THE Presidency on Thursday made a deliberate effort to avoid enmeshing the National Economic Council (NEC) in thecontroversy surrounding the Nigerian Governors’ Forum (NGF) as it failed to recognize any of the two factional chairmen of the forum in the seating arrangement made for the meeting.
All 36 state governors, ministers of Finance and Governor of the Central Bank are members of the council which is constitutionally empowered to provide advice to the President on the economy.
Under normal circumstances, the seating arrangement is made in such a way that the chairman of the forum sits opposite the chairman of NEC, which is Vice President Namadi Sambo. But during Thursday’s meeting, the Presidency decided to prepare the seating arrangement in alphabetical order of states, bringing Rivers and Plateau together side by side.
Drama ensued when Governor Muazu Babangida Aliyu of Niger State and the factional NGF chairman and Rivers State governor, Rotimi Amaechi, arrived the Presidential Villa council chamber, venue of the meeting and Amaechi attempted to assume his usual seat only to discover that the seating arrangement had been changed.
Both governors soon realised from the name tag on the seats that Amaechi’s rival and Plateau State governor, Jonah Jang was his immediate neighbour and Aliyu pointed out to Amaechi, “So, you are going to sit with Jang? This is very nice oh. Somebody is trying to be diplomatic here.”
Amaechi responded amid laughter saying: “We are still together. So, I am going to sit with him. The real chairman and the...” At this point Jang came in, exchanged greetings with the Rivers governor and other colleagues before being shown his chair next to Amaechi.
After the exchange of pleasantries, Ameachi said to Jang, “You are welcome, I am the authentic chairman,” to which Jang smiled without uttering a word.
Both men sat quietly without talking to each other before Edo State governor, Adams Oshiomhole came in, drew the attention of cameramen and other governors around and jokingly introduced Amaechi, saying “that is my chairman,” while he addressed Jang as “the chairman of PDP extended faction.”
The meeting thereafter went into a closed door session with the arrival of the Vice President.
Meanwhile, the Rivers State Commissioner of Police, Mbu Joseph Mbu, has blamed the media in the country for instigating the running spat between himself and the state governor, Amaechi,
Speaking at a press briefing in Port Harcourt Thursday, Mbu, who in recent times had negative exchanges with the governor and some other office holders in the state, also denied calling Governor Amaechi a tyrant.
It is recalled that the police boss, at a press briefing on Thursday, June 20, 2013, described Amaechi as a tyrant and a dictator, picturing him as one who wants everybody to do his bidding.
But when Mbu addressed the press on Thursday, he was full of glowing words for the governor, whom he described as his friend, brother and boss, adding that he had a lengthy discussion on the phone with him the previous day.
The new cordiality with the governor did not however, stop the police boss from drawing lines on authority with Amaechi, as he reminded him that he has to obtain a written permit from him as the commissioner of police before he could lead any protest.
“I have never called the governor a tyrant as reported by a certain newspaper. How can I call the governor that? That is insulting. Governor Amaechi is my friend, he is my brother and my boss. Yesterday, we spoke on phone for close to 30 minutes. I cannot shoot him. It is the press that is creating the problem between us to sell their papers. It is the press that is saying the governor will shoot me or I shoot him”, Mbu said
On the planned street protest by Governor Amaechi, the police commissioner said “nobody is above the law in Nigeria and I know that Governor Amaechi is not thinking towards that direction (leading a protest). He is the chief security officer of the state and I am his second-in-command. Anyway, until then, we will see.”
On his relationship with the former militant warlord and the leader of the Niger Delta Volunteer Force, NDVF, Ateke Tom, Mbu said Ateke was not a criminal but an ex-militant leader who has been granted pardon by the Federal Government.
“Ateke is not a criminal. If he wants to meet with me, maybe to give information on anything, I will be willing to meet with him. But any day they declare him an active militant, I will fight him,” Mbu said.
Meanwhile, the police commissioner said the command had arrested a total of 52 suspected kidnappers in various parts of the state while nine others escaped arrest between February 5, and June 26, 2013, adding that at least six kidnap victims were rescued from the hide outs of suspected kidnappers.
He said further that since he assumed duties in the state, a total of 18 kidnap cases were recorded within the state while the sum of N6.8 million suspected to be ransom paid to suspected kidnappers by relatives of kidnap victims was recovered.
He said a total of 20 AK-47 rifles, 11 AK-49 rifles and two general purpose machine guns (GPMG) with chain bullets, as well as five pump-action guns and eight dane guns, were recovered from various criminal gangs in the state.
According to the police commissioner, also recovered were four berretta pistols, 82 magazines, 1,450 AK-47 ammunitions, 2,240 other ammunitions, dynamites, gas cylinder and wielding pipes.
Source: Tribune
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