Politics
More Knocks For Mbu …As New CP Resumes Office
As the new Rivers State
Police Commissioner, Mr Johnson Ogunshakin resumed office last Wednesday, more reactions have continued to trail the removal of his predecessor, Mr Joseph Mbu.
Speaking through his Press Secretary, Jim Opiki in a telephone interview, the Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, Rt Hon Otelemaba Amachree, said Mbu’s redeployment to Abuja was a good omen for the State.
“We feel that the Police authorities have finally listened to the peoples’ genuine complaints about its officers. We expect that the new commissioner of police will operate within the ambits of the Nigerian Constitution”, he said.
The Speaker noted that democracy which Rivers people have craved for would be deemed to prevail if the new police commissioner acts according to the law.
“He should apply the same rules to everybody. We also hope that the new police commissioner will operate in accordance with the constitution and work in like manner with the State Governor, Rt Hon Chibuike Amaechi”, he stated.
Also speaking on Mbu’s redeployment, a lawmaker representing Etche Constituency 1 in the State House of Assembly, Hon Victor Amadi said Mbu’s redeployment to Abuja was a welcome development.
He, however, emphasised on the need for the new police commissioner to be professional and do away with partisan politics in the interest of peace and democracy.
Meanwhile, the lawmaker representing Etche/Omuma Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, Hon Ogbonna Nwuke, has described the immediate past Commissioner of Police in Rivers State, Mr Mbu Joseph Mbu, as an impostor for arrogating to himself powers that he did not have.
Hon Nwuke who was reacting to reporters’ questions at the Port Harcourt International Airport, Omagwa, on arrival from Abuja, said the reassignment of Mbu shows that the Federal Government may have started to gradually respond to the concerns of the Nigerian people.
“We see the redeployment as a welcome development, we welcome it with conscious optimism, because of the fact that Mbu represented what can be said to be a grand manipulation of the police force or intelligence agencies by some persons who are power drunk”, he said.
The lawmaker said under the Nigerian constitution, the police commissioner does not have the power to ban rallies, stressing that Section 39,40,41 and 42 of the constitution and Section 214 give the governor such powers.
On the recent Supreme Court that knocked Sir Celestine Omehia out of the case, Hon Nwuke said there was no legal issue at the first instance that warranted the anxiety that people imputed into the matter.
“I believe in the rule of law, Governor Chibuike Amaechi believes in the rule of law and the victory is for Rivers people and democracy in the country”, Hon Nwuke declared.
To a former Rivers State Commissioner for Culture and Tourism, Hon Sunny Wokekoro, last Friday’s Supreme Court judgement in favour of Governor Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi has opened a new avenue for the governor to settle down and complete ongoing projects initiated by his administration.
According to him, it was also a clarion call for the governor’s detractors to sheathe their swords, embrace peace and allow him to continue to do his job as governor of the state.
“We hope that those who had over-stretched their luck must have learnt their lessons and allow sleeping dog lie”, he stated.
While calling on Rivers people who are still sitting on the fence to embrace the APC, Wokekoro said it was also incumbent on them to continue to support and pray for Governor Amaechi to accomplish all that his administration had started.
The APC steering Committee Chairman in PHALGA also applauded the redeployment of former Commissioner of Police in the state, Mr Mbu Joseph Mbu, stressing that the former CP through his activities desecrated the police profession.
While noting that the former Police Commissioner was more or less a politician, he said Mbu’s actions and inactions rubbed off negatively on the image of the police, and advised his successor to learn from the former CP’s mistakes.
Felix Okogbule & Donatus Ebi
The former two-term governor went down memory lane to recall how they founded the APC but were used and dumped.
In his words, “…those calling on us to join APC, we have agreed to join the APC but on clear agreement that protects and respects the interest of my party, NNPP and my political movement, Kwankwasiyya. No state where you go that you don’t have NNPP and Kwankwasiyya. We have gubernatorial candidates, senatorial candidates and others.
“We are ready to join APC under strong conditions and promises. We will not allow anyone to use us and later dump us.
