Rivers APC crisis: Abe’s camp alleges inclusion of dead members, others as delegates

From TONY JOHN, Port Harcourt

A faction of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State loyal to Senator Magnus Abe has alleged that the Minister of Transportation, Chibuike Amaechi, has presented names of dead persons and defectors as authentic delegates from the state, for today’s national convention.

In a petition jointly signed by Amaechi’s former Commissioner for Justice and Attorney General of Rivers State, Worgu Boms, Senator Abe and Senator Wilson Ake among others, the faction said it observed the deliberate inclusion of deceased persons on the delegates’ list already submitted for the convention by the Minister.

The faction stated: “We examined the list and found that it was inflated by adding names of deceased persons and persons who were never principal officers in the Rivers State House of Assembly (two categories of invalidity and nullity of delegates) status are attached to over 20 persons on the list in three broad categories of deceased persons, impostors, and persons who are no longer members of the APC.”

According to the petitioners, such names as “Chief D.U. Anucha, Hon. Apollos Amadi, Hon. Martins Mannah, Hon. Andrew Miller and Hon. Felicia Tane” who were included in the list, had since died.

In another category, the petitioners stated that some of the names included on the lists were never in the position ascribed to them by the minister and, therefore, should be regarded as imposters.

“They were so presented so as to bring them into the delegates’ category since being a member of House of Assembly is not. We do not say that they were not in the state legislature on the dates listed against their names. We state that it is not true that they were principal officers as claimed.”

The Abe faction of the party claimed that members like Samuel Oguru, Bob Fredrick, Victoria Nyeche, Collins Ordu, Onari Brown and Ibroma Kitchner were not principal officers in the Rivers State House of Assembly as described by the list.

“Also in that category are Hon. Gift Wokocha, Hon. Lucky Odili and Hon. Ishmael Singer on the delegates’ list in the category of present and past principal officers of the State Assembly.

“Others are Hon. Maureen Tamuno, Hon. Chidiebere Okwu-Worlu, Hon. Belema Okpokiri, Hon. Charles Anyanwu and Hon. John Bazia.”

The petitioners said a letter they got from the Clerk of the Rivers State House of Assembly denied the claim that the above names were principal officers of the House when they were members.