AND THE WILL OF THE PEOPLE BECAME STRONGER THAN THE BARREL OF GUN.

Wike and Ameachi

In 2007, His Excellency, former Gov. and Current Transport Minister, Rotimi Amaechi contested the Rivers State Peoples Democratic Party Governorship primaries and won but was denied his victory. This was after His Excellency Peter Odili had ruled Rivers State for 8 years. Amaechi in the quest to get his mandate back, fought a good fight, reached out to a lot of people and we were told that in one of such meetings where he met with  President Olusegun Obasabjo then, Obasanjo told him that "Amaechi, your case get k leg". Amaechi did not allowed words like what Obasanjo told him deter him, he put up a good fight to oust Celestine Omehia who was made governor in his stead. Sensing that the battle will consume him, Rotimi Amaechi ran away to Ghana leaving his point man, His Excellency Nyesom Wike to go ahead with the battle. Wike stood by Amaechi, fought the battle against the establishment and Amaechi won, thus becoming the first man in the history of Nigeria and Africa that did not contest a general elections but became governor through the pronouncement of the courts.

In is not surprising that when in 2015, Nyesom Wike harboured the intention of taking over from Rotimi Amaechi as governor, Amaechi after spending his 8 years as governor fought tooth and nail to make sure that does not happen, after all it is in Africa where you see fathers pray that their children should not grow higher than them.  Amaechi in 2015 fought but did not succeed and Wike became governor and Rivers State became theatre of war where lots of life have been killed in Amaechi's quest to use "federal might" to seize power from Nyesome Wike either by hook or by crook.

The war in Rivers State lasted and persisted and good Nigerians were so concerned about what will befall the State in 2019 general elections. Through the machinations of the Almighty who sees the heart of men, Amaechi's APC candidates were all disqualified by the same courts who made  Amaechi governor 2007. When Nigerians had a seighe of relieve, believing  that with the disqualification of APC's candidates for the 2019 elections, that the elections in Rivers State will be devoid of any form of death, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi adopted the candidate of the AAC party, an unknown person and party for the elections. He ORDERED all APC members in Rivers to vote for AAC and deliver her governorship candidate. If this was done with the permission and knowledge of the presidency and APC at the national level is a subject of discussion for another day.

Believing that the "federal might" which is using the police, army, INEC and DSS  to rig elections can win elections any day, anytime, just like it did in the 2018 Ekiti and Osun elections, Amaechi forgot the peculiarity of elections in Rivers State, Amaechi forgot that in Rivers State, there are a lot of warlords who may not be easily intimidated by these agents of government and Amaechi forgot that he is trying to use these people against his people and against a man he attributed his 2007 gubernatorial victory to, Bar. Nyesome Wike.

The 2019 elections came in Rivers State with thousands of soldiers being deployed to Rivers State, disbanded Federal Special Anti-Robbery  Squad of the Police were immediately banded back for effective use by Rotimi Amaechi. The Soldiers and the SARS  Operatives were very much ready to be used by Rotimi Amaechi. The whole world watched with shame as these two government organization became ballot box snatchers either snatching ballot box or escorting thugs to go and snatch ballot boxes. It was so ridiculous watching our soldiers, the strength of the nation reduced to the point of snatching collated election results or jumping through the fence to enter collation centres to either disrupt results collation or seize same. Though the Chief of Army Staff denied that they were not true soldiers but thugs given military uniforms, such pronouncement makes mockery of an institution that should be the last hope of the Nigerian people security-wise. The questions that begs for answer from our Millitary Chief Buratai is, if they were fake soldiers, who gave them military trucks and other vehicles that they could so boldly display? When they displayed these military hardwares,  did the military not see it and what was their response?

Nigerians should know that Peter Odili 1999 to 2007, Rotimi Amaechi 2007 to 2015 and Nyesome Wike now 2015 to 2023 are all from the Igbo speaking tribes of Rivers State. The quest by Rotimi Amaechi to install Awara of the AAC who is a Kalabari man should have been seen by other tribes in Rivers State as a welcome development. The strategy of 'destroy everything in front of you' to remain relevant in Rivers State has turned Roitimi Amaechi against the Rivers people. Every of his actions whether good or bad is now seen as an action of a man sent by the enemies to destroy the land. If Rotimi Amaechi had allowed Nyesome Wike, the 2019 elections would have been difficult for Wike because either the Ijaws, Ogonis, Kalabaris and other tribes in Rivers would have risen against him having been ruled  by his kins for years now. The attitude of Rotimi Amaechi United all these tribes to  fight one single cause, an enemy within.

These decision to unite and fight a  common cause , Amaechi the enemy within, led to the decision to resist the barrels of the occupying force sent by Abuja to help Amaechi rig the elections. At the end of the day, the people triumphed against the barrels of gun and Rivers people won, Bar. Nyesome Wike is governor 2015 to 2023 if Christ tarries.

Ekpenyong Isaiah,
Commander, Infantry Pen Battallion.