… Calls for tighter security for AAC candidate
A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress in Rivers State, Chukwuemeka Eze has said that the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, is in cohort with the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to subvert the will of Rivers people.
Eze also said that the stakeholders’ meeting set up by the commission took place at an event centre owned by an aide to the Rivers State Governor.
According to him “It is sad and unfortunate that after all the cries and protests by some well meaning citizens of Rivers State including some of our Statesmen exposing the biasness and partiality of the leadership of INEC to subvert the will of Rivers State and her people the Commission is hellbent and determined to carry out her devious plot to cause mayhem and bloodbath in Rivers State by proposing to announce her concocted results in favour of the outgoing Governor of Rivers State, Chief Nyesom Wike by April, 2019”
He said that “In carrying out her sinister plot, the Commission’s printed Certificate of Returns in favour of Governor Nyesom Wike and other PDP candidates even before the conclusion of her manipulated process are awash in the Social Media and to prove further their biasness the Commission refused to invite key members of APC, AAC and other opposition political parties in Rivers State for the stakeholders meeting scheduled which held today and to prove their case beyond any doubt the Commission also held her so called stakeholders meeting at an Event Centre owned by Wike’s Aide DAX ALABO GEORGE at Eastern by pass in Port Harcourt.
Exposing these plots by INEC to undermine the peace of Rivers State in a statement issued and circulated in Port Harcourt on Saturday, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers state, Chief Eze Chukwuemeka Eze, further highlighted that what other proof do the world need to know that INEC is on a mission to cause disaffection in Rivers State but God of Rivers State will surely disappoint them.
Eze, a one-time National spokesman of the defunct new People’s Democratic Party (nPDP), also stated that those against the adoption of AAC after ensuring that APC does not field candidates for the polls to unseat an evil administration in Rivers State are enemies of Rivers State and no amount of propaganda will dissuade us from carrying out our patriotic task to free our State from the hands of those who have failed so far governance is concerned in Rivers State.
Eze also raised the alarm over plots by Governor Wike to unleash his private, illegally armed persons, under the identity of Neighbourhood Watch on leaders of the APC in the state as well as use same outfit to cow Rivers people and prevent them from exercising their constitutionally guaranteed rights to express their views through peaceful protests.
He expressed sadness that the compromised Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in the state, Obo Effanga, had continued to hold sway on the election affairs of the state, despite very glaring violations of the electoral processes by him and his unhidden bias for the PDP in the state.
He, however, requested that Effanga should be relieved of his duties as he had demonstrated that he is biased and corrupt, saying “for him to have gone ahead to print certificates for the defeated PDP governorship candidate and the outgoing governor of Rivers state proves all the demonstrations against him as being right.
“That Engr. Awara won the 9th March polls is not in doubt so any effort to act otherwise will be an excerise in futility and for Wike threatening to ban peaceful public demonstrations, knowing very well that Rivers people are determined to ensure that their votes for the incoming governor are not subverted, is a fallacy”, he said.
Meanwhile, Eze had called on President Muhammadu Buhari, the security formations in the country, as well as the international community to come to the aid of the people of Rivers state over alleged plans by the state governor, Chief Wike, to send the Neighbourhood Watch, which has been identified as his personal army after leaders of the APC in the state, as well as Rivers people who may dare protest against his plot to force himself back to office.
Eze, who lamented the failure of most public affairs analysts who have so far discussed the Rivers political quagmire to understand the crux of the crisis, explained that Rivers people had been fed up by the fact that the Wike-led regime had robbed them of the peace and security they used to enjoy and decided to replace him with a more godly and progress-oriented administration, which they believe Awara of the AAC had come to offer.
He explained further that the current crisis has been borne out of the governor’s insistence to force himself on the people of the state, against their popular wish, adding that the Obo Effanga-led INEC in Rivers state had fully collaborated with Wike to twist the people’s wishes, hence the series of protests, which had been calling for his redeployment from the state.
“Since the establishment of the Neighborhood Watch, the fake armed outfit of Governor Nyesom Wike, which was solely set up to prosecute his 2019 general polls agenda, Rivers state has not been the same as peace has eluded the people and nobody has since been able to sleep with the two eyes closed.
