The Rivers State Chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has raised the alarm over some inciteful statements made by former Governor Rotimi Chibuike Amaechi.

The former governor threaten to set Rivers State on fire during next Saturday’s National and State Assembly re-run elections through the Rhythm 93.7 Radio programme, the viewpoint on Saturday. The PDP said “it’s now crystal clear to all Rivers people and Nigerians the source of the insecurity in some parts of the State where Amaechi has planted his hatchet men.”

The State PDP Chairman, Bro Felix Obuah reacting to the avalanche of threats and unguarded utterances of Amaechi through a statement signed by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Jerry Needam said now that the former governor has unmasked himself as the sole sponsor of the skirmishes in parts of the State, nobody is now left in doubt as to who is responsible for the so much talked about insecurity in the State.

According to the State PDP boss, the Party is now vindicated of the alarm raised over the plot by the All Progressives Congress, APC, and the Nigerian military to unleash mayhem on Rivers people so as to have their way during the re-run election next Saturday.

Bro Obuah noted with disdain the open acceptance and declaration by Amaechi, a close ally of President Muhammadu Buhari that he would personally lead the battle on the re-run election day and dared anybody including the State Governor to file out with his own gunmen.

Still bragging of his military back-up, Amaechi said the type of army presence in the State on that election day will be such that had never been witnessed in the State before, a plot the State PDP Chairman, Felix Obuah said is the grand finale of all the acts of criminality and unrest being perpetrated in the State before now, to find occasion to indict governor Nyesom Wike of inefficiency.

Having failed in all these evil plans according to Obuah, Amaechi has personally come home with his paid troops and heavily armed soldiers to shoot at sight anybody seen or believed not to be ready to do his bidding during the election.

Obuah said the police in the State and officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) are not also safe as Amaechi has carried his threat and ‘beware message’ from the APC-led Federal Government to these innocent patriotic Nigerians doing their legitimate jobs to cow and intimidate them so as to have his way.

The State PDP boss wondered what other reason Amaechi has for disregarding and dismissing the entire Nigeria police force and its officials in the state as grossly inefficient in controlling civil strife and criminality in a state not as large as Kaduna, Lagos, Kano, etc, preferring the use of soldiers whom he claimed are in his pocket if not to cause crisis in the state.

Obuah regretted that Rotimi Amaechi, a serving Minister for Transportation of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, a former Speaker of the State House of Assembly and immediate past State Governor is conducting himself in such uncivil, irresponsible, militant and illiterate manner as to be using vulgar and dishonourable language on air to respond to questions that border on how he ran the state aground while serving as governor in the State that made Rivers people reject him and all he stands for.

The State PDP Chairman, however, wants Amaechi to for once forget about the use of compromised soldiers bought with the State resources he stole and come out as an individual former governor to contest or campaign for any contestant and see if he will not be beaten hands-down to prove his unpopularity and unacceptability to the people.

He said: “Nonetheless, my candid advice to the Rivers people is to disregard Amaechi and all his empty threats and come out en masse on Saturday, March 19, to vote for the PDP and all the PDP candidates as an appreciation and to give impetus to Governor Nyesom Wike to continue to re-fix Rivers State from the damage done by Amaechi.

“The fire-and-brimstone threatened by Amaechi is mere face-saving and a way of forcing himself back to the people and region he has ungraciously betrayed over a pot of yam porridge.

“We also wish to apologise to the police and other security agencies in the state over Amaechi’s castigations and aspersions and enjoin them to continue to do their work most patriotically and godly.

“Amaechi’s arrogation of sweeping powers and the Federal Government might is only but a ruse for he has no capacity to twist the arms of better informed Rivers people and other Nigerians to impose his surrogate acolytes on our people.

“Rivers people must not go back to Egypt and Amaechi as far as we are concerned and whatever he stands for, are gone forever.

“As long as the re-run elections are free and fair, the PDP will still be on top of the heap. We watch and pray.”

•Photo shows Bro. Obuah.

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