I’VE WIKE’S RECORDS, AMAECHI DARES GOV-ELECT ON PROBE

River State Governor Rotimi Amaechi has asked the state Governor-elect, Chief Nyesom Wike, to go ahead with his threat to probe his administration, saying he has Wike’s records as his (Amaechi) Chief of Staff between 2007 and 2011.
Amaechi said this during one of the programmes organised by Committee of Friends to mark the Rivers State governor’s 50th birthday in Port Harcourt on Tuesday.
“I heard that Wike says he will probe me. I have not asked him not to probe me. He should remember that he was my Chief of Staff for four years; I have my records on him. He should go ahead,” he said.

RIVERS CPS, MILITARY COMMANDERS REPORTING TO PATIENCE JONATHAN –AMAECHI

The Rivers State Governor, Chibuike Amaechi, on Sunday said his disagreement with President Goodluck Jonathan, was due in part to Mrs. Jonathan’s meddlesomeness.
He said this after the premiere of a documentary on the Amaechi years, at the Silver Bird Galleria, Abuja.
According to him, the President and the ruling Peoples Democratic Party, would have taken him to the cleaners, if they had found anything incriminating against him.
Amaechi said, “We had a disagreement in principle between me and the President. Have you seen a country where the Commissioner of Police is reporting to the wife of the President? It’s in Rivers State.

2015 POLLS: AMAECHI WANTS BUHARI TO PROBE ARMY, POLICE IN RIVERS

Rivers State Gov¬ernor, Chibuike Amaechi, has urged the incoming Fed¬eral Government to probe the role of the police and the army in the last general elec¬tions in the state.
Amaechi made the ap¬peal yesterday at the Greater Together Campaign Organ¬isation (GTCO) of All Pro¬gressives Congress (APC) special thanksgiving service to celebrate God’s faithfulness throughout the electioneering period in the state held at the Obi Wali International Confer¬ence Centre, Port Harcourt.
He alleged that the police, army, militants and the Inde¬pendent National Electoral Commission (INEC) were used to rob APC of victory and cause electoral irregularities in the state.
Also, he requested that the police commission should dis¬cipline police officers indicted in the electoral crisis in the state, “whether they were pro¬moted and transferred out of the state or not.”

AMAECHI: BUHARI’S VICTORY SAVED ME

Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi yesterday said he would have been hounded out of the country by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)-led government, had the All Progressives Congress (APC) lost the election.
Amaechi spoke at the public presentation of the compilation of his administration’s achievements in Lagos. The book “Dynamics of Change: The Amaechi Years” is edited by Dr Chidi Amuta and Dr Yemi Ogunbiyi.
Amaechi said he knew that he would be in trouble if change did not happen in Nigeria and was prepared to make the sacrifices necessary to make it happen.
“I knew I was going to be in trouble. Anything that would cause that change not to take place, I was ready to make that sacrifice. The federal government sent out a signal that if they won nobody should let me out of Nigeria from any airport. One day Asiwaju got angry with me. He was very angry. I went to his house with Mallam Nasir El-Rufai and knelt down, saying ‘please let’s not disagree, let’s win first and then we can disagree’.”

AMAECHI DESCRIBES RIVERS ELECTIONS AS “SHAM”

Rivers State Governor and Director-General of Buhari Campaign Organization, Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi has described Saturday’s Governorship and House of Assembly elections in the state as a sham.
Amaechi made his position clear while fielding questions from journalists after casting his vote at Ward 8, Unit 14, Ubima in Ikwerre Local Government Area of the State.
He said the elections witnessed thuggery and ballot box snatching in most parts of the state.
Referring to the election, the governor said: “I think it is a sham. You noticed what happened in Omagwa, what happened was that somebody called me and said they were been attacked at a particular polling booth and I went there, the thugs were overwhelming until another group of soldiers came before they ran away.

