The Bayelsa State government on Wednesday distanced itself from the
\nordeals of a civil servant, currently serving with the Bayelsa State
\nMinistry of Justice, Jonah Okah, who is facing trial at a magistrate court
\n7 in Yenagoa, over criminal defamation of Mr. Ritchie Etonye, Government
\nHouse accountant.<\/p>\n
While advising him to face trial, the government insisted that he
\ninflicted his present ordeals on himself.<\/p>\n
A statement issued in Yenagoa by the State Commissioner for Information
\nand Orientation, Hon. Jonathan Obuebite, regretted that someone who is on
\nthe payroll of the government would be claiming to be a loyalist of a
\nbeleaguered opposition figure (Timipre Sylva).<\/p>\n
The government told Okah to stop dragging the judiciary to the mud but
\nseek for ways to get himself out of the criminal defamation of
\ncharacter,Mefor which he is facing trial.<\/p>\n
“Neither Governor Dickson or any member of his government is directly or
\nindirectly influencing Okah’s case. It is purely a matter between him and
\nRichie Etonye, an accountant”, he stated.<\/p>\n
Obuebite saidJonah Okah was at various times absent at his duty post
\nduring the last governorship election \u200ebut was visible in political party
\nrallies, using the said party’s (APC’s) insignia without any sanction.<\/p>\n
The statement reads:<\/p>\n
“Few days ago I issued a statement entitled: “STOP BLAMING US FOR OKAH’s
\nFATE\u200e — BAYELSA STATE GOVERNMENT”, this was after I discovered the
\ntissues of lies being peddled by some disgruntled elements\u00a0 in the social
\nmedia concerning Okah’s arrest and remand in prison.<\/p>\n
“Surprisingly, Okah himself has issued a statement which his sponsors said
\nhe “smuggled from his prison cell”. \u200eIn the statement the detained civil
\nservant turned politician accused Governor Seriake Dickson of master
\nminding the ugly fate that has befallen him.<\/p>\n
“The latest provocative accusation is an unwarranted attack on Governor
\nDickson and it is not only spurious but lacks all forms of credible
\nsubstance. As a follow up to my earlier statement and a reply to Okah’s
\ndiatribe I wish to again state as follows:<\/p>\n
“Neither Governor Dickson or any member of his government is directly or
\nindirectly influencing Okah’s case. It is purely a matter between him and
\nRichie Etonye, an accountant.<\/p>\n
“Also Governor Dickson and the Bayelsa State Government do not control the
\nNigeria Police Force so the style of Okah’s arrest could not have been
\norchestrated.<\/p>\n
“Okah should recall that the home of the man who took him to court was
\nalso recently invaded by over 50 policemen in a commando style acting on a
\nfalse alarm.<\/p>\n
“The government of Bayelsa State is not at war with anyone and for someone
\nlike Okah he is too small a person to waste valuable material time on. In
\nall ramifications the embattled daytime civil servant and nighttime
\npolitician is very inconsequential.<\/p>\n
“It is sad that for someone who is on the payroll of the government as at
\ntoday, is claiming to be a loyalist of a beleaguered opposition figure.
\nEverywhere in the world Civil Servants loyalty is with the government of
\nthe day which is why they are often refered to as AGIP (Any Government In
\nPower)<\/p>\n
“Jonah Okah was at various times absent at his duty post during the last
\ngovernorship election \u200ebut was visible in political party rallies, using
\nthe said party’s insignia without any sanction so why should he be
\npunished now?<\/p>\n
“He should stop dragging the judiciary to the mud but seek for ways to get
\nhimself out of the criminal defamation of character case he has found
\nhimself in.\u00a0 We also caution Okah’s patrons to desist from the blame game
\nand stop using his travails as a fresh means to commence another round of
\nhate and inciting campaign against this administration.<\/p>\n
“Finally, as a government we will not be distracted by the antics of those
\nwho do not mean well for us and the state. Our focus is to deliver on our
\nmandate and His Excellency Honourable, Henry Seriake Dickson is leading
\nthat course rightfully.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The Bayelsa State government on Wednesday distanced itself from the ordeals of a civil servant, currently serving with the Bayelsa State Ministry of Justice, Jonah Okah, who is facing trial…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":52966,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-52965","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"yoast_head":"\n