The Rivers State Government has berated the defeated Rivers APC
Governorship Candidate, Dakuku Peterside and his political party for
working dangerously to damage the integrity of the Supreme Court
simply because it lost a verdict on the principles of the
electoral act and the constitution.
The State Government also stated that the defeated APC Governorship
candidate and his political party are worried about Governor Wike’s
warning to election riggers because they have perfected the ugly plot to
rig and steal the mandate of the Rivers people during the rerun
legislative elections.
Addressing Journalists at a Press Conference on Tuesday at the
Government House, Port Harcourt to respond to the vicious attack on
the Judiciary, Governor Wike and the Rivers people by the defeated APC
Governorship candidate, Rivers State Information Commissioner, Dr Austin
Tam-George regretted that Dakuku Peterside could exhibit his incoherent
character to the level of spewing falsehood and irresponsible propaganda
against the judiciary and the Supreme Court which sustain democracy
and good governance.
The State Government described as unfortunate and demeaning the false
allegation that Governor Wike influenced the Supreme Court judgement.
“These allegations are scornful, demented and laughable”, it said.
The statement read: ” Rotimi Amaechi, Dakuku’s mentor is known to have a
reputation of boasting about judicial verdicts before they are given. See
the publication on page 11 of the Nigerian Pilot of Monday January 25 2016
by Abia Justice Forum. Rotimi Amaechi has never bothered to deny any of
the allegations credited to him in the publication.
” Why then did Governor Wike lose his appeal to the Supreme Court on the
issue of proper venue where the Rivers State Governorship Election
Petition Tribunal should sit? After all, the distinguished Honourable
Justice Mary Odili was on that seven-man panel of the Justices of the
Supreme Court that dismissed Governor Wike’s appeal. Then, “there was
nothing fundamentally wrong with the Supreme Court”. Now that she was not
even on the panel that heard the Rivers State Governorship appeal, she is
accused of interference. We ask again, was Justice Odili also the one that
influenced Akwa Ibom, Ogun, Delta, Abia, and other States’ Governorship
appeal at the Supreme Court?
” Clearly the advice that was given by Dr. Peter Odili a medical
practitioner and leader of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Rivers
State was purely fatherly which Governor Wike took and it served him well
unlike Dr. Dakuku Peterside and his master Rotimi Amaechi who never seek
wise Counsel or allow themselves to be guided by wise counsel.
“Moreover, Governor Wike just took a trip down memory lane naming many
persons who assisted him on his route to victory. He never named
Honourable Justice Mary Odili as one of such persons. He named Dr. Peter
Odili CON. Why pick on the noble Justice?”
On the shocking support for the outrageous plan to steal the mandate of
Rivers people through rigging by the APC, the Rivers State Government
declared:
” The Governor knew that given the level of support he has in Rivers
State, the determination of the APC to win Rivers State at all cost in
order to have at least one oil producing state in its kitty and the will
of Rivers people and Niger Deltans to resist the rigging overtly
threatened by the APC to procure victory there surely would be violent in
the event of a re-run.
“As a patriotic son of Rivers State and the Niger Delta, Governor Wike
chose to sacrifice his ambition in order that defenceless Rivers People
and Niger Deltans may live along the lines of the Jonathanian philosophy
that his ambition is not worth any persons’ blood. We ask, what is wrong
with such a noble sacrifice? Must Dr. Dakuku and Mr. Amaechi in their
thirst for blood refuse to see nobility in self sacrifice?”
While saying that the defeated APC Governorship candidate and his
political party are yet to accept defeat during the election and the
Supreme Court judgement, the state government said the statement by
Dakuku Peterside was childish and primed to misinform the people.
“Dr. Dakuku Peterside and his APC have not accepted the Supreme Court
verdict and would do anything to destroy the Supreme Court and the
integrity of its Justices for daring to uphold existing jurisprudence.
” The attack on Governor Wike who merely warned that nobody should come to
Rivers State to rig elections is contrived to misinform and create
confusion so that the APC would, as promised by their National Chairman to
Dakuku Peterside, forcefully intervene in Rivers State by means of
election rigging in order to win all the seats up for re-election in the
State Assembly with a view to impeaching Governor Wike”, the statement
read.
The Rivers State Government said that Governor Wike has never insulted
President Buhari. It added that the governor supports the fight
againstcorruption, but will never support selective prosecution of the
war.
The Rivers State Government pointed out that specific anti-corruption
steps have been taken in the state to recover stolen resources. It
pointed out the setting up of a judicial commission of Inquiry which
indicted former Governor Rotimi Amaechi for massive corruption.