“It was with this outfit that Governor Wike stormed the Obio-Akpor collation centre to cart away electoral materials, kidnap electoral officials to the Rivers state Government House to alter and rewrite the results of the polls and plot to suspend the collation of results of the 9th March election, when it was clear that Governor Wike had lost the election.
“Two Nigerian Army officials, currently battling for their lives, were brutally shot at this event of Wike storming the collation centre and surprisingly most of the public affairs analysts discussing the Rivers state politics have not cared enough to mention these ugly incidents in their drive to paint the army and the Minister of Transportation in bad light .
“Nobody has cared to ask why the INEC REC suspended a peaceful collation of results that would have not brought Rivers state into the ugly limelight that it is currently, only just concerned with ensuring that Wike is sustained as the governor of Rivers state against the wishes of the people of the state.
“For the past three days, different groups of Rivers people have been protesting and pleading that the INEC REC in Rivers state is on an evil mission and should be redeployed. Surprisingly, nobody cares and probably will not until Wike fulfills his pledge to unleash on the public his fake army then, I assume, the public will listen to find out why is it that Rivers state is bleeding over an ambition of a man duly rejected by his people because of his lack of understanding of what governance is all about. Wike’s idea of governance is all about squandering of public funds on bribing institutions and individuals.
“Until public affairs analysts start discussing some of the salient issues, they will continue to misfire on the politics of Rivers state”, he said.
Speaking on the reported ban of peaceful public protests by Governor Wike, Eze said the state government had erred in law, trying to restrain an action that had since been made legal and permissible by law.
“Public Order Act, Police permits is inconsistent with Section 39&40 of the Constitution if the Federal Republic of Nigeria and Art 11 of Africa Charter on Human and People’s Right Act (cap A9) LFN 2004.
“The Public Order Act, which requires permit for rallies is inconsistent with Fundamental Rights of Nigerians, freedom of assembly and expression’. The superior courts have said so in: ANPP vs. IGP(2008) 12 WRN 65,. HADIZA BALA vs. COP & Anor (unreported)”, he said.
Eze in another development pleads with the Security agencies to ensure that no harm reaches the governorship candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), Engr. Biokpomabo Awara, before his expected victory is announced.
He said the call became necessary because of the renewed desperation of the candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), Governor Nyesom Wike and his well known penchant for resorting to bloody resolve when when faced by people of integrity he is unable to bribe.
Eze recalled the frustration recently expressed by Wike and his party, through the National Chairman of the PDP, Prince Uche Secondus, who disclosed on Rhythm 93.7 news that the regime in Port Harcourt had become frustrated in its efforts to get Engr. Awara to reach a compromise with them, having rejected an earlier N3 billion offered him be agents of the state government.
According to Eze, while expressing his frustration on radio, Secondus had said “I am confused about the whole situation in Rivers state, there is heavy tension in the state , therefore I am begging the AAC governorship candidate to please come for a round table discussion”.
However, the APC chieftain has warned Governor Wike, Prince Secondus and other handlers of both the Rivers state government and the PDP to back off from harassing and mounting pressure on Awara, whom he has been addressing as the in-coming governor of Rivers state, noting that the AAC candidate had assembled a team of professional and patriotic Rivers men and women, with whom he had planned to redeem the glory and peace of the state.
“The life of Engr Awara, the gubernatorial candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), has been constantly threatened since he rejected the bribe gift of three billion naira (N3Bn) from the Rivers state government, under the watch of Governor Nyesom Wike, in order for him to defect to PDP. He has since being receiving strange calls and seeing strange elements within his environment.
“This emphasises the need of providing extra security for him, particularly now that the National Chairman of PDP, Prince Uche Secondus, according to him while on Rhythm 93.7 news, when he expressed frustration on how to get to the incoming governor for dialogue.
“We therefore caution Wike and his agents to ensure that no harm goes near the way of the incoming Governor as he has proven that he is beyond the purchasing powers of the outgoing Rivers state government”, he said.
Eze commended Awara for proving that he is a true son of Rivers State farm, who is determined to take the state to the next level and maintained “Governor Wike’s new approach of governance by bribing churches, the judiciary and politicians in the state cannot save him this time around. He can bribe the judiciary, he can bribe some poor traitors, but he can’t bribe the conscience of Rivers people”.
