AmaechiJonathanNewsPoliticsRivers CrisisRivers State By Shola O’Neil Amaechi: In proxy war with Jonathan Governor Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers State is favourably disposed to seeking audience with President Goodluck Jonathan on the prevailing security situation in the state,The Nation can now report. His position stems in part from the advice to him on Thursday by nine of his colleagues who paid him a solidarity visit in Port Harcourt. Besides, some governors may also meet the President on how to end the Rivers State crisis,while some security agencies are said to favour reconciliation rather than allowing things to degenerate in the state. Investigation by our correspondent revealed that Amaechi has accepted the advice of his colleagues to seek audience with the President on the security situation in his State . “The governor will meet with the President on the security issue alone but without discussing politics,” a source close to him said. “He has accepted the advice of his colleagues and would seek audience. We hope the President would also accede to the governor’s request”. However, there were fears,last night, that Jonathan might not meet with Amaechi. One source said: “As a matter of fact, some governors, who are pro-Jonathan, yesterday called on some of those backing Amaechi to prevail on the President to have audience with the Rivers governor. “They have fears that Jonathan may shut the Villa doors against Amaechi. But if Jonathan shuns Amaechi, Nigerians would have known better.” Also, a few pro-Jonathan governors have concluded plans to convince Jonathan to make peace with Amaechi. A third source said: “These pro-Jonathan governors might meet the President in the next few days on the way forward. Their concern is about threats to the nation’s democracy. “If a former Head of State, Gen. Abubakar Abdulsalami, can warn the nation, no one needs a soothsayer on why we must resolve this crisis in the overall interest of our democracy. “Even some of the security agencies in their reports are in favour of reconciliation. This is why we want this crisis put behind us.” Governor Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti State who spoke for his colleagues from Lagos, Oyo, Ogun, Osun, Imo, Zamfara and Nasarawa at the end of the visit to Amaechi on Thursday said they advised the Rivers governor to “brief President Goodluck Jonathan who is actually our leader and Chief Security Officer of the country on the very,very challenging security situation here in Rivers State.” He added: “We believe that our chairman and brother (Amaechi) will give serious consideration to that particular concern that we have also expressed to him,that it is important as the chief security officer of Rivers State to take the opportunity to go and brief Mr.President on the security situation in the state.” Meanwhile, the Police Service Commission (PSC) is yet to consider Amaechi’s petition because some of its members are currently abroad. A reliable source, who spoke in confidence, said: “We will look at the petition on its own merit but we cannot do that now because a couple of us are out of the country. “What happened in Rivers State bordered on indiscipline by some policemen and the PSC needs to address that. Some of these policemen got involved in the crisis indicating that politics has influenced them. “This is what we have been saying about long time posting of officers and men to politically exposed persons. Our officers are men get carried away by postings to political offices.” Governor Amaechi ,last week,wrote a petition to the PSC calling for the redeployment of the Commissioner of Police in the State,Mr.Mbu Joseph Mbu,for allegedly openly taking sides with those who are out to bring down his (Amaechi’s) government. He also said the security situation in the state has been on a free fall since Mbu’s assumption of office last February. The result,according to him, is the erosion of public confidence in the force He told the Chairman of the PSC Sir. Mike Okiro that the only way to restore the confidence of the people of the state in the Police is to remove Mbu from the state. The petition, dated July 9, 2013,came 48 hours ahead of the setting up of a police panel by IGP Abubakar to probe the involvement of police personnel in last Monday’s fracas on the floor of the Rivers State House of Assembly and his warning to political actors to seek civilised and decent means of resolving their differences.
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