Soldiers Stop Amaechi and Oshiomhole from Entering Ekiti

 

According to Thisdaylive

The federal government displayed its fangs Thursday when in a commando-style operation, soldiers and other security agencies of the federal government prevented Governors Adams Oshiomhole (Edo) and Chibuike Amaechi (Rivers) from travelling to Ekiti State.

Amaechi, who had landed in Akure, the Ondo State capital, in a private airplane, had proceeded by road to Ado-Akiti, the capital of Ekiti State, but was stopped and prevented from entering the state at Iju, a border town in Ondo.

After waiting at the border town without being granted permission to enter Ekiti, Amaechi’s motorcade was compelled to depart Ondo State for Lagos yesterday by road, as his aircraft was prevented from flying out of Akure.

In the case of Oshiomhole, his chartered helicopter was grounded at Benin Airport, while the Kano State Governor, Rabiu Kwankwaso, whom the All Progressives Congress (APC) claimed was also prevented from departing from the Aminu Kano International Airport for Akure, was never even scheduled to travel.

According to an online news website, Premium Times, at the time APC was issuing a statement that included Kwankwaso as one of its governor’s that had been refused entry into Ekiti, the Kano State governor’s spokesman, Baba Dantiye, had already informed the website that his principal had no intention of travelling yesterday.

Dantiye said Kwankwaso was at an event in Kano State and had no plans of travelling to Ekiti State.

“The governor is in Kano here; he did not have plans of going to Akure, none that I know of,” Dantiye said.

Perhaps realising that his party had released a statement to the contrary, Dantiye called the news medium back to say he was at an event with the governor and would not “want to confirm or deny” the APC’s claim.

Amaechi and Oshimhole were ostensibly heading to Ekiti to attend the rally of the APC today before the governorship election scheduled for tomorrow.

The governors were expected to stay back in Ekiti after the rally to support their colleague, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, who is seeking re-election for a second term in office.

Expectedly, the restriction of the governors’ movement drew the condemnation of APC and chieftains of the party, former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar and Senator Bola Tinubu, who warned the federal government against executive impunity and turning the country into a police state.

But the Edo State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) applauded the decision to ground the helicopter that was to be used by Oshiomhole to travel to Ekiti, stating that the governor was in the habit of wasting the state’s resources in leasing aircraft to travel for “jamborees instead of developing his state”.

The military also denied that it ambushed and detained Amaechi at the Ondo-Ekiti boundary to prevent him from entering Ekiti State for the rally.

This is just as the Inspector General of Police (IG), Mohammed Abubakar, yesterday said the police had deployed an Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG) and four police commissioners in Ekiti to supervise security operations for tomorrow’s governorship election in the state.

Amaechi Held in Ondo State

However, the Rivers State Government, in a statement yesterday, disputed the military’s denial, stating that Amaechi was held hostage by soldiers and other federal government security agents at Iju, Ondo State.

The state Commissioner for Information and Communications, Mrs. Ibim Semenitari, said Amaechi had left Port Harcourt yesterday morning to join his Ekiti State counterpart in the mega rally before tomorrow's election in Ekiti State.

She said in the statement that before Amaechi departed Ondo for Lagos by road: “The Rivers State Government is concerned about the safety of Governor Amaechi who is right now being held hostage in a commando-style by soldiers and federal government security agents in Iju, Ondo state.

“Governor Amaechi as Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) and as an All Progressives Congress (APC) governor and chieftain of the party had left Port Harcourt this morning for Ekiti State where he was to join his brother governor in his last mega rally before the elections.

“Governor Amaechi was ambushed and refused entry into Ekiti by military personnel acting on orders from above. He made to turn back and return to Akure where his chartered aircraft was parked but was chased by armed soldiers and security personnel in Otutu, Ondo State. According to the captain who led the operation, he had orders not to allow the governor entry or exit.”

Semenitari also said the chartered aircraft that conveyed Amaechi to Akure Airport had been grounded.

“In the meantime, the chartered aircraft that conveyed the governor has been grounded while the Ministers of Defence, Police Affairs and Minister of State for Defence have landed at the Akure airport,” she said.

She said the Rivers State government was especially worried that the federal government and President Goodluck Jonathan had singled out Amaechi for harassment and attack.

Her words: “While we hold the person and Office of the President in utmost regard, we believe that it is unacceptable that the presidency would disrespect the person and office of an elected governor of a federating unit and consistently hound him.

“The Rivers State Government is all the more worried as the Ondo saga is coming on the heels of a plot by six PDP lawmakers this morning to carry out a kangaroo impeachment of the duly elected governor of Rivers State, Rt. Hon Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, first at Krisdera Hotels and later Bauchi Street, Port Harcourt.

