By Adesina Soyooye
Rotimi Amaechi, a former Governor of Rivers State, has put a lie to whatever claims his successor in office, Nyesom Wike, who is now the Minister for the Federal Capital Territory, is laying to being instrumental to making him a Governor.
Amaechi became the Governor in 2007 after the Peoples Democratic Party, with support from then President Olusegun Obasanjo, controversially stopped him from contesting in an election which Primary he had won, thanks to the then incumbent Governor, Dr Peter Odili.
However, in an unprecedented ruling, the Supreme Court sacked Sir Celestine Omehia, incidentally, Amaechi’s cousin, who the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, hurriedly picked to replace him. Omehia won, but was sacked by the Supreme Court which said stopping Amaechi from running when he clearly won the Primary, was in bad fate.
When he became Governor, Amaechi picked Wike, one of those who fought on his side, to be his Chief of Staff.
The two have since, for years, fallen very bitterly apart.
But, at every given opportunity, Wike gives the impression that he was instrumental to Amaechi becoming the Governor.
On Wednesday, when he spoke on Arise Television, Amaechi set the record straight. He put a lie to Wike’s claims of being instrumental to his governorship. That honour, Amaechi explained, goes to the Almighty God, Odili, the Supreme Court and the people of Rivers State who voted the PDP which victory in the Governorship contest was transferred to Amaechi who neither campaigned voted, nor voted for.
Said Amaechi: “Wike’s claims that he was instrumental to my becoming governor is a lie.
That goes to God, former Governor Peter Odili, the Judiciary and the Rivers State people. They were responsible for my becoming Governor.
On the contrary, Amaechi said: “I was once his (Wike) boss. Whether he likes it or not. I hired him. I could have said no. I made Wike my chief of staff so as to be able to supervise him closely, despite pressure to make him a Commissioner of Finance.
“It’s Wike that never acknowledged that anyone ever helped him.
“I wanted him as Chief of Staff so I could supervise him. I didn’t offer him Commissioner for Finance. You see, I’m saying this because I don’t want to join issues with children. You know, he made himself chief of staff. He made himself governor. He made himself minister. He made himself Local Government Chairman.”
Amaechi dismissed Wike’s comments as lacking in maturity. He also
noted that politicians no longer care about their family names, which is why, he reasoned, they do whatever they like without considering the implications.
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