“We were among the founding fathers of the APC and endured significant persecution from various security agencies while challenging the previous administration.
“Yet when the party assumed power, we received no recognition or appreciation for our sacrifices, simply because we didn’t originate from their original faction.
“We are not in a hurry to leave the NNPP; we are enjoying and have peace of mind. But if some want a political alliance that would not disappoint us like in the past, we are open to an alliance. Even if it is the PDP that realised their mistakes, let’s enter an agreement that will be made public,” Sen. Kwankwaso stated.
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has dismissed long-standing claims that he once sought to extend his tenure in office, insisting he never pursued a third term.
Speaking at the Democracy Dialogue organised by the Goodluck Jonathan Foundation in Accra, Ghana, Chief Obasanjo said there is no Nigerian, living or dead, who can truthfully claim he solicited support for a third term agenda.
“I’m not a fool. If I wanted a third term, I know how to go about it. And there is no Nigerian, dead or alive, that would say I called him and told him I wanted a third term,” the former president declared.
Chief Obasanjo argued that he had proven his ability to secure difficult national goals, citing Nigeria’s debt relief during his administration as a much greater challenge than any third term ambition.
“I keep telling them that if I could get debt relief, which was more difficult than getting a third term, then if I wanted a third term, I would have got it too,” he said.
He further cautioned against leaders who overstay in power, stressing that the belief in one’s indispensability is a “sin against God.”
On his part, former President Goodluck Jonathan said any leader who failed to perform would be voted out of office if proper elections were conducted.
Describing electoral manipulation as one of the biggest threats to democracy in Africa, he said unless stakeholders come together to rethink and reform democracy, it may collapse in Africa.
He added that leaders must commit to the kind of democracy that guarantees a great future for the children where their voices matter.
He said: “Democracy in Africa continent is going through a period of strain and risk collapse unless stakeholders came together to rethink and reform it. Electoral manipulation remains one of the biggest threats in Africa.
“We in Africa must begin to look at our democracy and rethink it in a way that works well for us and our people. One of the problems is our electoral system. People manipulate the process to remain in power by all means.
“If we had proper elections, a leader who fails to perform would be voted out. But in our case, people use the system to perpetuate themselves even when the people don’t want them.
“Our people want to enjoy their freedoms. They want their votes to count during elections. They want equitable representation and inclusivity. They want good education. Our people want security. They want access to good healthcare. They want jobs. They want dignity. When leaders fail to meet these basic needs, the people become disillusioned.”
The dialogue was also attended by the President of the ECOWAS Commission, Dr. Omar Touray, Bishop Matthew Hassan Kukah of the Sokoto diocese of Catholic Church among others who all stressed that democracy in Africa must go beyond elections to include accountability, service, and discipline.
The Rivers State House of Assembly yesterday resumed plenary session after a six-month state of emergency imposed on the state by President Bola Tinubu elapsed on Wednesday midnight.
President Bola Tinubu had lifted the emergency rule on September 17, with the Governor of the state, Siminalayi Fubara, his deputy, Ngozi Odu, and members of the state assembly asked to resume duties on September 18.
The plenary was presided over by the Speaker of the House, Martins Amaewhule, at the conference hall located within the legislative quarters in Port Harcourt, the state capital.
The conference hall has served as the lawmakers’ temporary chamber since their official chamber at the assembly complex on Moscow Road was torched and later pulled down by the state government.
The outgone sole administrator of the state, Ibok-Ete Ibas, could not complete the reconstruction of the assembly complex as promised.
Recall that on March 18, President Bola Tinubu declared a state of emergency in Rivers following the prolonged political standoff between Fubara and members of the House of Assembly loyal to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike.
He subsequently suspended the governor, his deputy, Ngozi Odu, and lawmakers for six months and installed a sole administrator, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (rtd.), to manage the state’s affairs.
The decision sparked widespread controversy, with critics accusing the president of breaching the Constitution.
However, others hailed the move as a necessary and pragmatic step.
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