Ahead of the March 28 General elections, Rivers State Governor and
Chairman of the Nigeria Governor’s Forum, Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi
has accused President Goodluck Jonathan and the Peoples Democratic Party,
PDP of breaching the Abuja Peace accord. He accused Mr. President and the
PDP of inciting violence in the country.
Amaechi stated this Wednesday when the Special Representative of the
United Nations Secretary-General for West Africa and High level
Representative of the Secretary-General to Nigeria, Dr. Mohamed Ibu
Chambas led other top UN Diplomats and delegation on a courtesy visit to
the Governor in Port Harcourt.
Amaechi also accused the President wife, Mrs. Patience Jonathan of taking
over control of the Police in Rivers State.
According to him, “Members of APC have been crying out loud to the country
and the world. In Rivers State, the wife of the President, who is from
Rivers State has taken over the control of the Police Force. On Tuesday
night, the Commissioner of Police attempted to arrest a member of the
Rivers State House of Assembly and the reason for doing that is to ensure
that APC members don’t come out on election day. And as I speak to you
now, the lawmaker has moved into Government House for protection. More so,
we have over 400 APC members in Police detention. The other day, I asked
the Police Commissioner and he
told me that those arrested were criminals and why should I ask him to
release them. Do we only have criminals in APC?”, Amaechi queried.
“What about the period when the APC gubernatorial candidate Dr. Dakuku
Peterside led members of the Party to a rally in Okrika. The APC campaign
train was shot at, by hoodlums and PDP members. Now, ask the Commissioner
of Police if he carried out any arrest? In that attack it was observed
that the PDP killed a Policeman and injured several APC members. The
Commissioner of Police is totally helpless”, Amaechi explained.
Continuing Amaechi said, “In the same vein, on Tuesday, PDP hoodlums went
to the House of the Commissioner of Power, Hon. Augustine Nwokocha with
Military Uniforms and killed his relations, injured others and further
burnt down the house of his Personal Assistant. All these attacks and
impunity can measure that the elections can be free, but, may not be
fair”.
“The APC is not running election against PDP all over the states across
the country. The APC is running election against the institutions of
government. And they include; the Police and the Military. The Chief of
Army Staff, Lt. General Kenneth Minimah is from Rivers State. As I talk to
you now, he has deployed Special Military to Opobo/Nkoro local government
area where he comes from, and incidentally, the APC guber candidate, Dr.
Dakuku Adol Peterside comes from Opobo. So, you virtually expect
resistance and nobody is concerned about the plight of APC. The APC is
threatening to go back to the International Criminal Court (ICC) where the
United Nations will witness how President Jonathan and the PDP are using
the Police and the Military to trigger violence”, Amaechi said.
Governor Amaechi also condemned and described as totally unacceptable and
unconstitutional the conspiracy between President Jonathan and the PDP
against the Federal High Court and Court of Appeal Judgments restricting
President Jonathan from deploying the Military in the March 28th and April
11, 2015 general elections.
According to him, “Imagine, there are three Judgments passed so far by the
Federal High Court in Sokoto, the Federal High Court in Lagos and the
Court of Appeal in Lagos restricting the President from deploying soldiers
for the general elections. The constitution of Nigeria says, the President
can’t deploy soldiers for elections.”
“It is important that you put this incidents on record. I don’t know why
the battle is here, and may be the battle is here in Rivers State because
in the past PDP used to score two million votes. And now it appears it
will no longer be the same as usual. But that does not mean that lives of
innocent people should be lost. I was there when President Jonathan and
General Muhammadu Buhari signed the Abuja Peace accord. Unfortunately,
President Jonathan and the PDP are yet to keep any accord or any alphabet
of that accord. In the case of APC, the Party is keeping to the accord and
also restricting our members and supporters from violating the accord.”
I have a friend who tells me that everybody has a fundamental right to air
his or her grievances, and that right ends at my nose where my right
begins. The PDP has being swinging their rights and it has touched our
nose continuously with impunity. We are believing God-Almighty that APC
will win well and go to sleep”, Amaechi noted.
Amaechi equally observed with concern a statement credited to his Deputy
Governor, Engineer Tele Ikuru at a PDP function in Port Harcourt saying,
“even if it means for the Presidency and PDP to spill blood to win the
elections, they should go ahead”, describing the statement as malicious
and capable of inciting violence.
“In Nigeria, Politicians use money to buy guns. It is possible that the
PDP can even provide military uniforms to hoodlums to carry arms against
the APC. But, the National Executive Council of APC is far from that crude
attitude and has resolved that the party must seek ways of minimizing the
rising spate of crisis in the country and ensure the PDP do not tamper
with the elections but to ensure free and fair elections. The Propensity
for violence is more on the side of the PDP. In APC, we have elites,
educated and decent minded followers, and if you ask me, I will urge the
United Nations to call President Jonathan to order. I think it is
important that you take this report to the United Nations
Secretary-General to ask President Jonathan to work within the ambit of
the nation’s constitution and ensure peace in the country”, Amaechi said.
Governor Amaechi who also doubles as the Director General of the
Buhari/Osinbajo Campaign organisation also described as unacceptable the
involvement of Head of Service of the Federation in Partisan Politics when
he said, “Directors of Ministries and the Federal Civil Service should go
home and make sure they deliver President Jonathan in the general
elections”.
Earlier, the Special Representative of the United Nations
Secretary-General for West Africa and High level Representative of the
Secretary-General to Nigeria, Dr. Mohamed Ibu Chambas said the delegation
was in Nigeria to sensitize and advise Political Parties and candidates
for the election to ensure a level playing ground.
“We are focusing on the elections because of the concern of the
international community. The focus globally is on Nigeria, especially on
the elections. The Presidential Candidates, President Jonathan and General
Muhammadu Buhari have signed a peace accord ahead of the elections. They
have advised their followers to do the same process and INEC should also
be allowed to conduct a free and fair elections. The UN has organized a
workforce to assist INEC conduct credible elections in the country”, Dr.
Chambas said.