BREAKING......... EXECUTIVE RASCALITY AS JONATHAN CRUSH ROTIMI AMAECHI; SOLDIERS HAVE TAKEN OVER PORTHARCOURT STADIUM...... President Goodluck Jonathan and Governor Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers State locked horns again on Saturday over the use of the Rivers State stadium for a Peoples Democratic Party rally. The two fell out with each other several months ago leading to the defection of Amaechi from the PDP to the opposition All Progressives Congress. The Rivers governor is also not in good terms with the First Lady, Mrs. Patience Jonathan, over claims that the President’s wife wanted to control him and the state. Mrs. Jonathan has repeatedly denied this allegation. On Friday, in an apparent move to counter the refusal by Amaechi to grant the state PDP permission to use the Adokiye Amiesimaka Stadium for the PDP presidential rally armed soldiers took over the stadium. Jonathan’s presidential rally is billed to hold on Wednesday, January 28. Amaechi had cited an ongoing construction work on the sporting facility as the reason for turning down the request. The governor had also maintained that since the stadium was one of the projects his administration was bent on completing before leaving office, it would be unnecessary to stop work on the 40,000 capacity sports complex located in Igwuruta-Ali, Ikwerre Local Government Area due to a political rally. The soldiers moved into the stadium Friday night and were still within the facility when SUNDAY PUNCH visited the place on Saturday. The soldiers mounted guard at the two main entrances to the stadium. More soldiers were seen alighting from a Hilux van while others were stationed at different points within the stadium complex. One of our correspondents gathered that the governorship candidate of the PDP in the state, Mr. Nyesom Wike, was led to the stadium by a group of security agents, including men of the Department of State Security at about 12: 50pm on Saturday. Sources said Wike, who is the former Minister of State for Education, was at the stadium to inspect the facility ahead of his party’s presidential rally on Wednesday. The leadership of the PDP in the state had alerted the police and other security agencies of an alleged threat by Amaechi to mobilise his supporters against the party should it (PDP) insist on holding the President’s rally at the stadium. Wike had also vowed that the facility would be available for the President’s rally. Reacting to the occupation of the stadium by soldiers, Amaechi told SUNDAY PUNCH that Jonathan was not prepared for a free and fair election.
Posted on: Sun, 25 Jan 2015 06:10:20 +0000
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