Clark accuses Ganduje, Damagum of encourage Wike to derail democracy in Rivers
…says APC , PDP national chairmen collaborating to frustrate Fubara
By Tunde Opalana
Former minister of Information and leader of the Ijaw nation, Chief. Edwin Clark has accused national chairmen of both the All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr. Abdullah Ganduje and that of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Ambassador Ilya Damagum of collaborating with the minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to derail democracy in Rivers State.
He therefore urged national leadership and members of both parties to rein in their chairmen from becoming available tools in the hands of Wike to frustrate Mr. Siminalayi Fubara, the democratically elected governor of Rivers State.
He said this Monday in an open.letter to both party chieftains which was made available to the Daily Times.
The National Leader of the Pan- Niger Delta Democratic Forum (PANDEF) accused both party chairmen of being accomplishes in the Rivers State political crisis by yielding their parties to the former governor to launch political missiles to the Rivers State political space.
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He said the support given to Nyesom Wike by both party Chairmen has made him courageous enough to intimidate and anger the Rivers State governor and government and this is seen as an act to overthrown the duly elected Governor, which is criminal.
Chief Clark said “I know both of you are fully aware and involved in the political crisis in Rivers State which is caused by Wike who is controlling the two parties in Rivers State particularly the PDP.
“I strongly advise both of you to withdraw from the madness of politics of Rivers State to avoid the dangerous crisis facing Rivers State, one of the most important states producing the resources used to sustain the economy of this country. I hope you do not forget that the International Oil Companies (IOCs) and the deep seaport of Onne are very well established in Rivers State.
“Wike who is a self imposed leader of the party PDP and the champion of madness in Rivers politics is also controlling the ruling party APC by appointing a caretaker committee under the former Chief of Staff to Governor Rotimi Amaechi, Chief Tony Okocha, while he is not the legitimate chairman of APC in Rivers State.
“The legitimate chairman Emeka Beke was suspended and was replaced with Chief Tony Okocha, because of his close relationship with the Leader of APC in the state, in person of Rt Hon Rotimi Chibuike Amaechi. Chief Tonye Cole, the APC gubernatorial candidate in Rivers State also belongs to the elected executives.
“Nyesom Wike, in order to impress the Presidency and APC in Abuja, decided to create the Chief Tony Okocha led caretaker committee with which he now deals with the APC in Rivers State with the approval of the National Chairman of APC.
“One maybe tempted to ask the National Chairman of APC why he chose to deal with a caretaker committee of APC which the Minister of FCT, Nyesom Wike had earlier presented the committee to him in the APC secretariat in Abuja before constituting it as a caretaker committee. But curiously, you now deal with a caretaker committee instead of the elected Chairman.
“I hope you are aware of the court action filed against you and APC by the elected Chairman of APC in Rivers State, Emeka Beke. The old APC members by law are the APC leaders because they were never removed before the illegal caretaker committee was imposed on Rivers State, who are loyalist to Wike. The legally constituted executives are in court, challenging the imposition of the caretaker committee on Rivers State chapter of the APC by the NWC.
“How can the Federal Government and the two main political parties allow an individual to disrupt and cause confusion, harassment of the democratically elected Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara on the guise that he alone and not the people of Rivers State made Fubara Governor”.
The leader of the Ijaw Nation referred to a statement credited to Wike while addressing the lawmaker representing Ogu-Bolo constituency in the House of Assembly who defected from PDP to APC, in which the FCT minister declared, “Let me say this clearly, Arnold, don’t be frightened that anybody will remove you as an assembly member. Most of you don’t understand, this is our work. What I am doing is to make them fail, to make them angry. I have no other job than to make them angry everyday, to make them make mistakes everyday and they will be in trouble everyday. So don’t worry yourselves. If they like they can go to anybody by 2am or 4am to get injunction. The law will take its cause.”
According to Chief Clark, “Nyesom Wike aggressively boasted that nobody can remove the member representing Ogu-Bolo Constituency. Therefore one is tempted to guess what this dangerous, diabolical and mischievous politician can do to breach the constitution and cause a breakdown in law and order in the country.
“He is not in a position to amen section 109 (1g) of the constitution and he is not in a position to undermine the Supreme Court judgement which has now been firmly accepted as precedent, which binds all Courts in Nigeria.
“By his statements, he made it very clear that he is at work in Rivers State to intimidate, harass, disorganise the state in order to replace Governor Fubara with the former Speaker of the House of Assembly, Hon Martins Amaewhule, through impeachment.”
