Peoples Democratic Party’s Bloodletting and Acts of Terror in Rivers
State – The Road to Perfidy
Being text of a press conference by the Rivers state Chapter of All
Progressive Congress, in Port Harcourt on Tuesday the 27th of
January, 2015.
PROTOCOLS
The greatest
obstacle to democratic consolidation in Nigeria is electoral violence.
Pre-election violence particularly, is as a result of the rascally disposition
of some desperate and greedy politicians who want to secure electoral victory
by subverting the process and undermining the rule of law. Whilst the tendency
for violence by the People Democratic Party (PDP) is common place, the
progressive degeneracy of the situation in Rivers State has assumed an
intolerable and indeed dangerous dimension. Apart from the fact that this
phenomenon affects the credibility of the electoral process, the legitimacy of
the election results and the rule of law; the nature, extent and magnitude of
violence indicate unequivocally it is a deliberate tool for intimidation and
terror adopted as a policy and backed by security institutions who are paid
from our commonwealth to protect our citizens.
Whilst election
is an irreducible feature of democratic governance, democracy is a social
system of administering a nation-state where political parties candidates
compete for elective positions in a free and fair election atmosphere, and in
which the citizens are legally empowered to choose those who will run the
affairs of the state in a given period. Elections are supposed to be
competitive, free and fair both substantively and procedurally. Despite the
legal frame work that guides the electoral process, the PDP has opted to thread
the part of terror as an instrument of divesting the people of their
constitutionally guaranteed power to freely cast their votes for their
preferred leaders.
Electoral
violence is any random or organized act that seeks to determine, delay or
otherwise influence an electoral process through threat, verbal intimidation,
hate speech, disinformation, physical assault, forced protection, destruction
of property or assassination. The aim of electoral violence is either to
influence the outcome of the process or to disrupt the entire electoral
process.
Rivers State
has over the years evolved as the oil and gas nerve centre of Nigeria. It has a
growing population of about 5.1 million (the sixth most populous State in the
Country) and impressive GDP of 21.07 billion USD – which is bigger than most
African Countries such as Botswana, Rwanda, Nambia, Lesotho and etc. the
enviable economic and socio-political scorecard of Rivers State has made
electable positions attractive. Elections in Nigeria determine who controls and
allocates resources and because of the strategic nature of Rivers State in the socio-political
and economic calculus of the Country, the PDP controlled Federal Government
spear headed by Mrs. Patience Jonathan (whose foot soldier is the obnoxious
Nyesom Wike) has turned the contest for the control of the state resources into
a fratricidal, tense and brutal one sided war.
The Federal
Government of Nigeria under the collegiate presidency of Dr. and Dame Jonathan
adopted a deliberate policy of state sponsored violence against Rivers People
when it deployed a certain brute in police uniform named Mbu Joseph Mbu
intentionally to promote (through manifestly corrupt and illicit means) the
ascendancy of Mr. Nyesom Wike to political infamy. Mr. Mbu’s antics are too
numerous and very well publicized. However, it may be necessary to remind us that
since the day he shamelessly escorted known criminals and outlaws through the
streets of Port Harcourt in the guise of a demonstration, violence triumphantly
returned to Rivers State
The PDP having
established its machinery for violence now began to unleash mayhem in the form
of physical attacks on the APC members, killing and causing grievous bodily
harm on our members across the State, destroying properties worth millions of
naira in the process. It began with a tragicomedy of sorts which held the nation’s
attention for several weeks. In the full glare of the nation, five disgruntled
and misguided House of Assembly members led by one Evans Bipi and sponsored by
the then Minister of State for Education, (both of whom are adopted sons of the
President and his Wife), in the company of countless thugs, escorted by Mbu’s
band of policemen attempted to overrun the House of Assembly. The ensuing
fracas caused untold damage to the House of Assembly Complex, which was
subsequently shut down by Mr. Mbu and has remained under lock and key despite
several attempts by the Assembly members to gain access to conduct their lawful
business.