“Ordinarily, such banality should be ignored as it is neither legal nor constitutional. However, in the light of the recent attempts to hoist a Chief Judge on Rivers people through the back door and the attendant rumours that the reason for that desperate act was to make it easier for the PDP to actualise its sinister dream of ousting Governor Amaechi before May 29, 2015, we believe that it has become necessary to draw the attention of Rivers people, Nigerians and the international community to the situation in Rivers State.”

Semenitari noted that the state chapter of the PDP had Wednesday accused Amaechi of importing terrorists into the state and the region and had demanded that the governor be put under surveillance.

She stated: “The state government wouldn't have dignified the PDP’s display of ignorance with a response but for the fact that these accusations coupled with today’s actions are ominous signs of how far the PDP is willing to go in its quest to cling onto power by all means.

“The antecedents of impunity on the part of the leadership of the PDP are instructive and the party’s desperation to harm and stop anyone they perceive as a major threat to their crumbling electoral fortunes next year is no longer news.

“The detention attempt and incident at the Kano International Airport last week are still fresh in the minds of Nigerians. Also, the call to put Governor Amaechi under surveillance (or is it house arrest?) on the same day that PDP started efforts to unseat the Governor of Adamawa State, Murtala Nyako, is enough indication of the script already written by a jittery PDP.”

Also, the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria (ALGON) in Rivers State yesteday threatened to sue the federal government over what it described as the continued harassment of Amaechi.

Addressing journalists in Port Harcourt on the news of the “detention” of Amaechi by soldiers in Ondo State, Chairman of the Rivers State chapter of ALGON, Mr. Oji Ngorfa, said members of the association were shocked and miffed at the prevention of Amaechi from entering Ekiti State.

He stated that the governor, like any other citizen of Nigeria, did not need any invitation or clearance from anyone to be in Ekiti and wondered why the governor should be singled out for harassment.

Oshiomhole’s Chopper Grounded

Oshiomhole’s helicopter which was meant to depart Benin Airport for Ado Ekiti yesterday was prevented from taking off by the aviation authorities.

In a statement yesterday, the Edo State Government said the governor was informed by the Commander of the 81 Air Maritime Group, Benin City, Air Commodore Soji Awomodu, that he received “a call from above” that no private jet or helicopter should be allowed to fly out of Benin City to either Akure or Ekiti.

According to the statement, “The governor who was billed to attend a mass rally organised to round-off the re-election campaign of the Governor of Ekiti State, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, was left stranded at the Benin Airport for two hours before Air Commodore Awomodu delivered the message 'from above’.”

A source at the 81 Air Maritime Group, however said it was purely a military affair. Oshiomhole expressed shock at the development.

When contacted, the Airport Manager, Mr. Sunday Ayodele, and the Airspace Manager, Mr Ibekwe, said they had no hands in the governor’s ordeal as they had no directive to that effect.
The helicopter with registration number 5NBQ8 later flew out of the Benin Airport at 1.20 pm without its intended passengers.

The Special Adviser to the Governor on Media, Kassim Afegbua, confirmed the incident and described it as strange.

Edo PDP Applauds Move

However, reacting to the grounding of Oshiomhole’s aircraft by men of the Nigerian Air Force, the Edo State PDP applauded the move, saying it had consistently raised the alarm over the wastefulness Oshiomhole on leasing of helicopters.
The party, in a statement issued by its state chairman, Chief Dan Orbih, said the people of Edo State should be worried about how the resources of the state were been spent on the governor's numerous chartered flights.

“We received the news with great delight. For some time now, we have raised the alarm over the governor’s penchant for extravagance in the form of chartered flights. We challenge him to submit his international passport so that the people can see but he declined.
“We have it on good authority that he spends at least N30 million every month. Multiply that by the number of months he has spent as governor and you will understand what we have been saying.

“He uses the state’s resources to fund his personal trips. What bearing has his trip to Ado-Ekiti got to do with the development of Edo State? We must ask why he chose to charter a helicopter for a journey that is less than three hours.
“We appeal to Governor Oshiomhole to stop this social jamboree for the good of Edo State,” Orbih declared.

APC, Atiku, Tinubu, Others Protest

APC, however, in a reaction to the federal government’s restriction of its governors’ movement cried out against the “order from above”, which had prevented them from going to Ado-Ekiti for the party's final campaign today.

In a statement issued yesterday by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said at least three governors – Oshiomhole, Amaechi and Kwankwanso – were prevented from making the trip.

The party said while Amaechi's convoy was being detained in order to force him to turn back, the convoys of the Ministers of Defence and Police Affairs came and were allowed to pass.

“These acts are illegal and definitely not in line with the Electoral Act, which stipulates that campaign for the election will only end at midnight on Friday.

“It also represents a manipulation of the electoral process when all the candidates will not be allowed a level playing field to campaign for the election. There is no clearer manifestation of the federal government's allergy to free, fair, transparent and violence-free election than this,” the party said.

It condemned in the strongest terms the abuse of national institutions and the abuse of power, which these actions represent, especially because only the federal government has control over these institutions, including the security agencies that have now become a tool in the hands of an increasingly desperate government of the day.

