Amaechi, Legislators Shun Ceremony To Endorse Jonathan For 2015

Amaechi, Legislators Shun Ceremony To Endorse Jonathan For 2015

The Rivers State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has endorsed President Goodluck Jonathan for the 2015 presidential elections.

This was disclosed yesterday in Port Harcourt by the state’s party chairman, Felix Obuah, during the party’s thanksgiving ceremony which was shunned by the state governor. Hon. Rotimi Amaechi, his supporters and the majority of state’s lawmakers.

The occasion was attended mainly by party members loyal to the Minister of State, Education, Barr. Nyesom Wike and was held amid tight security as security agents cordoned off all roads leading to the venue of the event.

Apart from a former member of the House of Representatives, Austin Opara, five members of the state’s House of Assembly were in attendance.

Obuah told the gathering that the president is their kinsman, “as he is a brother and an in-law of the people of the state”, adding that he is the leader of the party and Nigeria and also deserves a second chance.

He added that the ceremony was to assure the party members in the state that his party executive was out for peace and to reconcile aggrieved members, while also intensifying efforts to re-position the party.

‘’ This event is to re-assure our party members that my administration is for peace, our foundation is God’s and we are for the reconciliation of all aggrieved members of the party,’’ Obuah said.

The business magnatecum- politician also used the occasion for the umpteenth time to assure party faithful that the party in the state is not factionalised as being promoted by some people and that disagreement among members are natural occurrences in politics.

‘’There can be disagreements among members but such make for robust democracy and that is what politics is all about,’’ he added. He, however, warned some people who are using the excuse of the disagreements to resort to cheap blackmail.

“We are concerned when people employ cheap blackmail and false alarms to portray occasions when there are disagreements, especially those fond of portraying others as being after the state’s treasury.

This is not acceptable to the party leadership. Rivers State is PDP state and it shall remain so in 2015. No group of people can make the change because all those who can make the change are here present today’’ he affirmed.

Meanwhile, on the occasion, Wike received rousing ovation by enthusiastic members of the party who crowded him as he made to make his speech.

An apparently elated Wike expressed joy for the event and advised the chairman of the Part-Exco and his team to embrace peace and reconcile all aggrieved members.

He also advised the chairman of the party to see himself as a father and never allow anybody to provoke him. He similarly urged other party members to tow the line of peace and not allow themselves to be provoked into conflicts.

Wike disclosed, however, that the governor of the state , rather than himself, is the leader of the party in the state and advised that he should be accorded his due respect in the scheme of things.

‘’Power has returned to the original owners. The people who just lost out in the process will be angry and they will show anger in their behaviour towards you. It is only natural because they are human beings too.

However, we should not allow ourselves to be drawn into unnecessary feuds because they are abusing us. “We must be abused. The chairman of our party should see himself as a father and make sure he reconciles all aggrieved party members.

He must have a large heart and now proceed to go and bring back his children. I must state this again, I am a minister and not the Governor of the state and the Governor of the state is the party leader and must be respected as such,’’ he said.