The Presidency on Thursday expressed its
displeasure at a statement attributed to Rivers
Governor, Rotimi Amaechi, calling for a citizen
revolt if the 2015 elections are rigged by the
ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP).
In a statement signed by Dr. Doyin Okupe,
the Senior Special Assistant to the President on
Public Affairs, Amaechi was described as a
reckless, power hungry individual who is a liability
to his party, the All Progresives Congress (APC).
“Discerning Nigerians know that comments like
this not only do not augur well for any democracy
but also portray Mr. Amaechi as a reckless, power
hungry individual who lacks both the democratic
temper and respect for constituted authority and
institutions,” Okupe said.
Read the full statement below:
On Wednesday,19th November, 2014 the
Governor of Rivers State, Rotimi Amaechi
made a few comments about the
forthcoming general elections, which
bother on incitement,treason and gross
rascality.
Mr. Amaechi who became Governor of
Rivers State in 2007 consequent upon a
court judgment,said at a street rally
organized by the All Progressive Congress
that if the 2015 elections are “rigged”, his
party will not seek redress in court but
would rather carry out what he called
“civil disobedience” as well as form a
“parallel government”.
This statement is clearly a further
evidence of Governor Amaechi’s penchant
for lawlessness and anarchy in his
unbridled pursuit for power. It is curious
and unthinkable that a man who was
himself a beneficiary of the court process
would disdain the very platform through
which he acquired the opportunity to
make his reckless and provocative
statement.
It is even more worrisome when one
considers the fact that Governor
Amaechi’s party, which is relatively new,
came on board promising hope to
Nigerians. With statements like this it is
clear that Amaechi is more of liability to
his party than asset and has the potential
to bring his party to further opprobrium
and disrepute. For someone who aspires
to become the Vice President of this
country, his disdain for law and order is
not only unfortunate but also patently
dangerous and sends dark signals about
the survival of our democracy.
Discerning Nigerians know that comments
like this not only do not augur well for
any democracy but also portray Mr.
Amaechi as a reckless, power hungry
individual who lacks both the democratic
temper and respect for constituted
authority and institutions. For a party that
has made so much noise about its
intentions to offer Nigerians a new deal,
we wonder how the APC can be
comfortable with a loose cannon like
Governor Amaechi.
It is clear to any discerning mind that Mr.
Amaechi’s indecorous outbursts and his
obvious disregard and contempt for the
rule of law, has defined him as unfit to
hold any serious public office in this
country let alone the Vice Presidency of
Nigeria to which he aspires.
Since Nigerians know for a fact that the
Rivers State Governor has not been living
in the moon but has been in this country
since the commencement of our present
democratic experiment, they aredefinitely
at pains to understand why he has failed
to acknowledge the successes that have
attended our electoral processes since
President Jonathan came on board in
2010.
It is a well-known fact that the
administration of President Goodluck
Jonathan has remained faithful to its
commitment to electoral transparency in
all elections conducted since the electoral
reforms of 2010.
Unlike what obtained in the not too
distant past, President Jonathan has
ensured that the electoral commission
remains truly independent of all
influences and manipulations and this has
won the Nigerian electoral process a lot
of accolades from the local and
international community.
The People’s Democratic Party (PDP),
which is the President’s political party,
had lostelections in several states and
electoral constituencies with the
Presidentusually being the first to
congratulate winners of such contests.
This is the hallmark of President
Goodluck Jonathan’s statesmanship and
an undisputable commitment to
democratic norms and values.
It is therefore preposterous, evil and
mischievous for Mr Amaechi to suggest
that there were plans by the Federal
government to rig any elections in today’s
Nigeria.
It is even more evil and certainly anti-
democratic for him to threaten “civil
disobedience”and the forming a parallel
government if his party loses the 2015
General elections.
We unequivocally condemn this stance by
Governor Amaechi, which bothers on
attaining power through threat,
intimidation and subversion of popular
will.
If Mr. Amaechi is so much afraid of his
party crashing to defeat in the general
elections, what he needs to do is to
advise the leadership of his party to
either give up in good time or repackage
itself in order to appeal to the Nigerian
voters who must definitely have the final
say in the democratic process.
We also wantto sound a note of warning
to Mr Amaechi and other desperate
players on our political scene that Nigeria
has moved away from the dark days of
dictatorship and resort to brigandage and
that any attempt for any individual or
group of individuals to resort to extra
legal means of acquiring power, would be
dealt with by the laws of the land.
I will not end this address without saying
a few words about the events that
happened at the National Assembly
today. The whole scenario as we
witnessed it is rather unfortunate.
We wish that at all times; national
interest should supersede all other
interests including personal and political
interests.
From Government perspective, the
overriding concern today is the issue of
insurgency which necessitated the request
by Mr President that the National
Assembly considers an extension of the
State of Emergency to give the Security
forces the needed legal framework and
space for a successful prosecution of the
war against Boko Haram terrorists.
It is our hope that the Honorable
members of the House of Representatives
will use the period of adjournment to
resolve all matters so that they can
resume to deliberate and act on issues of
National importance.
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