By Mwaorgu Faustinus
The Rivers State Chapter of All Progressives Congress, APC, says it has uncovered a plot by Governor Nyesom Wike and the PDP in Rivers State to use both the traditional and new media to blackmail the APC as using Federal might to intimidate PDP witnesses at the Rivers State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal sitting at Abuja.
The APC in a statement signed by its Publicity Secretary, Chris Finebone and made available to NF-Reports regarded such insidious blackmail as a facade to hide the fact that Nyesom Wike has clearly run out of credible witnesses to present at the Tribunal. As things stand at the moment, everything points to the fact that the Governor has been struggling to get witnesses to attest at the Tribunal under oath that elections held in Rivers State in substantial compliance with relevant laws of the land even when everything rather points to the opposite being the case.
The statement reads: “How can the governor accuse the APC of intimidation when he has successfully subpoenaed top police officers as witnesses at the Tribunal? Speculations in the media that the two police officers Governor Nyesom Wike called at the Tribunal were arrested after their appearance as witnesses have been effectively debunked by the office of the Inspector-General of Police. The IGP refuted such speculations and unequivocally stated that no such arrests were made though there were untoward issues pointing at lack of due process in the subpoena of the two officers.
“In the case of the DSS officer that was called as witness by Nyesom Wike yesterday, whatever shortcomings the DSS may have observed about the purported officer’s subpoena and any action it decided to take in that respect remains the exclusive responsibility of the DSS and could not have been externally influenced in any way and not the least by the APC.
“Signs that Governor Wike who is the 2nd Respondent in the petition of the APC Governorship Candidate, Dr. Adol Peterside was having serious challenges getting credible witnesses to testify at the Tribunal became obvious when the Governor woefully failed in presenting any INEC top staffer to defend what the Commission claimed happened on April 11 and 12, 2015. Instead, Wike presented NYSC ad-hoc personnel to justify that elections held.
“In the past few days, the APC has observed that Nyesom Wike had to resort to blackmailing civil servants with dismissal except they appeared before the Tribunal as his witnesses to lie that elections took place in Rivers State in April, 2015. As an additional incentive, the Governor doles out huge sums of money as inducement for appearing as witness for the embattled governor at the Tribunal. This has resulted in several serving and retired civil servants and some supposed clergymen without character appearing as witnesses to lie that elections took place in the state.
“On the other hand, the APC Candidate, Dr. Dakuku Peterside [Petitioner] presented top INEC personnel who stated before the tribunal that elections did not hold in Rivers State in substantial compliance with laid down requirements. For example, a witness of the APC Candidate [PW-49], an Assistant Director in the ICT Department of INEC in Abuja, Mrs. Abimbola Oladunjoye, told the Tribunal that only 293,072 voters were accredited for the governorship election in Rivers State on April 11, 2015. This is against a fabricated accredited figure of 1,228, 614 voters in which Nyesom Wike was awarded a total of 1,029,102 votes from God-knows-where by the same INEC. This entire thing runs foul of INEC specific letter dated 2nd April, 2015 which ruled out use of any other means of accreditation other than the Card Reader for the aforesaid election.
“The APC would like to advise Governor Nyesom Wike to concentrate on his efforts to procure conscienceless persons with dubious backgrounds to appear as witnesses for him rather than blame his ill fortune on the APC. We continue to believe that the truth shall ultimately prevail over this matter and the good people of Rivers State shall rejoice, God willing for when the righteous rule the people rejoice.”