The absurdity
of the attack on the House of Assembly would confound any right thinking person
who knows that there are thirty-two (32) members of the House of Assembly out
of which, five (5) purported to impeach the Speaker. In the course of their
quest to regain lawful access to the House of Assembly Complex, the twenty
seven (27) members of the House of Assembly were forced to sit on the bare
surface of Moscow Road from where Mr. Mbu dispersed them with tear gas. Mr. Mbu
left Rivers State in exceedingly controversial circumstances after presiding
over the return of Rivers State to a near state of anarchy into the warm
embrace of the president and his dear wife who promptly rewarded him with a
“well deserved” promotion. His legacies include the return of hitherto outlawed
warlords who have reestablished their camps and are operating visibly. Before
he was redeployed, his atrocities reached its apogee with the attempted murder
of Senator Magnus Ngei Abe when police men on his orders attacked Save Rivers
Movement members at College of Arts and Science premises in Rumuola, Port
Harcourt.
Gradually but
steadily, the PDP local militia led by Nyesom Wike, funded by the Federal
Government and aided by the security institutions have now converted the State
to a war zone killing, maiming and taking captives of APC members at will. This
is how the Nation Newspaper of Friday, January 23, 2015 captured the situation
in Rivers State “For weeks now, men without spine, men of brawn and please
permit to add-who lack humanity and conscience have put Rivers State, the Lagos
of the Southsouth, on the spot. It is either they are shooting guns or they are
throwing bombs. And when they do it, they hide their faces. They are under the
cover of the dark masks. Aside guns and dynamites, they also use machetes and
other dangerous weapons. Heads have been broken. Necks have been twisted. Arms
have had hot leads pumped into them. And there was a woman whose back was
reshaped with bullets. It is simply a tale of blood – which has left sorrow and
tears in many homes”.
CASES OF VIOLENCE AND BODILY HARM ON APC MEMBERS
The following
are but a few of the known cases of death and grievous bodily injuries caused
our members by the PDP through its members and hirelings:
Perhaps, the
most brazen of all attacks took place in the early morning of the flag off of
the Presidential Campaign of the APC in Port Harcourt. Two different sets of
gunmen attacked buses conveying APC supporters from different parts of Rivers
State to Port Harcourt. The buses located several hundred kilometers from each
other were riddled with bullets. A day after the attack the police naively
dismissed the attacks as incidents of armed robbery. Whilst it must be noted
that nothing was stolen from the victims, one must ask the police why the
“robbers” isolated APC members on the same day, at about the same time and in
two different locations in the State?
Several APC
supporters on their way to the official flag off of Gen. Muhammadu Buhari’s
presidential campaign in Port Harcourt were attacked by gunmen near Harry’s
Town in Degema and Sakpenwa in Tai. The cowards were not bold enough to do it
without hiding under face masks. They left many unconscious and in their pool
of blood and fled into anonymity to spend the filthy money from their cowardly
masters.
Ask Aadum
Pya-alu, Beatrice Deemua, Sobari Npebee, Barbe Jack, Victory Vinam and Wisdom
Akpogbara and they will tell the tales that not only touch the hearts but break
them. Pya-alu’s leg shot by the cowards tell all the story; Beatrice’s back-arm
can never forget the day hot leads were pumped into it; Npebee, who was shot in
the lead and neck, is lucky to be alive to tell the story; and elated is Jack
for not dying as a result of the gun attack on his stomach; so is Vinam, who
was shot in the leg; and Akpogbara must be thanking God that the bullet he
received on the head for daring to identify with Gen. Buhari’s aspiration did
not kill him. One wonders what they think about the police’s claim that they
were victims of armed robbery, yet their valuables were not taken.
Soon after
this, the APC local chapter secretariat in Okrika, the home of Madam Patience
Jonathan was destroyed by a bomb explosion. Whilst no life was lost, party
members have been terrorized and the message is clear that the PDP and its
dangerously armed terrorist gangs will not allow APC to lawfully contest for
the votes in Okrika Local Government Area.
Chief Engr.
Orerehim was on the 10th of January, 2015 beaten alongside others
when they were having an APC chapter meeting at Oro-owo, Rumueme, Ward 10,
Obio-Akpor LGA by thugs sponsored by Hon. Timothy Nsirim, a former Local
Government Chairman, cousin and political ally of Nyesom Wike. He was seriously
beaten and injured. He reported the matter to Rukpakani Police station, Ada
George road. No arrest, invitation or investigation was made by the police.
