 and urged the court to restrain the EFCC and its agents from arresting or prosecuting him, pending the determination of his application.

Odili, who also joined the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice as co-respondents to the suit No FHC /PH/CS/1291/2007, claimed that the anti-graft body was planning to prosecute him in pursuant to the commission’s alleged investigation of his tenure for eight years.

He also wanted the court to grant him an order of interlocutory injunction, restraining the EFCC from disseminating, publishing or circulating its report of investigation on his tenure in Rivers State. In the ex-parte application the former governor told the AGF “I wish to use this medium to appeal to you, as the Chief Law Officer of the nation, to see to it that nothing is done to tamper with the status quo, at this point.”

But Justice Regina Nwodo in her ruling on the application, refused to grant Odili’s prayers. This is the truth rather than the media charade being paraded all over the newspapers obviously paid for to confuse or rather deceive the Rivers people. But that is not the issue now.

The question is: why should Odili move to stop the anti-graft agency from arresting him for further investigations into his alleged corrupt practices during the eight years he presided over the affairs of the state? The EFCC had arrested, interviewed and released Odili’s business manager in Government House, his brother in-law and also his counsel few weeks ago and as the investigation progressed, one would have expected the former governor to volunteer to any inquest by the EFCC as a damage limitation measure rather than this present confrontational approach.

Why was the former speaker, Chibuike Amaechi questioned by the EFCC? Was it not for Odili’s sins? Odili in his wisdom could have used the courts to stop the arrest of Amaechi knowing fully well that the former had no case of his own to answer but for the ‘sins of the father’?

The proposed local government elections obviously looks like another well packaged mischief by the PDP in Rivers state.The idea to conduct the Council polls is due to fears that the Supreme Court may give verdict soon in favour of Amaechi against Omehia in APPEAL No.CA/A/70/07 with SUIT No. FHC/ABJ/CS/29/2007 filed by the former speaker challenging the judgment of the Appeal Court.

How can anybody think of conducting free and fair grassroot elections in the existing tensions in the state if not to cause more crisis and blood shed in the state? It is very pathetic that politicians for selfish reason are ready to mortgage the lives, peace and security of the entire people of the state in their quest to grab public office.

The moves to conduct elections into the Councils has been interpreted as a desperate bid to position its cronies should the Supreme Court nullify the governor’s candidature and return Amaechi as the State Chief Executive. Meanwhile, there are indications that the decision of the PDP- led government to go ahead with the elections in the next few weeks may affect the fragile peace in the state as gangs ‘cultists’ may once again be engaged for massive rigging as has always been the case during elections in the state.

According to Section 14(2) of the PDP Constitution, ‘‘vacancies must be declared two months before the national convention or various congresses.’’

The PDP at the National level has ordered for the immediate resignation of its officers at all the levels. The Constitution of the party requires that as a prelude to the National Convention of the Party slated for December 8, 2007, the National Chairman of the Party, Ahmadu Ali must file his notice of resignation by October 8, 2007, two months before the Convention. Other executives of the party from the ward to the zonal levels are expected to file their notice of resignation at least two months to the ward or zonal elections.

All elected officers of the party were expected to have filed their letters of resignation by September 5, 2007 while the ward congresses to choose new officers to run the affairs of the party at the ward levels including authenticating documents for prospective aspirants would be conducted on November 10, 2007. Also, the current Local Government officers were expected to have resigned by September 10 for the congresses on November 10, 2007. The State officers were to file theirs on September 17, 2007, while the elections in the state would take place on November 17.

So if the PDP in Rivers state followed the lay down procedure for ward, zone and state congress elections, it legally means that the Party does not have officers at the ward, Local Government and state levels as such it was surprising why the Rivers state government would decide to conduct elections even against the constitution of his party. The answer is simple: these are part of the attempts to cow the Supreme Court into the valley of ‘for the sake of peace, let the status quo be’.

Needless to say that The Supreme Court’s judgment on Amaechi’s appeal will also have a bearing on how the political crisis in Rivers state unfolds. The court could rule, for example, that Amaechi was actually the rightful owner of the PDP gubernatorial ticket in the last April election. Such a ruling would be bad news for the current government in the state and could persuade the sitting governor to push for full imposition of emergency rule as a last resort. Even this drastic step would by no means be the only possible outcome. Bizarrely, this is just to show how pathetic the political crisis in Rivers state has reached that even the oddest possibilities are now being considered just because a few cabals want to grab and remain in power.

 

ZUBBY ALAZUA

LAGOS, NIGERIA

(alazua3000@yahoo.com)