Wike distances self from Amaechi’s judicial scandal

The Governor of Rivers State, Chief Nyesom Wike, Friday denied having hands in the ongoing judicial scandal against the former governor of the state, now the Minister of Transportation, Mr. Chibuike Amaechi.


Justice Sylvester Ngwuta and Justice Inyang Okoro, two justices of the Supreme Court, had accused Amaechi of prompting them to avert justice to favour the All Progressives Congress, APC, governorship candidates especially in Rivers and Akwa Ibom states.

In a statement on Thursday, the Chairman of the APC in Rivers State, Chief Davies Ikanya, had accused Governor Wike of using the two Justices for political purpose to demean Amaechi.

Meanwhile, Wike has described the statement of his alleged involvement as scurrilous, noting that as governor Amaechi left a shameful legacy in the state.

In a statement by the State Commissioner of Information and Communication, Dr Austin Tam-George, Wike denied the allegation by the APC describing the act as a disgraceful plight.
Tam-George noted that the Governor had refrained from making public speech on the said subject, noting the state had been justified by the accusation from the two justices.

He said: “The attention of the Rivers State Government has been drawn to yet another scurrilous statement by the Rivers State branch of the All Progressives Congress (APC). Wike has refrained from making public comments on this subject, because the people of Rivers State feel sadly vindicated by these latest scandals swirling around the Transportation Minister.

“As governor of Rivers State, Mr Amaechi left a shameful record of waste and dysfunction. His thoughtless policies and mismanagement of public funds literally broke the economic spine of Rivers State.

“Amaechi has of course always protected his innocence. But even chieftains of his party, the APC, including serving governors, have publicly praised Mr Amaechi for bankrolling the party’s presidential campaigns in the 2015 general elections, and for sponsoring candidates in that election.”

He, however, urged the APC to ask Amaechi to step down from office, in order to allow for a dispassionate inquiry into the serious allegations against him.