Senator Lee Maeba, a former senator representing Rivers South East says Governor Nyesom Wike threatened to kill him, former deputy speaker of the House of Representatives; Austin Opara and former governor of the state, Celestine Okpara for supporting the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Atiku Abubakar.
He said Wike removed Omehia and Opara as leaders of their party in Ikwerre and Port Harcourt City LGAs respectively because they did not consult him before having a meeting with Abubakar.
He also said that the governor dared them to campaign for Abubakar in the state without his approval and see what happens to them.
According to him, they had gone to meeting Abubakar to tell him that it was not in their character for younger people to insult older people after the governor called the former vice-president a liar.
He said that they also told the vice-president that the state has over two million voters and no one person controls all the voters and because they believed the party is in majority in the state, Abubakr will win without negotiation.
Speaking in a video conference on Monday, he said “That meeting was on Monday and by Thursday, Governor Wike called Austin Okpara, Celestine Omehia and other Ikwerre leaders who were part of a group of Rivers in the leaders’ solidarity meeting to Atiku Abubakar and humiliated them before their people, telling them that they had no right to attend the meeting without clearing from him.
“He said that they should be ready and that he will kill himself and kill them. He issued that threat and said that if they don’t have guns, they should buy guns.
“All of us knew Atiku before him. Austin Opara has been in the House of Representatives since 1999. He was the deputy speaker when Atiku was Vice-President. At that time Wike was struggling to be local government chairman. So, if Austin Opara has to take permission from him today to go and see Atiku, then something is wrong.
“So, does it mean that Austin Opara who has been friends with Atiku for over 20 years ago will now start to beg Wike to go and see Atiku?
“So, he (Wike) is the one who doesn’t have respect for citizens. He insults people anyhow.
“Like me, I met Atiku first in 1992 in Jos for the SDP campaigns. We started working together in 2003 when I became Senator. That time where was he (Wike)? When Austin Opara was working with Atiku, holding meetings, Wike was struggling to come into the limelight”.
“I, myself seated here, I followed Wike to 22 states because I was supporting a Rivers man running for the office of president. But at the end of the convention, Atiku was the primary and became the candidate of the party. We don’t need another negotiation to support the candidate of our party”.
“Wike told Opara and Omehia that he wants to see how they will campaign for Atiku in Rivers, that no one in this state can work for Atiku without his permission. On Friday night, he invited the Ogonis and asked the member representing my constituency to tell me clearly, that let him see how I will campaign for Atiku in this state, that he is waiting for me, and that he will finish me; that I should be ready for him that he is ready for me if I come to campaign for Atiku”.
Recall that Wike on Monday at the inauguration of the Orochiri -Worukwo (Waterlines junction) Flyover that was performed by the Lagos State governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu in Port Harcourt said he was not the type of governor people hold meetings in Abuja for.
He dared anyone who attended such meetings to come back to the state and see things for themselves, describing them as conspirators trying to upset the voting pattern of Rivers State and support the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.
Reacting to Wike’s statement, Maeba said: “So, when you use comments like that that you are not the kind of politician that people will hold meetings against in Abuja, he goes to Abuja every day. He flies to Abuja. In fact, he virtually sleeps in Abuja. So if you don’t have respect for the rights of senior citizens of the state, you don’t have respect for their right to survive and self-sustenance, then something is wrong with your own system.
“If you continue to call yourself, I am strong Governor, we need strong institutions, not strong men. The best way to democracy is through strong institutions, not strong men.
“A strong man is synonymous with the Idi Amin’s of those days. There are no strong men anymore. What we need are strong institutions to strengthen our institutions.”
He said Wike’s claim that he was in charge of Rivers votes was a fluke as the new electoral act has made it impossible for one man to control votes.
“There is nobody that is in charge of any vote. The vote is individual business now. For somebody to be boasting that he is in charge of votes, means he has a rigging plan.
“Why are you in charge of votes? You cannot be in charge of votes, because everybody has individual votes to cast. If Adegboyega Oyetola was in charge of votes in Osun, he wouldn’t have lost the election.
“So, for somebody to be boasting he is in charge of votes, people should ask him where do you want to get the votes? How many voters cards does he have?”
