Very funny politics of Nigeria old men in display. Mild drama as Amaechi, Jang meet at State House THURSDAY, 27 JUNE 2013 00:00 FROM MOHAMMED ABUBAKAR (ABUJA), IYABO LAWAL (IBADAN) AND KELVIN EBIRI (PORT HARCOURT) NEWS - NATIONAL User Rating: / 0 PoorBest • ACN flays alleged barring of Rivers helmsman from Jonathan • Why we prevented supporters from visiting gov, by CP THE rift between Governors Rotimi Chibuike Amaechi of Rivers State and Jonah David Jang of Plateau State over the Chairmanship of the Nigerian Governors’ Forum (NGF) came to the fore again Thursday at the State House where the chief executives of states attended the National Economic Council (NEC) meeting. The two governors had on Wednesday night avoided open confrontation with each other at the Banquet Hall venue of the mid-term dinner and public presentation of a book entitled Champion for Women, a publication to eulogise President Goodluck Jonathan by his female cabinet members. But Thursday’s drama started with the sitting arrangement whereby both Amaechi and Jang sat close to each other in an alphabetical order in the Council Chambers, which meant that neither of the duo would be recognised as the Chair of NGF. Before the commencement of the NEC meeting, there was an apparent order reportedly from above for the sitting arrangement of the governors to be changed. By convention, the chairman of the forum sits directly opposite the Vice President, Namadi Sambo who chairs the NEC. But the protocol officers attached to the chambers arranged the seats in an alphabetical order which meant that Plateau State and Rivers State will for the first time sit together. Amaechi was the first to come into the chambers and attempted to take his usual seat, but he was informed that he would have to sit on the seat that carried ‘R’ since he is the Governor of Rivers State and it dawned on him that Jang was going to be his neighhour. One of Amaechi’s supporters, Governor Muazu Babangida Aliyu of Niger State, who is also the Chairman of the Northern Nigeria Governors’ Forum, pointed to Amaechi, saying: “So, you are going to sit with Jang. This is very nice oh. Somebody is trying to be diplomatic here.” Then Amaechi replied with laughter, “We are still together. So, I am going to sit with him. The real chairman and the...” Jang walked in, shook hands and exchanged banters with all his colleagues around, including Amaechi. When he was told to sit with Amaechi, he did and Amaechi accepted his greetings, saying: “You are welcome, I am the authentic chairman.” Jang didn’t say anything and the two factional leaders sat together and both of them kept straight faces, without talking to each other for several minutes. At this stage, Edo State Governor, Adams Oshiomhole came in and declared Amaechi “my chairman.” With Jang, Aliyu and Sokoto State Deputy Governor, Mukhtar Shagari as well as Tanko-Almakura of Nasarawa State standing around, Oshiomhole held Jang’s hand and pointed to Amaechi, saying: “That is my chairman”. They all burst into laughter. He, however, pointed to Jang’s direction and referred to him as the leader of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) extended faction. This also attracted prolonged laughter from everyone present in the chambers. The meeting got under way when the VP walked into the chambers around 11.15 a.m., but the council did not recognise any of the two as the NGF chair as it used to do. However, another major dramatis personae in the NGF power game, Akwa Ibom State governor, Godswill Akpabio walked in around 11.35 a.m., when the meeting was already in progress. Besides, Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) has called on President Goodluck Jonathan to immediately order a probe into the published report that Amaechi was barred from paying his respects to the President at a dinner in the Presidential Villa in Abuja on Wednesday. In a statement issued in Lagos Thursday by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party said the President should ensure that whoever was behind such a condescending treatment of a state governor is properly sanctioned to serve as a deterrent. ‘’We are making this call because we do not believe that, in spite of the reported frosty relations between the two, President Jonathan – as the father of the nation – will lend the weight of his high office to such a demeaning action as exhibited by the presidential security personnel,” the statement noted in part. Also, Rivers State Commissioner of Police, Mbu Joseph Mbu, said Thursday that he attempted to prevent hundreds of Amaechi’s supporters from entering Port Harcourt in a bid to enforce the ban on public protest without a written permission from the police. Mbu whose relationship with Amaechi has been frosty due to the lingering political crisis rocking Rivers State, said he had earlier been informed that hundreds of persons drawn from Ahoada West, Ahoada East, Abua-Odual and Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni, were travelling to Port Harcourt, the state capital for protest against the Federal Government. The police commissioner told journalists in Port Harcourt yesterday that the delegations from the aforementioned local governments were later allowed on Tuesday to proceed to Port Harcourt after it was clear that they were not going to embark on protest. Besides, the Nigeria Voters Assembly yesterday tasked Jonathan to urgently call a meeting of the NGF with a view to finding a lasting solution to the crisis tearing the state executives apart. It warned that the improper handling of the election of the forum was a regrettable occurrence which if not nipped in the bud, may pose a serious threat to democratic consolidation in 2015. The group, in a statement by its national coordinator, Moshood Erubami lamented that it was unfortunate that the division among the governors was widening over personal issues, at a time that the Nigerian electorate were overwhelmed by grinding poverty and general insecurity which required their joint efforts to ameliorate through creating peaceful atmosphere for sustainable human development. < Prev Next >
Posted on: Fri, 28 Jun 2013 12:57:31 +0000
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