AMAECHI BEGS FOR FORGIVENESS

The Rivers State governor and the Director-General, Muhammadu Buhari/Osi¬bajo Campaign Organisa¬tion, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, has apologised to those he offended, as a result of his political activi¬ties to, in the spirit of Easter, forgive him.
The appeal was contained in a pre-gubernatorial and state Assembly elections address, broadcast to the people, yesterday.
He said: “Great people of Rivers State, history beckons on us, and his¬tory is a demanding judge. In conclud-ing this address, may I in the spirit of the Easter appeal to all those who may have been offended by my actions or inactions to forgive me. As your gov¬ernor, elected to serve you, we have always meant well, and will always mean well. As our administration winds down, we wish to guarantee you that we will do everything to ensure that we fulfil our promises to you and give you good reason to be glad that you are Rivers people, proud, resilient and greater together.”

MILITARY STOPS AMAECHI FROM INSPECTING POLLING UNITS

• Refused to be accredited 
The Governor of Rivers State, Chibuike Amaechi, was earlier today stopped from moving around different polling units in the state by the military.
Amaechi, who drove himself in a black 4WD, was stopped by the Brigade Commander of the second Brigade, Bori Camp, Essien Essien, who engaged the governor in a debate over his mission to ascertain the availability of result sheets at the polling units.
Against the advice of the Brigade Commander to remain at his polling centre, the governor challenged the Army Officer to arrest him as he drove back to the government house Port Harcourt after refusing to be accredited, insisting he would not vote unless he saw the result sheets.
Amaechi, refused to be accredited because of the failure of the electoral officers to produce result sheets
However, the Rivers PDP publicity secretary, Mr Samuel Nwanosike, debunked the claim by the governor that there was no accreditation in the local government area, saying several people in his own Ward 9, Omagwa, had been accredited

SIX RIVERS COMMISSIONERS MAY DEFECT TO PDP

THERE appears to be palpable fear in the camp of the All Progressives Congress in Rivers State as speculations were rife on Monday that six commissioners in Governor Rotimi Amaechi’s cabinet were set to defect to the Peoples Democratic Party on or before Friday.
Amaechi’s deputy, Mr. Tele Ikuru, had defected to the PDP on Sunday with a promise that his supporters would soon join him in his new party.
Though five commissioners were seen to be Amaechi’s die-hard supporters, other commissioners could be well out of the APC and were only waiting for the right time.
A source in the Government House, Port Harcourt, told our correspondent that he could only vouch for commissioners in charge of Information, Agriculture, Works and two other ministries, adding that those who stood for pecuniary gains could defect to the PDP.
“Yes, the deputy governor has defected and you will agree with me that he (Ikuru) has supporters who will definitely want to go with him. We are suspecting them already and very soon, they will show themselves.

AMAECHI PRESSURISING ME TO FREE HARDENED CRIMINALS – RIVERS CP

The Commissioner of the Rivers State Police Command, Dan Bature has said that Governor Chibuike Amaechi has being raising false alarm against the Command because he refused to bow to pressure to release hardened criminals involved in heinous cases of murder, deadly cult activities, unlawful possession of firearms, kidnappings and sundry acts of lawlessness that ordinarily would have been charged to court but for the industrial action of the Rivers state judiciary.
In a strongly worded press statement signed by the CP Dan Bature, he said: “It is strongly believed that the vituperations are frustrating signs of the Government’s inability to pressure the Command to release hardened criminals involved heinous cases of murder, deadly cult activities, unlawful firearms possession, kidnappings and sundry acts of lawlessness that ordinarily would have been charged to court but for the industrial action of the Rivers State Judiciary”.

