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A group within the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers, which is reportedly loyal to the former Minister for Transportation, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, has rejected the demand for declaring a state of emergency in Rivers State.
Naija News reported earlier that the opposition party in Rivers State urged President Bola Tinubu to declare a state of emergency following the ongoing political crisis in Rivers State since the swearing-in of Siminalayi Fubara as Governor of the state.
Addressing the press in Port Harcourt, the state capital, on Wednesday, the Caretaker Committee Chairman of the APC in Rivers, Chief Tony Okocha, said, “Rivers State is at war. And the dramatis personae who are responsible for the mayhem that has claimed lives are known.”
On the contrary, a faction of the APC has rejected the call for a state of emergency issued by the Caretaker Committee members of the APC in Rivers State on Wednesday.
The spokesperson of the faction, Darlington Nwauju, characterized the members of the faction led by Tony Okocha as frauds.
He said: “I wish to quickly inform the people of the State that the APC in Rivers State did not at any point in time hold any meeting amongst its members; or hold consultations amongst its leaders to decide that at this point in time, the best strategy or formula to nip in the bud the brewing political crisis is to demand for a ‘State of Emergency”.
Nwauju further clarified that “There were no such consultations; there were no such meetings, and so it cannot stand as the aggregate opinion of members of the APC across the 390 wards in Rivers State.
“So, I want to quickly dispel such a rumour, and dismiss it as unnecessary, as illogical, and as also unpatriotic. Rivers State must have other means to settle these political issues”.
Nwauju warned Okocha to remember that given the pivotal role Rivers State plays in Nigeria’s economy, caution is essential when dealing with or offering advice on managing certain challenges.
The APC spokesperson expressed the party’s hope for complete peace to be restored in every corner of our beloved Rivers State. Thus, causing unrest or confusion is not an option at this moment.
He stated: “Our hope is that the Almighty will bring peace that transcends understanding to Rivers State.”
Nwauju offered a prayer for the Federal Republic of Nigeria to be blessed by God.
Naija News reports that the political crisis in the state gained more attention on Wednesday after Governor Siminalayi Fubara appointed and swore in local government caretaker committees after the state house of assembly loyal to Victor Oko Jumbo had approved the candidates.
However, some council chairmen, who are loyal to the immediate past Governor of the state, Nyesom Wike, who now is the Minister of Federal Capital Territory, rejected this, leading to violence in certain areas of the state.
Okocha had argued in a statement earlier that the Governor and Police were unable to handle the situation, making it necessary for the President to declare a state of emergency.
He said, “The governor is helpless, the Police are helpless. Therefore the APC in Rivers State is calling for a state of emergency in Rivers State as a way of taming the mayhem, the upsurge that is going on in the state. I call on the federal government to act fast in this regard.”
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