On the 11th
January, 2015, the Paramount Ruler of Rumuolumuni Town in Obio-Akpor Local
Government Area, HRH Eze Ndubueze Wobo Oumeni, ordered that all APC bill
boards/posters be removed by PDP members in his community on the ground that
his community belongs to the PDP. One Chief Wobo Owhor led some young men to
carry out the order of the Paramount Ruler. One Hon. Kingsley Emenike tried to
stop the destruction of APC signages. Chief Wobo Owhor and his boys bet Emenike
up. His head was broken by one Martins Amadi and was taken to the hospital only
for him to be arrested on his hospital bed and later released on bail. Aham
Wobo who was not at the scene was also arrested and in detention presently, a case
of the complainant being the accused. Nyeweli Omunakwe Nyeche Nsirim, King of
Rumueme community who is Timothy Nsirim’s father, put a lie to his son and the
PDP’s story when he accused his son of using thugs to disrupt the All
Progressives Congress (APC) rally. According to him, the APC stalwarts in the
community duly obtained the blessing of the Chiefs to organize their political
rally. He describe as false the claim by the PDP that Okocha and APC supporters
attacked the former council chairman. The question I ask is: Is the traditional
ruler lying against his son?
On the 16th
of January, 2015, the PDP fired what would now be a warning shot of its serial
bombing campaign when explosives were detonated in the Andoni Local Chapter
Secretariat of the APC.
On the 22nd
of January, 2015 in Ogu/Bolo Local Government Area, some group of PDP thugs led
by Hon. Evans Bipi destroyed APC billboards/banners and injured one Mr.
Precious Tende. That was the third time Evans Bipi and his cohorts had
willfully destroyed APC banners/billboards in Ogu, headquarters of the Local
Government Area. the Ogu Council of Chiefs, the police at Ogu, the SSS and the
Joint Task Force Unit are all aware of it.
On the 23rd
of January, 2015, some PDP thugs numbering about 24 attacked the private
residence (Ihunwo Street, Rumuwike) of Barr. Cyprian Chukwu, a member of APC in
Ward 9 destroying valuable properties. He was lucky not to be at home when they
came. They decapitated a young man in the premises and he is lying critically
ill in the hospital with machete wounds on both arms.
In the early
hours of the 24th of January, 2015, thugs on the orders of Mrs.
Patience Jonathan, PDP attacked the National field in Okrika which was to be
the venue of APC rally scheduled for the 24th of January, 2015 with
guns and explosive devices, destroyed the musical/public address system,
canopies, podium and chairs. Thereafter, they attacked the residence of APC
Councilors and members in Okrika Local Government Area. The police are yet to
make any arrests.
Most of these
heinous crimes have been aided and abetted by the police. In some cases, they
simply looked the other way whilst the crimes were committed whilst in some
others they arrested the APC complainants or members of supporters on phantom
charges just to neutralize the political influence of the APC in the area.
below are some of the flagrant cases of police harassment, intimidation,
unlawful arrests and detention against members and supporters of APC in Rivers
State.
CASES OF POLICE
VICTIMIZATION, ARRESTS, DETENTION, BRUTALIZATION OF APC MEMBERS IN RIVERS STATE
In Omuma Local
Government Area, Hon. Emeka Wogu, a former member of the Rivers State House of
Assembly, a former Commissioner and currently Chairman, Caretaker Committee,
Omuma Local Government Council was arrested and accused of shooting at Mr.
President’s billboard. Meanwhile, that very day 25th August, 2014,
he was at Joint Allocation Committee meeting in Port Harcourt and was nowhere
near Omuma Local Government Area. He arrested on the 27th August,
2014 by over 60 armed policemen in a commando style, handcuffed in the presence
of his children, thrown into SARS, Port Harcourt, detained for 2 days and
released without any charge.
In Soku
Community, five APC supporters, Kalas Okpara, Brown and others were arrested on
28th of November, 2014 on spurious allegations of sea piracy held up
in SARS. Only one was released while others are still facing incarceration.
