NIGERIA SLIDING BACK TO ERA OF DICTATORSHIP, SAYS AMAECHI

Governor Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers State yesterday said Nigeria is gradually sliding back to the era of dictatorship and praised the country’s media for remaining “the ray of hope in a dark era.”

In the preliminary comments he made before reading his speech at the grand event at the Expo Centre of Eko Hotel in Lagos, where he was given the Vanguard Personality of the Year Award, the Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, who has of late been involved in a war of words with President Goodluck Jonathan’s men, explained that unlike his usual style of speaking extemporally, he decided to read a prepared speech, because “I am becoming more careful, given that we are gradually going back to the era of dictatorship in this country.”

While Amaechi was formally presented as Vanguard’s Personality of the Year, 2012, at the event, Mr. Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede, the Managing Director of Access Bank, was also honoured as the runner up.

According to an earlier report by Vanguard, the event was designed to highlight Amaechi’s achievements in the last one year, stating that his “feat in Rivers State has been lauded by eminent personalities.”

The report also said “he is being honoured for his widely acknowledged developmental strides which have seen noteworthy improvements in infrastructure and the impartation of governance on all sectors of the society in Rivers State.”

But responding to praises of his achievements, Amaechi, who dedicated the award to the people of Rivers State said, “I am just an errand boy. Our understanding of political power is that power belongs to the voters.”

In his speech, the Chairman of the event, former Military President, General Ibrahim Babangida, recalled, with passion his friendly relationship with the publisher of Vanguard, Sam Amuka, pointing out that even during the military era, when one of the military governors in his regime shut down Vanguard, their relationship was not destroyed.

The event was a grand party. Nigeria’s pop diva, Omawumi Megbele, Timi Dakolo, Temi Sax and ace-comedian, Gordons led other top artistes to entertain the audience made-up of Nigeria’s creme de la creme, including top political leaders like the Speaker of House of Representatives, Hon Aminu Tambuwal, many state governors and business leaders like Alhaji Aliyu Dangote.

Source: The Nation