MY PROBLEM WITH JONATHAN – AMAECHI

Rivers State gover¬nor, Rotimi Chi¬buike Amaechi, has said that the reason he has problem with President Goodluck Jonathan, whom he de¬scribed as a man who God has blessed, is that he has refused to give people the opportunity to reverse the current trend of poverty, even as he watches people steal the country’s monies.
In an interview with jour¬nalists on his achievements while in office, he alleged that corruption is now a state policy.
He said: “Under former presidents Obasanjo and Yar’Adua, the oil subsidy was N300bn, but six months into 2011 under Jonathan, the oil subsidy became N2.3trn. When governors went on strike, it was N1.7trn, and we said we wouldn’t collect our monthly allocation un¬less they returned/stopped further subsidy, and Jona¬than swore he would, but didn’t.

PFN TO AMAECHI: YOU GAVE 500 PASTORS MONEY FOR SUPPORT

The Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria (PFN) in Cross River State has accused the Director General (DG) of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Council, Governor Chibuike Amaechi, of giving money to 500 pastors in October last year to get their support for his political party, the All Progressives Congress (APC).
The pastors made the accusation against Amaechi who is also the Rivers State Governor in apparent response to the allegations he made recently against pastors in the country whom he accused of collecting N6 billion from the ruling party to mount campaigns against the Presidential Candidate of the APC, Muhammadu Buhari.

WE WILL TAKE TO THE STREETS IF INEC SHIFTS ELECTION, SAYS AMAECHI

THE director general of Buhari campaign organization and Governor of Rivers State, Chibuike Amaechi, has threatened mass action if the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) decides today to shift this month’s election.
Amaechi, who said monumental change is about to happen in Nigeria because the vast majority of Nigerians yearn for it, insisted that the presidential election must hold on February 14 because Nigerians are charged and poised to vote on that day for an inevitable change.
He stated this during the All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship campaign rally at Isiokpo, the headquarters of his Ikwerre Local Government Area of Rivers State.
Addressing thousands of APC supporters who had converged for the rally, the governor charged his kinsmen and the people of the State to vote against the president and the Peoples Democratic Party because they are adverse to the rule of law and good governance.

AMAECHI, LAMIDO IN SECRET MEETING

LESS than two weeks to the presidential election, the Director-General (DG) of All Progressives Congress (APC) Presidential Campaign Organisation and River State governor, Rotimi Ameachi, has wooed Governor Sule Lamido of Jigawa State, who is President Goodluck Jonathan’s North-West campaign coordinator.
Reports from the state indicated that the APC presidential campaign DG was in Dutse, the capital city of Jigawa State, on the invitation of his colleagues and arrived Dutse Government House at around 9.00 p.m on Saturday.

AMAECHI BARS JONATHAN FROM USING STATE'S STADIUM

• PDP Kicks
The stage is set for another round of confrontation between Rivers State Governor, Rt. Hon. Chibuike Amaechi, and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as the governor has refused the party the use of the Adokiye Amiesimaka Stadium, Igwurita-Ali for its presidential campaign.
The party applied for use of the stadium for its presidential campaign rally on January 28 but Amaechi refused to grant them the use of the facility on the grounds that the stadium is under construction.
But the PDP has countered that the governor was not being fair since his own party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) has used the stadium twice for political rallies.

WHY JONATHAN IS IN TROUBLE — GOV AMAECHI

GOVERNOR Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers State was recently appointed Director-General of the Buhari Campaign Organisation. At an interactive session, Amaechi among other things, reels out plans of the campaign organisation and also clears the air on knotty issues. Excerpts:
Why Jonathan is in trouble — Gov Amaechi
Says he didn’t fund Buhari’s campaign
IS it true you funded the Buhari campaign for the primaries?
I did not. Buhari did not spend money for the primaries. Anybody who said they spent money should come forward with evidence. We have maintained consistently that Nigerians would fund us and that is why we have launched our campaign we are hoping that people will contribute. It is there on our website; you will just look at the account and go and pay.

