The Governor of Rivers State, Chibuike Amaechi has dared the state commissioner of police, Joseph Mbu to get ready to shoot because he will soon lead a mass protest of Rivers people against the rising tide of insecurity.
Mr Amaechi said this when a delegation of Orashi people from ONELGA, Abua/odual, Ahoada West and East paid him a solidarity visit in government house Port Harcourt.
He said he is not deterred by the threat from the Rivers State Commissioner of Police to arrest public protesters in Rivers State.
He said: “We are going to protest against what the Federal Government and what the Commissioner of Police are doing in Rivers State, we have told our Chiefs to get ready, we want to get a date, once we get people from overseas and Nigeria that will join us we will give them the date, I have told the CP to be ready to shoot me, I will be in front, if they want to shoot they can shoot me because we have the right to express our views.”
The governor also said he will maintain his resistance against takeover of oil wells belonging to Rivers State.
According to him, “there are politicians who have played politics with us and in the past eight years they have not been part of government and poverty has set in, you will see them now, you will see my brother Chibudom, he said we are not running an inclusive government.”
Meanwhile the Council Chairmen from the Orashi region have passed a vote of no confidence on the Rivers State Police Commissioner.
The local government chairmen from Ahoada West and East, Abua/odual, and ONELGA complained of increasing cases of crime in their domain.
They accused the Commissioner of withdrawing the Police officers attached to them because of their support for Mr Amaechi.
The Spokesman of the group and Senator representing the Rivers West Senatorial district, Wilson Ake said their visit is aimed at sending a clear message to those fighting the governor as losers, noting that the attack and hate he is experiencing today is purely as a result of his fight against social injustice, which is the proper path for development and posterity.
Mr Ake said the Orashi people believe that the government of Mr Amaechi is divinely instituted and therefore cannot be pulled down.
Police Infringements
A member representing Ahoada-West and Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni Local Government Areas in the House of Representatives, Asita Honourable told Mr Amaechi that he is disappointed with the attempt by the police to prevent his constituency to pay their solidarity to him.
The Rivers State Commissioner for Information and Communications, Ibim Semenitari had informed journalists that the Orashi people were prevented by the police from coming to pay solidarity visit to the governor.
She said the action taken by the command was an infringement on the rights of the people.
Ms. Semenitari said despite the action of the police, the people refused to be provoked and remained law abiding.
“We have tried as a government to be restrained regardless of the provocation that we have received at different times from the commissioner.
“We will continue to exercise restraint. We take exception to it, but we want it on record to Nigerians that we are being provoked.
“We will try not to allow the provocation reduce us to gutter levels that certain people have fallen to, but we want to put it on record,’’ she said.
Ms. Semenitari said government was mindful of its obligations to the people and would take appropriate administrative steps to handle the matter.
The Rivers Police Command however said it did not stop people from meeting Mr Amaechi.
The command’s Public Relations Officer, Angela Agabe, said this in an interview in Port Harcourt.
Ms Agabe said the Commissioner of Police did not give any order stopping people from visiting the governor.
She dismissed the allegations by the state government and some council chairmen that policemen stopped indigenes of four local government areas from paying solidarity visit to Mr. Amaechi, saying it was untrue.
“No, it is not true. The commissioner did not stop people from paying solidarity visit to the governor of Rivers.
“I am not aware of such instructions because the commissioner did not say so,’’ she said.