Governors of the All Progressives Congress (APC)have condemned in strong terms, the presidential powers being deployed to humiliate percieved enemies.
Reacting to the blockage by the police of one of the gates leading to the Rivers Government House, Port Harcourt, on Thursday, the governors reasoned that the action was tantamount to bullying Governor Rotimi Amaechi.
Governors Kashim Shetima of Borno; Edo State Governor, Adams Oshiomhole; Ekiti State Governor, Kayode Fayemi; Imo State Governor, Rochas Okorocha; Lagos State Governor, Babatunde Fashola; Nasarawa State Governor, Tanko Almakura; Ogun State Governor, Ibikunle Amosun; Osun State Governor, Rauf Aregbesola; Oyo State Governor, Abiola Ajimobi; Yobe State Governor, Ibrahim Geldam; and Zamfara State Governor, Abdulaziz Abubakar Yari, issued a statement condemning the police action.
The statement titled, “Blockade to Rivers Government House: Assault on Constitution and Descent to Anarchy” reads, “A situation whereby the Federal Government will use powers vested in it under the constitution to bully and intimidate state governments is unacceptable and should be resisted by every democratic government.
“We wish to unequivocally state our resolve to work with all democrats in the country to ensure adequate protection of democratic governance.’’
“In the specific case of Rivers State, provisions of Section 215(4) of the 1999 Constitution must be fully respected. This section provides that the Governor “may give to the Commissioner of Police of that state such lawful directions with respect to the maintenance and security of public safety and public order within the state as he may consider necessary, and the Commissioner of Police shall comply with those directions or cause them to be complied with.’’
On Thursday, the police on the order of Rivers State Commissioner of Police, Mbu Joseph Mbu had prevented Governor Amaechi, in company of former Speakers of the State Houses of Assembly from accessing the Government House through the rear gate.
However, reacting to the news of the blockage, Rivers State Police Command Public Relations Officer, Angela Agabe, insisted the reports were not correct.
According to her, “The attention of the police command has been drawn to stories making the round in the media that the police blocked the road to the Rivers State Government House in Port Harcourt, denying His Excellency, Governor Chibuike Amaechi, access to the Government House.
“The story is incorrect, false, fictitious and wrong in its entirety and it is calculated to mislead the people of Rivers State, Nigerians and the general public. The Nigeria Police Force deems it necessary to place in proper perspective the event that gave rise to the wrong information being peddled in the media.’’
Meanwhile, Chukwuemeka Eze, the National Publicity Secretary of the New PDP has that the police action in Rivers shows that the country is gradually returning to the late Gen Sani Abacha’s dark days.
In a statement, he said “Indeed, General Sani Abacha must be lamenting in his grave that Nigerians wrongly abused him considering the high degree of impunities being encouraged in a democratic set up, with the Police being used as a tool to haunt political opponents”.
