News
How I Made Wike Minister, Opara, Deputy Speaker – Amaechi
Governor Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi addressing APC faithful
Rivers State Governor and Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, Rt Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi has told the Ogbakor Ikwerre Convention, the socio-cultural body of Ikwerre people in Rivers State, the role he played in the appointment of the Supervising Minister of Education, Chief Nyesom Wike as Minister and Chief Austin Opara as Deputy Speaker, House of Representatives in 2003.
Like Amaechi, both Wike and Opara are from the Ikwerre ethnic group, the largest ethnic group in Rivers State.
However, both Wike and Opara are now leading the fight against Amaechi in Rivers State.
Amaechi spoke last Sunday evening at the 199th Convention of the Ikwerre Cultural Oganization, worldwide held at Ahai Ogbakiri in Emohua Local Government Area of the state.
He lamented that, despite his contributions to give the Ikwerre ethnic nationality a face-lift and give it a pride of place in Rivers State and on the national stage, he had been betrayed by his brothers who are conniving with outsiders to fight him for their personal selfish interests.
“Gradually, we are beginning to wind up in government, and I have started counting either my blessings or losses, one-by-one as a Governor of Rivers State for all Rivers people but from Ikwerre ethnic nationality. I have started asking: What have I done for Ikwerre people? And I am convinced that the Ikwerre history cannot be complete if my name is not mentioned.
“I am not saying this because I am the governor. As speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, I ensured that most partS of Ikwerre have roads, the ones that didn’t get then, when I became governor, they got roads. Only a few communities may not have roads in Ikwerre now, and before we go, I will make sure they have roads like most parts of the state. We will ensure that those communities have roads. As Speaker, I asked for the grading of this Ogbakiri Road”.
Amaechi said, “you will ask me apart from these, what have you done? The basic thing we need in Ikwerre is empowerment. You will not recognise it until you take the list of our scholarship programme in the state and know how many of our children are overseas studying. They are quite many and I have met them at different airports. How I know them is because, they greet me in Ikwerre when they see me.”
“I have asked myself, apart from those who are fighting me, how many Ikwerre sons and daughters have one way or the other benefitted from me? When you see Nyesom Wike, tell him I nominated him to be minister. I have one witness sitting here today. Chief Sampson Agbaru is my witness. He led other prominent sons and daughters of Ikwerre to see President Goodluck Jonathan and the President told them that he had not known Nyesom Wike from Adam, that when Amaechi brought Wike’s name, he (Jonathan) opposed it, the President opposed the appointment of my former Chief of Staff as minister.”
“He (President Jonathan) opposed him (Wike) and I begged President Jonathan severally and consistently because I wanted Wike to be Minister. But today, Nyesom Wike has betrayed me for selfish reasons.
“Also, by the grace of God, I made Chief Austin Opara, Deputy Speaker of House of Representatives. God used me. Prominent politicians met me and told me that there cannot be two captains in a boat, if I make Austin Opara, Deputy Speaker, I might not be the political leader in Ikwerre. But I said, I want my people to benefit, and I picked Austin’s name, and we battled to make him Deputy Speaker of House of Representatives in 2003.”
The state chief executive further lamented how Opara allegedly master minded his arrest and detention in 2006.
“In 2006, I was arrested through the machinery of Austin Opara and was detained for one day, meanwhile, he was supposedly one of my supporters to be governor.
“Among those I have also helped, who are now fighting me, is Prof. Simeon Achinewhu, as Vice-Chancellor of Rivers State University of Science and Technology. Achinewhu was sick and at the point of death, and I flew him out of the country for medical treatment, but he is now one of those accusing me and writing against me in the papers.
“For those I gave contracts, they are so many for me to mention, but, if they deny, call the Ogbakor Ikwerre Convention and summon them, I will come here and mention them one-by-one. For instance, Paul Nwonodi is one of them. He is now fighting me and writing and signing all sorts of petition against me. They are people without character, they have no character. They would easily betray anyone.”
“Also, when Ikwerre people met at Aba-Ndele, and told me they wanted roads, I went to the governor (then Dr Peter Odili) and pushed, and roads were constructed. The ones the governor did not do, when I became governor, I did them in the same way as I was doing the roads in other parts of the state. I have told Chief Andrew Uchendu that before the expiration of my tenure, I will make sure I complete all internal roads in Isiokpo and I am also considering the internal roads in Ogbakiri.”
He equally urged the Ogbakor Ikwerre to join forces with other well-meaning Rivers people to resist the plan by the Federal Government to intimidate and influence the votes through the use of police to harass innocent citizens during the elections.
“We will survive the federal might and the way to survive it is to mobilise our people. We must prepare now to chase away those against our people. The President says, he is an Ijaw man, he should not take the oil wells from the Kalabari people”, Amaechi said.
Amaechi also promised that he would remain a detribalised leader until his tenure expires in 2015.
Speaking, President General of Ogbakor Ikwerre Convention, Professor Augustine Ahiazu described the current wave of politicking in the state as alarming, saying that it can cause permanent injury to individuals and the various communities.