“Several months ago, we warned that Nigeria under the watch of President Goodluck Jonathan was sliding into fascism and we werepilloried in certain quarters for daring to make such a statement.

Today, we have sadly been vindicated.
“Not even in the worst days of the abhorrent military dictatorship were things done this brazenly, with citizens being denied their fundamental rights of free movement, free assembly and free expression, all because of the desperation by the ruling party to winelections at all costs.

“We therefore call on all good people of Nigeria and indeed all the country's international friends to speak out against what is happening before things get out of hand. If democratically-elected governors could be so shabbily treated, despite the high office they occupy, what will happen to ordinary Nigerians in the hands of an increasingly-fascist government?” APC queried.

In his reaction, Atiku warned the federal government against turning the country into a police state following the restrictions placed in the way of some APC governors and party members, to attend the campaign rally.

A press statement from the media office of the former vice-president said the action of the PDP-led federal government in stopping the governors of Kano, Rivers and Edo from attending the APC governorship campaign rally in Ado-Ekiti yesterday, in a Gestapo-like manner, was capable of turning Nigeria into a Banana Republic where the fundamental rights of citizens are trampled upon with impunity.

He was particularly saddened at the way the federal government had been dragging the military and police into politics, warning “the government must stop instigating state security agents paid from tax payers’ money against helpless, hapless and law abiding Nigerians.”

In the same vein, Tinubu and the National Chairman of the APC, Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, who were in Ado-Ekiti yesterday, accused the PDP-led federal government of misusing the security agencies against the people of the country.

Also, the Chairman of the Progressives Governors’ Forum and Governor of Imo State, Rochas Okorocha, Governor of Ogun State, Ibikunle Amosun, and a chieftain of the party, Audu Ogbeh, urged Nigerians to resist the PDP’s attempt to plunge the country into anarchy.

Okorocha and Amosun, who decried the action, called on innocent Nigerians to be wary of the PDP, saying the party does not mean well for the generality of the populace and that it must be rejected in every election.

In a statement, Fayemi also decried the order which had prevented his colleagues from entering Ekiti for APC’s final rally.

The Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Olayinka Oyebode, in the statement, said Fayemi and other APC leaders at the rally condemned the act, describing it as a descent to dictatorship, urging Nigerians to resist moves by the federal government to use security operatives to undermine governors and subvert the will of the citizens.

“A situation where state governors and other citizens can no longer move freely in the country is highly condemnable. This is the height of intolerance.

“What has happened to the freedom of movement, freedom of association, freedom of expression and freedom of choice, which are well entrenched in the constitution of the country?" Fayemi queried.

However, when contacted, the Public Relations Officer of the 32 Artillery Brigade, Akure, Ondo State, Capt Ademola Adegoke, refuted the allegation that Amaechi had been detained and other governors prevented from entering Ado-Ekiti, saying it was not true.

He said it was completely false that the Rivers State Governor was detained, stressing: “That’s not true. On what grounds would we arrest the governors?”
Similarly, the state Police Command said no such thing happened in the state.

IG Deploys AIG, 4 CPs

Meanwhile, as part of measures aimed at ensuring proper coordination of security operations and realising a hitch-free election tomorrow, the IG has deployed an AIG and four Commissioners of Police (CPs) to Ekiti State.

They are AIG Bala M. Nasarawa, who is to supervise security arrangements and will be assisted by four CPs.

While CP Ikechukwu Aduba of Delta State will function as the commissioner in charge of Ekiti State for the period of the election, three other CPs will be specifically saddled with the responsibility of supervising security arrangements in the three senatorial districts of the state.

They are: CP Danladi Y. Mshelbwala (Ekiti-North), CP Mohammed Ibrahim (Ekiti-Central) and CP Augustine Eubakhabokum (Ekiti-South). CP Hosea Karma (CP in charge of PMF) will be charged with the responsibility of supervising the operations of the Police Mobile Force and other special Strike Forces.

This was contained in a statement signed by the Force spokesperson, Frank Mba, Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP).

The IG also placed an order banning movements in and out of Ekiti with effect from 6 pm yesterday till the elections are over. On Saturday 21, June 2014, which is the day of the election, movement will be restricted within the state between 6 am to 8 pm.
Consequently, Kwara, Kogi, Ondo and Osun States, which are contiguous to Ekiti would have increased police presence in all entry and exit points of the states.

He said persons on essential duties such as ambulance service providers, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) officials, on-duty security men, accredited election monitors/observers, accredited journalists etc, would not be affected by this order.
He said in the event of any incidence of misconduct or acts of gallantry by officers of the Nigeria Police Force, members of the public should call the following numbers: Ekiti Central Senatorial District – 08065265651, Ekiti North Senatorial District    – 08072981057, and Ekiti South Senatorial District    – 08033010905.