In Ahoada East
Local Government Area, Mr. Grant Otis Ideozu, APC party agent for prison
Barracks unit 6, ward 4, Ahoada East LGA was arrested on the 5th of
December, 2014 by the DPO (Ahoada Division) on the allegation that he had an
altercation with someone at the unit during the collection of PVC. He was
beaten up and locked up for days, transferred to Port Harcourt for further
detention and released on the 13th December, 2014 without a single
complaint by anybody.
In Emuoha Local
Government Area, Hon. Gowon Emma Wokea, a former Councilor and an APC stalwart
in Ibaa, Emuoha Local Government was arrested on the 10th December,
2014 t Rukpokwu Town, Obio-Akpor Local Government by SARS operatives. They
alleged that APC bought guns for Mr. Wokea and other APC supporters. Others who
were arrested with him were released while he was transferred to Force
Headquarters, Abuja where he is still been held up till date with no charges
filed or pending against him.
In Akuku Toru
Local Government Area, Stanley Don Pedron Ngoye Briggs and Sunny Ereme were
similarly held on false charges at SARS since 10th December, 2014
and only released about 2 weeks ago. Ngoye Briggs was arrested for withdrawing
money from his account in UBA, Abonnenna. While others were arrested on
“suspicions of having capacity to cause problems”. All arrests were just to
pave way for PDP to have an edge over the APC during collection of PVCs in the
area. Christian Don Pedro from Kula was arrested on 13th December,
2014 at Kala Town for going home to register during the continuous voters
registration exercise on the spurious allegation of threat to life and
abduction of a soldier. All allegations proved false, yet he has not been
released. He has been detained at SARS since then.
In Ikwerre
Local Government Area, Godwin Wojinda was arrested by SARS for stopping one Isi
from running away with PVCs belonging to ward 3, Omagwe, Ikwerre Local
Government Area. He is still in Police detention even when the culprit returned
the hijacked material to the INEC Local Government Area Electoral Officer. He
was not arrested rather the complainant was arrested and still in police
detention.
In Omuma Local
Government Area on the 15th of December, 2014, Hon. Justice Nwogu
(CTC member and supervisor, security and social development, Omuma LGC) was
arrested at Rukpokwu in Obio-Akpor Local Government Area over framed up charges
of illegal possession of firearms and attempted murder just because he had a
squabble with PDP members. He is still being held in SARS deadly cell. The
police have not commenced any form of investigations and no charges have been
filed against him.
In Obio/Akpor
Local Government Area, Mr. Pius Wosu, APC Ward 16, Chairman in Obio/Akpor Local
Government Area was arrested and detained on 7th January, 2015 in
the State criminal investigation department (SCID) on a trumped-up charge of
malicious damage of PDP billboard. Mr. Pius Wosu was incarcerated at the SCID
for over 2 weeks. On the early morning of the said date, Mr. Pius visited ward
16 office only to discover that all the party flags, billboards and party
candidates’ posters within the party office had been destroyed and carted away.
Mr. Pius
promptly informed other leaders of the ward of that development and was advice
to immediately report the matter to Ozuoba Police station. On getting there to
report the matter to the police, Mr. Pius was informed that there was similar
report already against him and eight (8) others. Nine of them were subsequently
detained at SCID.
In Eleme Local
Government Area, Solaka Osaro Saloka, Gomba Obo Saloka, Olua Saloka, Victor
Nnaa Oji, Nsikak and Prince were arrested on Monday, 13th January,
2015, bailed on Tuesday 14th January, 2015 for one million naira and
re-arrested on the 15th January. They were detained at SCID for protesting
over the removal of APC billboards by PDP members.
In Degema Local
Government Area, Otonyemie Kuna, Truman Agiobu, Solomon Yellow, Success Braide,
Kunle and Omuo Sunday, APC supporters in Degema Local Government were arrested
on Wednesday, 14th January, 2015 allegedly for gun trafficking and
now in SSS cell, Port Harcourt. There is no evidence to support the
allegations. Their arrest is just part of a larger plan of PDP in Rivers State
to arrest most APC loyalists before the general election on February 14, 2015.