“Bitterness in politics can result in undue hatred among friends and relations. It can breed division and polarisation. It can also bring conflict and destruction. Ikwerre sons and daughters should come together to fight any plans for violence in Port Harcourt, because any violence in Port Harcourt is violence in Ikwerre land”, Professor Ahiazu said.
Rivers State Head of Service, Dr (Mrs) Inyingi Brown, has called on rural communities in the State to embrace the Rural Access and Agricultural marketing project (RAAMP) with a view to improving their living conditions.
This follows the ongoing sensitization campaign by the State Project Implementation Unit (SPIU) visits to Degema, Abonnema, Afam headquarters of Degema, Akuku Toru and Oyigbo Etche and Omuma local government areas respectively.
Dr Brown who was represented by the Deputy Director, Special Duties in her office, Mrs Dein Akpanah, said RAAMP was initiated by the Federal Government and World Bank to economically empower rural dwellers.s
She said the World Bank understands the plights of rural farmers and traders in the State, and therefore came up with the programme to address them.
According to her, RAAMP will improve the conditions of farmers, traders and fishermen, and therefore, behoves on every rural communities in the State to embrace the programme.
The Head of Service also said the programme would support the youths to be gainfully employed while bridges and roads will be built to link farms and fishing settlements.
Also speaking, the State project coordinator, Mr Joshua Kpakol, said the programme has the potential of creating millionaires among farmers and fishermen in the State.
Kpakol who was represented by Engr. Sam Tombari, said RAAMP would help farmers and fishermen to preserve their produce.
According to him, the project will build cold rooms and Silos for preservation of crops and fishes while access roads will also be created to link farmers and fishermen to the market.
He, however, warned them against any act that will lead to the suspension of the projects by the World Bank.
Kpakol particularly warned against acts such as kidnapping, marching ground, gender based violence and child labour, adding that such acts if they occur may lead to the cancellation of the project by the World Bank.
During the visit to Oyigbo local government area, Mr Joshua Kpakol, said the team was there to let them know how they will benefit from the Raamp.
The coordinator who was personally at Oyigbo said the World Bank introduced the project to check food insecurity in the State.
He said already 19 states in Nigeria are already benefitting from the project and called on them to embrace the project.
Meanwhile, stakeholders in the three local government areas have commended the World Bank for including their areas in the project.
They, however, complained over the incessant attacks by pirates on their waterways.
At Degema, King Agolia of Ke kingdom said land was a major problem in the kingdom.
King Agolia represented by High Chief Alpheus Damiebi said many indigenes of the kingdom are willing to go into farming but are handicapped by lack of land.
Also at Degema, the representative of the Omu Onyam Ekeim of Usokun Degema kingdom, Osoabo Isaac, said Degema has embraced the programme but needed more information on the implementation of the programme.
Similarly, while High Chief Precious Abadi advised that the project should not be narrowed to only crop farming, a community women leader, Mrs Orikinge Eremabo Otto, called for the construction of cold rooms in all fishing settlements in the area.
At Abonnema, Mr Diamond Kio linked the problem of the area to incessant piracy along waterways.
He also expressed fears over the possibility of the project being hijacked by politicians.
Also at Abonnema, a stakeholder, Ikiriko Kelvin, called on the World Bank to design an agricultural project that will suit the riverine environment, while at Oyigbo, HRH Eze Boniface Akawo expressed satisfaction with the project.
John Bibor
The political mudslinging between the Senate leadership and Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan continued yesterday as the Senate named Senator Aniekan Bassey as the new Chairman of the Committee on Diaspora and Non-Governmental Organisations.
Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, announced the appointment during yesterday’s plenary, confirming Bassey’s replacement of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, who is currently on suspension.
Akpoti-Uduaghan was reassigned to the Diaspora and NGOs Committee in February after she was removed as Chair of the Senate Committee on Local Content during a minor reshuffle.
Bassey is the senator representing Akwa Ibom North-East Senatorial District.
Although no reason was given for her removal yesterday, the change is believed to be connected to her unresolved suspension.
In May, Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court ordered her reinstatement and directed her to tender an apology to the Senate.
However, the Senate has insisted it has not received a certified true copy of the court judgment.
Akpoti-Uduaghan who represents Kogi Central, has yet to resume her legislative duties despite a recent court ruling that voided her suspension.
In a televised interview on Tuesday, Akpoti-Uduaghan said she was awaiting the Certified True Copy of the judgment before officially returning to plenary, citing legal advice and respect for institutional process.
Although the Federal High Court described her suspension as “excessive and unconstitutional”, a legal opinion dated July 5 and attributed to the Senate’s counsel, Paul Daudu (SAN), argued that the ruling lacked any binding directive to enforce her reinstatement.
Akpoti-Uduaghan, one of only three female senators in the current assembly, said the continued delay in allowing her return was not only a denial of her mandate but also a blow to democratic representation.
“By keeping me out of the chambers, the Senate is not just silencing Kogi Central, it’s denying Nigerian women and children representation. We are only three female senators now, down from eight,” she said.
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