Presidency Jittery Over PDP Governors’ Visit To Amaechi …Four Northern Govs Seek Mbu’s Sack; Ogonis Condemn Attack, Hail Amaechi; Attack, A Threat To Democracy -Semenitari, Rep Berates Violent Politicians

There were jitters in the presidency over the visit of governors of Adamawa, Jigawa, Kano and Niger to Rivers State Governor and Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, Rt. Hon Chibuike Amaechi in Port Harcourt, yesterday .
Members of the Nyesom Wike’s campaign organisation -Grassroot Democratic Initiative GDI, had mobilised hoodlums to disrupt the visit. Chanting solidarity songs in favour of the presidency, they attempted to attack Governor Amaechi and his team.Wike had boasted after the failed impeachment attempt at the Rivers State House of Assembly that he would set Rivers State ablaze and render it ungovernable. A four litre keg suspected to contain some acid was found beside the mob. Rivers State Police Commissioner Mbu Joseph Mbu denied knowledge of the mob’s presence although the police stated that the airport is a public place and everyone has a right to visit freely and unhindered. This portends grave danger and has far reaching implications for our fledgling democracy says Ibim Semenitari, Rivers State Commissioner of Information and Communications.
Four Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) governors from Kano,Adamawa, Niger and Jigawa states had yesterday defied protesters alleged to be hired by the Grassroot Democratic Initiative(GDI) to besiege the Port Harcourt International Airport ahead the visit.
The four governors including, Dr. Babangida Aliyu of Niger, Dr. Sule Lamido of Jigawa, Dr. Rabiu Kwankwaso of Kano and Murtala Nyarko of Adamawa State, had visited the state for a solidarity visit to Governor Amaechi, who is also the Chairman of Nigeria Governor’s Forum.
But before their arrival, Governor Amaechi had arrived earlier in the morning to wait for his guests who later arrived in the midst of the protesters that thronged the arrival lounge of the airport.
Attempts by some of the protesters to bar the visiting governors as they pelted vehicles in the convoy with stones and iron proved abortive as  the visitors left the airport to visit some of the developmental projects executed by Governor Amaechi before entering into a closed door meeting by noon in Government House.
After their meeting ended 3pm the four governors issued a joint press statement and visited few other project sites before heading back.
Part of the statement reads:’’ We have come to visit with our colleague and brother the Governor of Rivers State, Rt Hon Chibuike Amaechi, chairman, Nigeria Governors Forum.
‘’The visit is to ascertain for ourselves some of the things we have read in papers, seen on television and heard on radio which are threats to peace, security and democracy.
“ We are pleased to notice the peaceful atmosphere in town and that people in the state are going about their normal business and that the governor and government are in charge. This is especially reassuring as opposed to the organised protest by a handful of persons at the Port Harcourt Airport when we arrived.
“ We commend the House of Representatives for its proactive leadership in the crisis and appreciate the Senate committee’s thoroughness in addressing the matter. We wish to call on the Inspector-General of Police to hearken to the voice of reason and immediately redepoly and discipline Commissioner Mbu. His actions smirk of unprofessionalism and political partisanship which is unbecoming of his office.
‘’ With the way the police is being used and abused and with officers like Mbu in the force , we do not see the need for state governments to fund an antagonistic police and may be forced to reconsider our position on the financial contribution of the states towards the funding of the Nigeria Police. Arising from the actions of the police and Mr. Joseph Mbu in Rivers State, the call for state police as a constitutional provision has become a necessity.
“ We note that events in Rivers State have again brought to the fore the question of true federalism and the need for institutions derived from constitutions be allowed to function without undue interference .
As federating units we must be allowed the space to guarantee our people sustainable development as provided by the constitution. We acknowledge the great work Governor Amaechi and his team are doing in Rivers State and commend his maturity and calm even in face of apparent persecution.
Meanwhile, Pan-Ogoni group, the Ogonis in the Diaspora Organsation (ODO) has condemned the attack on the visiting governors.
Executive Director of the body, Chief Ambrose Kii, who reacted to the attack, yesterday described it as an act of desperation and cautioned against the extremities in the on-going crisis in the state, which he said, was engineered by a joint force of repression against the state.
He cautioned against the inordinate drive for 2015 in the state, and noted that leadership succession in the state should be based on equity and not greed as only those groups that are yet to produce the  governor of the state should have justified claim and urged the people of Ogoni to remain supportive to the Rivers State Governor, Chibuike Amaechi who he described as a true democrat.
Rivers State Commissioner for Information and Communications, Mrs. Ibim Semenitari said attack on the convoy of Governor Chibuike Amaechi during the visit of the Northern governors yesterday at Port Harcourt Airport is a threat to democracy.
According to the commissioner, the protesters were targetting to cause breach of peace that may lead to the declaration of state of emergency in the state.
“ Their action lay credence to the fact that some people are anxious to have a state of emergency in Rivers State, especially when you go by the utterances credited to certain persons in certain quarters who have sworn that they will make Rivers State ungovernable,’’ she remarked.
While praising Governor Amaechi and his supporters for being calm even in the face of aggression, Semenitari wondered what would have happened if both anti and pro-Amaechi supporters had clashed, “ I think by the facts available to me, they have been paid to come there. They were paid to come to the airport but my worry is that this is very disconcerting, and it is rather curious politics at play. And we must not throw away the baby with the bath water because we have democracy that we have all fought so hard for and the last thing we should do whether as politicians or Nigerians is to throw away that democracy’’.
She confirmed that the protesters on seeing that the governors which include Aliyu Babangida of Niger State, Sule Lamido of Jigawa, Rabiu Kwankwaso of Kano and Murtala Nyarko of Adamawa states defied their presence bashed some vehicles in the Amaechi’s convoy, but lamented that she was yet to hear of any police arrest over the incidence.  Meanwhile  an influential Rivers State political figure and Chairman House Committee on Petroleum Resources (Downstream) and representative of the Andoni/Opobo-Nkoro Federal Constituency of Rivers State in the House of Representative, Hon Dakuku Peterside has described as barbaric, sadistic and dangerous the hiring of thugs and ex-militants by desperate Rivers politicians to deliberately embarrass Northern Governors who were in Port Harcourt to pay solidarity visit to Governor Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers State.”When did we degenerate to this Hobbesian and primitive state, “the highly cerebral legislator asked?
“Those who are fanning this ember of discord must be ready to reap the whirlwind. They should reflect on the events of Western Region Parliament in Ibadan that eventually led to the end of the First Republic and the disputed Ondo State election in 1983, and decide if this is the path they want to go,” Peterside warned.”I wonder why the police in Rivers State under the Commissioner Mbu Joseph Mbu chose to play politics with safety and security of the people of Rivers State and tarnish the image of Rivers people who are naturally friendly and hospitable,” he said.

Taneh Beemene

L-R: Govs. Rabi’u Kwankwaso of Kano State; Sule Lamido of Jigawa State; Chibuike Amaechi of Rivers State; Babangida Aliyu of Niger State, and Murtala Nyako Of Adamawa, during the Northern governors visit to Governor Amaechi in Port Harcourt , yesterday