In Abua/Odual
Local Government Area, Igoma Loveday Gift, Caretaker Chairman, Abua/Odual, Udi
Udum former Chairman, Abua/Odual Local Government Council and Raphael Muzan
Ekpelu, have been under constant harassment and intimidation by the police over
deaths that occurred as a result of cult clash on the 15th January,
2015 during the PDP Governorship Campaign rally in Abua/Odual. They were all
not in Abua/Odual on that said day and are not members or sponsors of any cult
group they were detained for nearly one week.
On the 15th
of January, 2015 in Oyigbo Local Government Area, ward 5 where PDP supporters
removed posters of APC candidates. APC members of the ward led by the ward
Chairman, Monday Omezuruike protested. The ware Chairman was arrested and
beaten up by the police and detained in Afam police division.
Our initial
reactions to these flagrant abuses and physical attacks were in the form of
strident calls to the President to use his high office to cause the cessation
of unprovoked hostility and violence against our people. Of course, these calls
fell on ears deafened by an unbridled hatred for Rt. Hon. Chibuike Amaechi and
an unquenchable desire to punish him for daring to speak out against the
incompetence, insensitivity and duplicity of the Jonathan’s presidency and the
intolerable meddlesomeness of an incurably obtrusive and cantankerous wife who
manifests more power than the President. It took the National Assembly’s
constitutional intervention to prevent a gang star style takeover of the Rivers
State Government. Even then, the National Assembly resolution demanding
redeployment of Mr. Mbu was disdainfully ignored by the President.
As the 2015
general election approaches, the scale, magnitude and intensity of the
orchestrated violence against members of the APC is assuming a frightful
dimension necessitating that we cry out to the Nigerian and International
Community. Our plight is akin to that of a people in a militarily conquered and
occupied territory. PDP thugs and hirelings practically commit murders under
the watchful and protective eyes of the police without as much as a slap on the
wrist, the objective being to antagonize and intimidate our supporters into
believing that it is unsafe for them to come out and vote, thus effectively
disenfranchising them.
This press
conference is our distress call to all men, women, organizations, nations and
people who cherish democracy to intervene before it is too late. It is
unimaginable that a president who himself claims his roots from the Niger Delta
region and who assumed office on the wings of agitations for equity and justice
would permit unprovoked premeditated violent attacks on the same people he
hopes to ride on their primordial sentiments to retain his presidency. The
president’s cavalier attitude to the escalating violence in the State borders
on criminal negligence because he knows or ought to know (or in the least
remember) the level of arms in circulation and the historical volatility of the
State (and region).
Not too long
ago, the President pretended that the Boko Haram menace was a local religious
nuisance not worthy of his attention. Today, it has snowballed into a full
scale civil war in at least three (3) states in North Eastern Nigeria with
thousands of men, women, girls and boys killed, kidnapped or unaccounted for.
Today in Nigeria, the death or kidnap of fifty, hundreds or even a thousand
Nigerians in the hands of Boko Haram is not worthy of comments by the President
but he found his voice to inexplicably condemn the killing of eleven people in
France. Whilst we join the world in condemning the unfortunate terrorist attack
on the media house in France, we call on the International Community to
persuade our president to rise to the task of leadership to protect lives and
property, or step down from the presidential contest as he has no moral
standing to be flying around in a presidential jet campaigning for re-election
protected by dozens of other aircrafts and thousands of military personnel
whilst unable to perform his primary constitutional function as president – to
protect Nigerian lives and property even on our soil.
We call on
Amnesty International, the International Red Cross, the relevant organs of the
Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), the African Union (AU) and
the United Nations (UN) to immediately commence independent inquires into the
gruesome attacks and killings in Rivers State. We call on these and other
humanitarian and democratic organizations and institutions to set high powered election
monitoring networks, teams and processes to monitor the election in Rivers
State to avert unnecessary bloodbath which may cripple our already weakened
economy. An acceptable electoral outcome is possible in Rivers State but only
if the elections are truly free and fair. There cannot be free and fair
election if the spate of violence high handedness intimidation and terror is
not halted. We pledge to remain law abiding but we shall defend ourselves, our
people and their votes by all lawful means.
May God bless
Rivers State and bless Nigeria too.
CHIEF DAVEIS
IBIAMU IKANYA
Chairman, APC,
Rivers State
