Rivers govt berates Dakuku, APC for damaging S’Court integrity

“We ask again, was Justice Odili also the one that influenced Akwa Ibom, Ogun, Delta, Abia, and other States’ Governorship appeal at the Supreme Court?” – Rivers Govt

The  Rivers  State  Government  has  berated  the  defeated Rivers APC Governorship Candidate, Dakuku Peterside  and his political  party  for working  dangerously  to damage the integrity  of  the  Supreme Court  simply  because  it  lost a verdict  on  the  principles  of  the  electoral act and the constitution. 

The State Government also stated that the defeated APC Governorship candidate and his political  party  are worried about Governor Wike’s  warning to election  riggers because  they have perfected the ugly plot to rig and steal the mandate of the Rivers people during  the  rerun  legislative elections. 

Addressing  Journalists  at a  Press Conference on Tuesday at the Government House, Port Harcourt  to respond  to  the  vicious attack  on the Judiciary, Governor Wike and the Rivers people  by  the defeated APC Governorship candidate,  Rivers State Information Commissioner,  Dr Austin Tam-George  regretted that Dakuku  Peterside  could exhibit his incoherent character to the level of spewing falsehood and irresponsible  propaganda  against  the  judiciary and the Supreme Court which sustain  democracy  and  good governance. 

The State Government  described  as unfortunate and demeaning the false allegation  that Governor  Wike  influenced the Supreme Court judgement. 

“These allegations are scornful, demented and laughable”, it said.

The statement read: “Rotimi Amaechi, Dakuku’s mentor is known to have a reputation of boasting about judicial verdicts before they are given.  See the publication on page 11 of the Nigerian Pilot of Monday January 25 2016 by Abia Justice Forum.  Rotimi Amaechi has never bothered to deny any of the allegations credited to him in the publication.

“Why then did Governor Wike lose his appeal to the Supreme Court on the issue of proper venue where the Rivers State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal should sit? After all, the distinguished Honourable Justice Mary Odili was on that seven-man panel of the Justices of the Supreme Court that dismissed Governor Wike’s appeal. 

“Then, “there was nothing fundamentally wrong with the Supreme Court”. Now that she was not even on the panel that heard the Rivers State Governorship appeal, she is accused of interference. We ask again, was Justice Odili also the one that influenced Akwa Ibom, Ogun, Delta, Abia, and other States’ Governorship appeal at the Supreme Court?

“Clearly the advice that was given by Dr. Peter Odili a medical practitioner and leader of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Rivers State was purely fatherly which Governor Wike took and it served him well unlike Dr. Dakuku Peterside and his master Rotimi Amaechi who never seek wise Counsel or allow themselves to be guided by wise counsel.

“Moreover, Governor Wike just took a trip down memory lane naming many persons who assisted him on his route to victory. He never named Honourable Justice Mary Odili as one of such persons. He named Dr. Peter Odili CON. Why pick on the noble Justice?”

On the shocking support for the outrageous  plan to steal the  mandate  of  Rivers  people  through rigging by the APC,  the Rivers State Government declared:

“The Governor knew that given the level of support he has in Rivers State, the determination of the APC to win Rivers State at all cost in order to have at least one oil producing state in its kitty and the will of Rivers people and Niger Deltans to resist the rigging overtly threatened by the APC to procure victory there surely would be violent in the event of a re-run.

“As a patriotic son of Rivers State and the Niger Delta, Governor Wike chose to sacrifice his ambition in order that defenceless Rivers People and Niger Deltans may live along the lines of the Jonathanian philosophy that his ambition is not worth any persons’ blood. We ask, what is wrong with such a noble sacrifice? Must Dr. Dakuku and Mr. Amaechi in their thirst for blood refuse to see nobility in self-sacrifice?”

While saying that the defeated  APC Governorship candidate and his political party are yet to accept  defeat during  the  election  and the Supreme Court judgement, the state government  said the statement by Dakuku Peterside was childish and primed to misinform the  people.

“Dr. Dakuku Peterside and his APC have not accepted the Supreme Court verdict and would do anything to destroy the Supreme Court and the integrity of its Justices for daring to uphold existing jurisprudence.

“The attack on Governor Wike who merely warned that nobody should come to Rivers State to rig elections is contrived to misinform and create confusion so that the APC would, as promised by their National Chairman to Dakuku Peterside, forcefully intervene in Rivers State by means of election rigging in order to win all the seats up for re-election in the State Assembly with a view to impeaching Governor Wike”, the statement  read.

The Rivers State Government  said that Governor  Wike  has never insulted President  Buhari.  It added that  the governor supports the fight against corruption,  but will never support selective prosecution of the war.

The Rivers State Government pointed out that specific  anti-corruption steps have been taken in the state to recover stolen  resources.  It pointed out the setting up of a judicial commission of Inquiry which indicted former Governor Rotimi Amaechi for massive corruption.

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