CONTROL OF RIVERS: NWIKE IN VERBAL WAR WITH AMAECHI

Two prominent People's Democratic Party and All Progressives Congress chieftains in Rivers State have been engaged in a verbal war as usual.

Former Governor Chibuike Amaechi of Rivers State has accused the state government of allegedly forging documents to  link him with corruption during his tenure as governor.

Amaechi, now Minister of Transportation, alleged that Governor Nyesom Wike was claiming that he had documents and that the judiciary was on his side to ensure that he (Amaechi ) was convicted on corruption charges.

 Amaechi in a statement, yesterday, said:  “Governor Wike has continued to twist, falsify and forge fresh documents that he intends to use against the immediate past governor of the state and now Minister of Transportation, Amaechi.

“Wike wants to use the elaborately distorted and most times, out rightly but carefully forged documents, to persecute and prosecute his erstwhile benefactor in court.

In the past couple of days, Wike has been telling anyone who cared to listen, bragging that he will certainly get a conviction, a judgment against Amaechi in the law courts on spurious charges of corruption using his forged documents because he (Wike) is in control of the judiciary at the state and national levels.

“Nigerians will recall that only a few days back, Livingstone Wechie, the young man Wike used to accuse Amaechi of corruption and write false and frivolous petitions to the National Assembly, EFCC etc, confessed on a live television programme and in a statement he also circulated to the media, that all the documents he used to wrongfully portray Amaechi as corrupt when he governed Rivers State, were forged documents given to him by Wike’s Rivers State Government House.

“Wechie also admitted, like we have always said, that the forged documents were used as the template and basis for the Justice Omereji-led Judicial Commission of Inquiry, a panel Wike set up early in his administration to witch-hunt, malign, vilify and persecute Amaechi.

“Since he became governor, Wike’s sole agenda has been to attack and vilify Amaechi, no matter how ridiculous or silly it sounds. Everyday in Rivers State, there is one frivolous or false story of what Amaechi did or didn’t do.”

Meanwhile, Wike, in a statement by his media aide, Mr Simeon Nwakaudu, said:  “Our attention has been drawn to a reckless statement credited to Amaechi to the effect that Governor  Wike is forging documents to secure his conviction  in a court of law.

This allegation is unfounded, baseless and a figment of the imagination of the former governor.

“Amaechi also went ahead to falsely allege that Wike bragged that he has the judiciary in the state and at the federal level in his pocket to secure his conviction  on charges  of corruption.

This is another false allegation, merely concocted by the former governor  to distract attention  from the crimes he committed against Rivers people, by diverting their resources.

“We are not surprised by Amaechi’s antics to blackmail the judiciary.

  Ever since the Supreme Court victory  that validated the election of Wike, Amaechi has never failed to malign the judiciary.  Governor Wike is a law abiding citizen, who believes in the  rule of law.

 That is why he has  followed due process in tackling  the issue of high level corruption against  the Minister of Transportation.

“We have very credible documents to prove the mass corrupt acts of the former governor against the good people of Rivers State.

We also saw a reckless post by Amaechi’s associate, Mr Igo Aguma trying to denigrate the judiciary. This is most unfortunate.

“Amaechi’s  sponsorship  of Wechie  will not change the facts that are known to all Nigerians.

 All documents tendered at the Judicial Commission of Inquiry that investigated the Sale of Valued Assets of the State by the Amaechi administration are genuine.”

Same pattern, the same blatant distorted and forged documents, same old concocted stories of corruption allegations against Amaechi told with different twists.

“Nigerians will not forget in a hurry how Wike, hurriedly called a suspicious late night press conference to lie that the over $43million found by EFCC in a luxury apartment in Ikoyi, Lagos and the apartment belongs to Amaechi.”