The National Protocol Director of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council, Chief Tony Okocha, has accused the immediate-past Minister of Transportation, Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, of voting for the candidate of the rival Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar in the just-concluded presidential election.
This is as the former Chief of Staff to former Governor Rotimi Amaechi, Tony Okocha declared himself as the leader of the APC in the state.
Okocha, in a media briefing in Port Harcourt on Sunday, claimed that his emergence as the leader of the APC in the state follows his efforts to mobilize support for the APC presidential candidate, Senator Ahmed Bola Tinubu, now President-elect.
He noted that Amaechi’s action was the height of anti-party activity as the former governor had long abandoned the party.
According to him, “It is clear cut and certain that our former leader, Rt Hon. Rotimi Amaechi became the leader of the party on grounds of him being a serving Minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“A day to the presidential election, he ordered his supporters to go and vote for the presidential candidate of the PDP. And himself, we have it on record that he voted for the candidate of the PDP, Atiku Abubakar.
“That naturally disqualifies him as leader and that I, Chief Tony Okocha, who won election with my own faction for our presidential candidate is now the leader of APC in Rivers State.”
Speaking on the crisis in the state party, the APC chieftain noted that there was no crisis, but added that some outsiders were making incursions into the party.
Okocha said, “I want to use this opportunity as the leader of APC to advise my brothers who are members of my party that Rivers State must not be set ablaze because of election.
“Power is transient. So Rivers State must not be put into flames. Everybody should be seen to be anti-violence.
“We hear that there are outside incursions intending to infiltrate the good people of APC in Rivers State to cause mayhem in Rivers State. My advice is that we should not buy into that.
“Violence is violence. Nobody knows where and who will be affected. So let us face our elections on March 11. Again viewing the environment that we are in, we must be pragmatic and proactive.”
He also reiterated that the party will reciprocate the gesture it received from Governor Wike in the March 11 Governorship and State House of Assembly polls.
But reacting to the development, the State Publicity Secretary of the Rivers APC, Darlingron Nwauju, said Okocha was no longer a member of the APC.
Nwauju said: “Is Tony Okocha an APC member? He is merely a member of an independent campaign outfit for Tinubu but not an APC member.
“Please ask him to mention the names of just five out of the 27 Exco members of APC in his ward. Tony is a confli-preneur and has a history of transactional politics.
“Are you not aware that the campaign outfit which he belongs to here in Rivers State is torn apart because of money allegedly donated to them by the Governor of Rivers State?
“Has he been able to account for all the monies passed through him? Even the PCC/ICC he belongs to is in disagreement with him.
“And he has not been able to assert himself on them. Please, remind Tony Okocha that when the pillars of APC in Nigeria will sit down to talk, he won’t be there.”
