President Goodluck Jonathan’s political witch-hunt of Rivers State governor, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, has reached a dramatic stage, with the Presidency approving and funding a plan to impeach the governor with the help of only five state lawmakers.
A source within the Presidency told SaharaReporters that President Jonathan’s men have given the go-ahead to the Rivers State Commissioner of Police Mbu Joseph Mbu,, Minister of State for Education, Nyeson Wike, and former member of the House of Representatives, Austin Okpara, to recruit five willing members of the state assembly to declare Mr. Amaechi impeached before this week runs out.
“As soon as the impeachment is carried out, the CP (Commissioner of Police), Mbu, has been directed to arrest Amaechi and transfer him to Abuja where he will be tried,” said our authoritative source.
A senior aide to Mr. Amaechi told us that the governor had heard that President Jonathan had urged his closest associates to effect his rival’s impeachment as soon as possible.
The feud between President Jonathan and Mr. Amaechi has escalated ever since the latter won the chairmanship of the Nigeria Governors Forum, defeating Governor Jonah Jang of Plateau State who was backed by the president. The root of the feud lies in Mr. Amaechi’s rumored hostility to Mr. Jonathan’s plan to run for a second term in office come 2015. Since the quarrel between the two politicians blew into the open, Mr. Jonathan has used federal might to move against the governor. Acting on presidential order, the Aviation Minister grounded a jet used by Mr. Amaechi on the excuse that its registration was irregular.
Yesterday, the National Working Committee of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) suspended Mr. Amaechi from the party without giving him a chance to defend himself.
Governor Amaechi cried out yesterday that his life was in danger at the hands of Mr. Jonathan and the president’s political associates.
However, while Mr. Amaechi appeared focused on physical risks, Mr. Jonathan’s immediate interest is to throw him out of office by using five willing members of the Rivers State of Assembly, our source at the Presidency disclosed. “The matter is giving Mr. President sleepless nights and he has decided to remove Amaechi immediately,” he added.