AMAECHI, TINUBU MAY CLASH OVER BUHARI’S THINK TANK

There are indications that Rivers State Governor, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi and former Governor of Lagos State, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, may lock horns over nomination of members of General Mohammadu Buhari’s (GMB) economic think tank that will formulate the retired army general’s economic policy.
Already, Alhaji Tanimu Yakubu Kurfi, former chiefeconomic adviser to late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, who an online newspaper, TheCable, said Buhari has tipped as the head of the think tank, is facing serious opposition from members of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
According to the online newspaper, “since TheCablereported that the economics graduate of Wagner College, New York, U.S. was tipped to head the economic policy directorate of the Buhari Campaign Organisation, the former head of state and senior APC chieftains have been inundated with calls by concerned Nigerians who kicked against Kurfi’s membership.”

WIKE ACCUSES AMAECHI OF FUNDING APC WITH N30BN

The Former Minister of State for Education and the governorship candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in Rivers State, Chief Nyesom Wike, has accused the Rivers State Governor, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi, of spending the sum N30 billion to fund the presidential campaign of the All Progressives Congress.
Wike explained that the development had made it impossible for the state government to pay workers’ salaries, adding that the governor was using state resources to fund the APC with the hope that he would be picked as the running mate to the APC presidential candidate, Muhammadu Buhari.
Wike pointed out that Amaechi was being deceived by the leadership of the APC to continue to fund the party and added that the APC leadership had never been interested in selecting the governor as Buhari’s running mate.

GOV AMAECHI’S SUPPORT FOR MUTINY TREASONABLE – FG

Federal Government has asked Nigerians to take note of the statement credited to Rivers State Governor, Rotimi Amaechi, in which he endorsed the mutiny allegedly perpetrated by some soldiers in the Nigerian Army. 
Amaechi, who is the Director-General of the Buhari/Osinbajo Campaign Organisation, criticised the Nigerian military authorities for sentencing some soldiers who allegedly rebelled against the state, saying their action was justified.
In a statement signed by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Public Affairs, Dr. Doyin Okupe, the government recalled a statement credited to Amaechi recently where he threatened that his party would form a parallel government if the 2015 elections don’t go the way of the All Progressives Congress, APC.
Okupe described Amaechi’s statements as treasonable. 

PDP: AMAECHI’S MUTINY COMMENTS UNPATRIOTIC

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has warned politicians, particularly Rotimi Amaechi, governor of Rivers state, against undue involvement with matters of discipline in the army. Olisa Metuh, spokesman of the party, who said this on Wednesday, maintained that such matters are within the purview of military authorities. He urged politicians not to make comments that encourage indiscipline and disobedience. Metuh said that during the campaign period, PDP would refrain from commenting on issues of military discipline, its command and control procedures. “We believe that it is dangerous to politicise issues pertaining to the country’s armed forces,” he said. “We will not join anyone or political party in the unpatriotic act of trying to subordinate national interest to any politically and selfishly motivated interest.
 “It is in the light of this that we view the statement credited to the director-general of the presidential campaign organisation of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Rivers state governor, Rotimi Amaechi, as not being in the overall interest of the military and the nation.” Metuh called on Nigerians to condemn what he described as the dishonourable tactic of the opposition to gain political capital by dragging the internal affairs of the military into the arena of politics. “Across half-a-century of our nationhood, the Nigerian military has remained the major catalyst and the last defence line in the unity and oneness of the nation,” he added.

APC APPOINTS RIVERS GOVERNOR, AMAECHI, PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN DIRECTOR

The All progressives Congress, APC, has appointed the Governor of Rivers state, Rotimi Amaechi, the Director General of its party’s presidential campaign.
APC has former head of State, Muhammadu Buhari as its flag bearer after he beat four other candidates at the party’s national convention in Lagos last week.
Mr. Buhari had yesterday also named law professor, Yemi Osinbajo, his running mate.
The appointment of Mr. Amaechi was contained in a statement by the spokesperson of the APC, Lai Mohammed, on Thursday in Abuja.
See full test of the statement below:
The All Progressives Congress, APC, has named Gov. Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers State as the Director-General of the APC Presidential Campaign Organization, which will drive the party’s efforts to win the 2015 presidential election.