Rivers State Governor and Chairman of the Nigerian Governors’ Forum (NGF), Rotimi Chibuike Amaechi, may this week take his case to the Federal High Court, Abuja Division.
The suspension was slammed on him by the National Working Committee (NWC) of the PDP on account of his alleged disobedience of the party’s regulations.
The PDP’s National Publicity Secretary, Olisa Metuh, explained that Amaechi’s suspension was premised on a petition brought against him by the state chapter of the party accusing him of disobedience. But he said the NWC of the party had constituted an 11-man panel chaired by Chief Joe Kyrai-Gadzama (SAN) to investigate the said petition.
It was learnt Tuesday that Amaechi, who described his suspension from the party as “political witch-hunting”, had been in a closed-door meeting with a team of lawyers led by “one of the most respected senior advocates in the country on what legal remedy is available.”
An impeccable source said that before the end of the week, a suit would be filed, seeking to quash the PDP’s decision.
“The decision reached by the party’s NWC is clearly anti-democratic and borne out of ill-will and malice to suppress, subdue and conquer the right to free speech and freedom of choice and personal convictions which the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended seeks to promote”, she stated.
She added: “We are looking at the breaches of the governor’s constitutional rights to fair hearing and presumption of innocence occasioned by the decision of the National Working Committee (NWC) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).”
Two legal practitioners who spoke with The Guardian could not have agreed less as they described the decision of the NWC to suspend Amaechi even before the Gadzama-led committee has started its investigation of the petition against him as unlawful.
According to Chris Atta, “Amaechi’s suspension without awaiting the finding of the panel is prejudicial and runs contrary to the provision of section 36 which guarantees the right to fair hearing of an individual. Even if he is guilty until he has been given a chance to defend himself, he should not have been suspended.
“The suspension means that the governor has been prejudged as guilty of the allegations in the said petition against him. I believe Amaechi should go to court because his constitutional right to be presumed innocent until otherwise proven has been breached”, Musa Inuwa stated.
Amaechi said Tuesday that it was only the PDP as a political party that could suspend a governor of a state in Nigeria without any justifiable reason.
He, however, declared that he would not be perturbed if he was removed from office as history would vindicate him as a man who stood and fought for his rights.
Amaechi stated this at the 2013 inter-party summit with the theme: “Inter-party relations as a panacea for peace and sustainable development in Rivers State”, organised by the Rivers State government in Port Harcourt yesterday.
The governor stressed that Rivers people must come together to defend the state from external forces that are trying destabilise it. He said the crisis rocking the state was not about him and having served as a Speaker for eight years and a governor six years, if he was removed from office, he would at least be recognised in Nigerian history as a man who stood and fought for what he believed in.
“Somebody sent me a text and said my dear partyless governor: It is only the PDP that has the guts to suspend a governor without a reason. But I will leave them to God and to you,” he said.
Amaechi urged the people to make their own history by letting those in Abuja know that they could indeed stand up for their rights irrespective of political party affiliation. According to him, one way to become more politically assertive is to begin mobilising people ahead of 2015 in order to punish those he referred to as irresponsible politicians with their votes. He stressed that the people of the state would not allow other people to intimidate them with police and soldiers.
Also, the Association of Progressive Elites, Abuja (APE-A) Tuesday decried what it called meddlesomeness of undemocratic forces outside the NGF as well as the resultant suspension of Amaechi from the PDP.
Reacting to the suspension, the association condemned the ugly turn of events, saying PDP’s “high-handed decision is capable of destroying the NGF.”
In a statement by its Chairman in Abuja, Odunze Darlington, APE-A accused the Governor Jonah Jang group of being bad losers, adding that their action “is a betrayal of trust, a rape of democracy as well as a show of shame.”
The Catholic Bishop of Ekiti Diocese, Most Rev. Felix Ajakaiye, also faulted PDP’s suspension of Amaechi and chided the party for playing “politics of terrorism and rascality.”
In a statement, he said: “Amaechi has been suspended for his courage, popularity among his peers and for winning an election. Is this the way to celebrate democracy in Nigeria? Really, this is a practical example of politics of terrorism, politics of rascality.”
The cleric expressed fear that some people were out to destroy the country at all cost by “adding to the man-made crises” being experienced in the country.
Members of the civil society coalition in the North have expressed their support for Amaechi as the democratically- elected representative of the 36 governors in the country.
They have also urged Jang to refuse to do the bidding of those who may want to create political crisis in the country as a result of their ambition for 2015, by rejecting any offer to impose himself as the NGF chairman.
