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| Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi |
The political rivalry between the immediate past governor of Rivers state, Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi and his successor in office, Governor Nyesom Wike took a new turn since Wike was sworn into office on May 29, 2015. He has since intensified efforts at discrediting the Amaechi administration and hanging the tag of corruption around the former governor’s neck.
The animosity between the two erstwhile friends which has bred the ongoing conspiracy against Amaechi, is a fallout from the problem which began in 2011 when he nominated Wike, his kinsman into former President Goodluck Jonathan’s cabinet. Rather than show gratitude, Wike had lent himself to be used as a tool to fight Amaechi who was opposed to President Jonathan’s second term ambition.
Jonathan’s loss at the last Presidential election has made the quest for a pound of flesh all the more strident. A prominent Rivers state indigene Dr. Owen Braide who analysed the state government’s desperation to nail Amaechi, said it was like “reprisal attacks against Amaechi for leading the battle against the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)”. He wondered why the state should suffer because Amaechi supported President Buhari, a support that has borne fruits richly.
“While calling on the All Progressive Congress (APC) to ignore the campaign of calumny against Amaechi, Braide who leads a group known as Coalition of Concerned Rivers Professional (CORIP), noted that if Amaechi was indeed corrupt as the Rivers state government wants the world to believe, Jonathan whom he challenged severally on corruption issues would have exposed him long ago.
Amaechi had displayed exemplary courage in standing up to the duplicity in the PDP administration of former President Jonathan. He had led the exodus of top party leaders that opened the floodgates of mass decampments from the PDP in 2013. Within the APC, he was to prosecute the Buhari presidential campaign as Director-General.
On assumption of office, Governor Wike had cried that he inherited an empty treasury, accusing his predecessor of diverting the sum of N53billion of the state’s funds into private pockets. Many believe he was simply playing to the gallery in an effort to score cheap political points. Indeed Amaechi had left a handsome N10 billion for his successor to run with, according to figures released by his media team.
Rather than accusing Amaechi of corruption, the Rivers state APC says it is Wike that embodies corruption and mismanagement of the state’s resources. They allege that in his first 100 days, the new governor wasted the princely sum of N120 without anything to show for it apart from nurturing the many propaganda machineries he has set up to tarnish Amaechi’s name.
The party’s State Chairman, Dr. Davies Ibiamu Ikanya, said in Port Harcourt, that the amount was made up of the N30 billion Governor Wike borrowed shortly after assuming office, the N10 billion left by the past administration and over N80 billion that had accrued to the State from Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) and the Federation Account.
While accusing the governor of profligacy, corruption, maladministration and vendetta, the Rivers APC said the new administration has not initiated any meaningful project in Rivers State since assuming office in May 29th.
The fight has been dirty and virulent. While the All Progessives Congress and the Peoples Democratic Party, have since joined the fight on the sides of Amaechi and Wike, respectively, , several groups have also become available to be recruited for dirty jobs. On this, the Rivers state government is most complicit. Since the speculations started that Amaechi would be offered a federal cabinet appointment, a group by name, Integrity Group, has spearheaded the effort to ensure it never comes to pass.
Said to be well funded by the state administration, Integrity Group has severally bought airtime on national television networks to detail allegations of corrupt practices against Amaechi and went ahead to sponsor malicious publications against him. It has also invited the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission to go after Amaechi. Though it does not publicly confirm its relationship with the state government, those who know its leadership say the Integrity group is indeed, hand in gloves with the state government.
Following the eventual nomination of Amaechi as a federal minister, the group has gone on overdrive. Last week it petitioned President Muhammadu Buhari and the Senate to protest the nomination of the former Governor as a minister, alleging that he engaged in fraudulent practices during his tenure.
The group urged Amaechi to first clear his name over allegations of fraud concerning the sale of state power plants and conversion of proceeds of $302million, unlawful payment of over N4 billion to Clinoriv Specialist Hospital and unlawful enrichment of a firm, Messrs Collect Nigeria Ltd with public funds amounting to over N1.5billion.
The group’s Publicity Director, Mr. Livingstone Wechie, further alleged that Amaechi is currently being investigated by anti-corruption agencies for unlawful enrichment and conversion of over N70billion state resources.
Since the nomination was made public, the battle has shifted to the nation’s upper legislative chamber, where Senator Thompson Sekibo, PDP member and Wike acolyte last Wednesday rejected the nomination on the floor of the Senate. Sekibo had at the senate’s proceedings, submitted a petition against Amaechi. The petition was received in spite of deafening shouts by All Progressives Congress (APC) senators that it should be rejected.
In denying the allegations of corruption levelled against him by the Integrity Group, Amaechi pointed out that the group twisted and misrepresented facts in a manner designed to serve an ill-conceived purpose of maligning his integrity and administration.
His response which was signed by George Feyii and Chamberlin Peterside who were his former Secretary to the State Government (SSG) and Commissioner for Finance respectively, argued that there was no iota of truth in the allegations against him. “The facts presented from our records show clearly that the allegations of fraud and wrongdoing against Amaechi and his administration in the matter of the issues raised by the petitioners are baseless.
“The authors of the petition are either ignorant of the true facts or deliberately misrepresented and twisted the facts in order to tarnish the image of Amaechi and his administration for the purpose of achieving some heinous political agenda.
In buttressing its allegations of corruption and mismanagement of state resources against Wike, Rivers APC chairman said apart from setting up the ‘vindictive’ Judicial Commission of Inquiry and awarding contracts to his companies for the filling of potholes in Port Harcourt and Obio Akpor local government areas, Chief Wike cannot justify the expenditure of the over N120 billion he has so far received in the state.
They accused him of presenting roads constructed by the Amaechi's administration as his feats in his 100Days in office as no quality road can be constructed within six months talk less of 100days.
The Coalition of Concerned Rivers Professional (CORIP) has however joined in calling Governor Wike, former governor, Peter Odili, and wife of former President Goodluck Jonathan, Mrs Patience Jonathan to leave Amaechi alone.
Issues: (Click one by one road)
1. The Port Harcourt Mono Rail Project: Amaechi Replies Critics
2. Alleged Disappearance of Rivers State’s N53B Under Amaechi: The True Story
3. The CLINORIV SPECIALIST HOSPITAL: Amaechi Responds To Critics
4. Sale Of River State Power Plants: The True Story
5. The Controversial Rivers State Judicial Commission Of Inquiry
Issues: (Click one by one road)
1. The Port Harcourt Mono Rail Project: Amaechi Replies Critics
2. Alleged Disappearance of Rivers State’s N53B Under Amaechi: The True Story
3. The CLINORIV SPECIALIST HOSPITAL: Amaechi Responds To Critics
4. Sale Of River State Power Plants: The True Story
5. The Controversial Rivers State Judicial Commission Of Inquiry
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