Explaining what he described as the Conspiracy theory at work, Clark said the PDP acting chairman, Amb Damagum cannot honestly claim to be unaware of this grave anti-party activities being executed by Nyesom Wike, when he (Wike) secretly took court injunction against founding and senior members of PDP and senior officials from Rivers State like, the former National Chairman of PDP Prince Uche Secondus, His Excellency Celestine Omehia, former Governor of Rivers State, Rt. Hon Austin Okpara who was Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives in Abuja, Dr Abiye Sekibo, former Minster of Transportation, Sen Lee Maeba, etc in order to prevent them from attending the PDP NEC meeting of 18th April, 2024.
He further said “every attempt made by these victims of oppression to vacate the injunctions did not succeed. Hon Sokari Goodboy, a member of the Rivers State House of Assembly representing Ahoada West who did not defect to APC was arrested on 18th April 2024 at the NEC meeting.
“Prince Uche Secondus has been a member of PDP since inception and he has acted as Organising Secretary, Deputy Chairman and National Chairman and one of those responsible for Wike’s election as Governor of Rivers State in 2015. In fact, it is the same diabolical Wike who sponsored Secondus to become the National Chairman of PDP, but when Wike was fired by his Presidential ambition, he decided to remove the National Chairman right from his ward. Today, the case is still pending in the Supreme Court.
“This ugly godfatherism is no doubt eating into the fabrics of our democracy thereby affecting the quality of our leaders in the National Assembly and 36 states various House of Assembly and also affecting our choice of politician to man the various parastatals. Wike as the godfather of Governor Fubara want him to worship God through him and not direct to God because he used him to install him as Governor.”
Descending further on both Ganduje and Damagum, the nationalist said “you can therefore see from the above that the man who arrogantly and mischievously claim the leadership of politics of Rivers State is now parading shamelessly as the leader of Rivers State politics by masterminding the confusion of the two parties and both of you i.e the National Chairman of APC and the Acting National Chairman of PDP are supporting his irresponsible actions because you are benefiting from the misdeeds.
“Wike who had earlier refused to become a minister under President Tinubu, later changed his mind when his party, the PDP under the Chairmanship of Amb Damagum and understanding between the two parties which will make room for the inclusion of other members from other parties in President Tinubu’s Government could have been initiated by the PDP NEC, but this was not to be.
“Your Excellency, my Ambassador, you and your Godfather, Nyesom Wike are fully and openly engaged in dividing PDP to enable Wike to become a full member of APC after he has succeeded in destroying or factionalising PDP to give APC an easy ride in 2027. I sincerely believe in the name of the almighty God that you will never achieve your objective before you perish politically in your mischievous and fraudulent anti-party activities.
” Mr Ambassador, I am also aware that you are not happy at the public statements made by the PDP publicity Secretary Barr Debo Ologunagba because you perceived he is working against your mischievous agenda. At this juncture, one maybe tempted to ask, why the acting National Chairman of PDP has gone to court to stop NEC from removing him from office in August. I mentioned this in my last letter to you that you and your master Mr Wike come August will derail the PDP NEC meeting fixed for that period.
“My dear Chairmen, both of you have deliberately breached two important sections of your party constitution which says that when a position is vacant in the NWC, the replacement should come from the same zone of the person who left the office, but both of you are from the North West, whereas, your former National Chairman, Abdullahi Adamu and Iyor Chia Ayu are from the North Central.
“Like your Godfather, you do not believe in law and order but confusion.
I read with disappointment and dismay the contradictory and fraudulent document issued by Ganduje’s APC NWC and I am shocked that the National Publicity Secretary of APC Felix Morka who is a lawyer would fabricate falsehood as a defence to the egregious and unwarranted interference of the PDP controlled Rivers State Government.
“One thing is clear, that APC has no member amongst the 32 members of the Rivers State House of Assembly and therefore were not in a position or qualified to take over the Government of PDP in Rivers State. Wike and your acting Chairman of APC caretaker committee in Rivers State even though they exist in Rivers State, a state executive of APC.
“The APC National Publicity Secretary as a lawyer should have read section 109 (1g) properly particularly at a time when PDP has not split, has not broken into factional parts and has not merged with any other party. In fact, Nyesom Wike and Governor Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers State attended the full caucus meeting of the PDP and the NEC meeting of PDP held at the PDP Headquarters on 18th April, 2024 and both the Acting National Chairman, Umar Damagum and the National Secretary Samuel Anyanwu in whom the so called 27 members cited as a division in PDP because the Secretary was in court against PDP at the time.
The defection of the 27 members of PDP, the party that sponsored them during the elections to another party during the unexpired period of their term, have automatically lost their seats as enshrined in section 109 (1g) of the 1999 constitution as amended.
“Felix Morka, one of my sons from Delta State, should educate the APC members of NWC and I have therefore decided to reproduce part of the famous Judgement of the Supreme Court of Nigeria in a full 7 man panel under the chairmanship of the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Musa Muhammad and that will definitely take care of the fabrication and contradiction by APC NWC, “