A statement by the leader of the Northern Civil Society Coalition, Malam Shehu Sani, noted: “Governor Jang of Plateau State should stop parading himself as the chairman of Nigerian Governors’ Forum”, pointing out that “the outing and posturing of the governor is unbecoming of a state chief executive.”
Sani, who is also the President of the Civil Rights Congress (CRC), said that it was unfortunate that Jang “has chosen to play the role of a devil advocate and an agent provocateur”, stressing that “it is obvious that the very Jang that is unable to restore peace and foster unity in his state has nothing to offer in the governors’ forum.”
He insisted: “Nigerians recognise none other than Governor Rotimi Amaechi as the Chairman of the NGF. All those who are congratulating Jang are living in a world of imagination, deceiving and misleading themselves. Governor Jang has elevated his belligerent tendencies and penchant for disharmony and disunity to the national level.
“Governor Jang is heading a fake forum of quislings, choristers, losers and stooges.”
The Alumni Association of the National Institute (AANI), the umbrella body of the about 1,560 participants of the National Institute of Policy and Strategic Studies (NIPSS), Kuru, near Jos yesterday said it was “deeply saddened” by the crisis in the Nigeria Governors Forum, calling on them to immediately put their house in order and refrain from any action that may threaten Nigeria’s collective security.
Stating that “informal gatherings like the Nigerian Governors’ Forum is not a substitute to constitutional National Economic Council”, President of the Association, Maj.-Gen. Lawrence Onoja (rtd), said that instead of unnecessary bickering, “all the postulations for 2015 should give way to good governance in 2013.”
Onoja, flanked by members of the alumni executive, regretted that “the recent unfortunate outcome of the Nigerian Governors’ Forum (NGF) election in which 36 governors could not count 36 votes is a setback for democratic process. Indeed, the incident that characterised the elections of the Forum deeply saddened the AANI. We strongly condemn the incident and wish to call on the governors to immediately put their house in order and refrain from any action that may threaten our collective security.
“We, therefore, advise our leaders at all levels that the contestations, as good as they are, the ultimate remains public welfare and unity of Nigeria. We strongly recommend that governors have refresher leadership course in NIPPS, Kuru in Jos to enhance their capacity and broaden their patriotic and national look.”
The alumni advised the governors to co-operate with the President .
The body expressed full support for the Federal Government’s declaration of state of emergency in Adamawa, Borno and Yobe states, but noted that “there cannot be sustainable security without addressing the root causes of insecurity, unemployment, corruption and poverty. Part of the trillions of naira being spent on security can be proactively better invested in development which will in turn minimise the state of insecurity in the country.”
Besides, the senator representing Plateau North, Gyang Pwajok, has stated that the fall-out of the NGF election was not a threat to the survival of the PDP in 2015, adding that the party had the mechanism of resolving its internal problems.
Speaking with journalists yesterday in Jos shortly after a peace parley between the Fulani and the native Beroms, the federal lawmaker said the logjam arising from the NGF election was part of the dynamics of politics and democratic process, stressing that such a disagreement was not new in a democratic setting.
On his part, Rivers State Commissioner of Police, Mbu Joseph Mbu, denied spearheading a protest by militant groups in Port Harcourt who called for the removal of Amaechi as governor.
While fielding questions from journalists Tuesday at the State Police Headquarters, Mbu said that he was informed of the peaceful protest at about 5.30 a.m. the same day.
He explained that immediately he got information about the protest, he deployed members of the Counter Terrorist Unit (CTC) to the Government House to contain the situation.
Benue State Governor and Vice Chairman of NGF, Gabriel Suswam, alleged that Amaechi rigged to enable him to be declared as the winner of the forum’s election.
Suswam made the claim during a live phone-in programme “On The Line” meant to answer questions from members of the public in commemoration of this year’s Democracy Day on the state-owned radio yesterday in Makurdi. He further faulted Amaechi for making the position of chairman of NGF look like a birth right or do-or-die issue.
“Being a governor’s forum chairman does not make him better than any of his colleagues. It was evident that Governor Amaechi printed ballot papers and brought them into the election venue, and the action of the governor shows that he is desperate for power.”
Suswam maintained that because Amaechi had taken the NGF issue to be very personal to him, his colleagues had to say no and rather have Jang as chairman.
Niger State Governor Mua’zu Babangida Aliyu said that he had no plan to decamp from the PDP and that governors of the party had no choice but to support President Goodluck Jonathan for the overall development of the country.
Speaking for the first time after last weekend leadership crisis that greeted the NGF election in Abuja at the ground-breaking ceremony of the Zungeru hydro-electric power project in Niger State, Aliyu said he was loyal and not at war with the President and therefore appealed to other PDP governors to support the President towards the attainment of his vision for the country.
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