The Rivers State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) says the 27 members of the State House of Assembly loyal to the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Chief Nyesom Wike, have not joined the party.
The lawmakers had in the heat of the crisis publicly dumped the People Democratic Party (PDP), platform under which they were elected, for the ruling APC at the centre.
Rivers APC chairman and ally of Wike, Chief Tony Okocha, dismissed claims that the embattled lawmakers had defected to the APC from PDP.
Okocha also denied receiving the embattled lawmakers into the APC, saying what happened at the Port Harcourt Polo Club in December 2023 was not a reception for the 27 lawmakers.
He said the December event attended by the embattled lawmakers was to celebrate the constitution of the state executive council of the APC by the party’s national body.
Recall that the embattled speaker of the pro-Wike lawmakers at the ceremony inside the Polo Club in Port Harcourt, Martin Amaewhule, had said he and 26 of his colleagues had completed the process of their defection to APC.
He said one of the major reasons for their action was that “we have evidence that there is division in the party (PDP) and at the appropriate time, we will make it public.”
While addressing a news conference in Port Harcourt on Tuesday, Okocha said he personally invited the lawmakers individually as friends for the 2023 event and not as Assembly members.
He said, “There was no intention to organise a reception for what we were not holding. We were inaugurated in Abuja and we chose to organise a reception and thanksgiving for our members.
“It was not to receive the 27 lawmakers. We were misinterpreted to have received the 27 lawmakers into the APC. That is not correct.
“We invited individual members of the Assembly. I have a relationship with them over time. We tried to woo them into the party. I was intentional in reaching out to them to join us. We would have counted it all joy if we had succeeded.”
Okocha continued, “We want to tell Nigerians that the 27 lawmakers led by Martin Amaewhule never defected to the All Progressives Congress.
“What people flaunt on social media or television cannot put a plausible argument for them.
“The law is not about emotions. It is as strict as it is.”
He accused Governor Siminalayi Fubara of disobeying the rule of law at all times, saying “The era of strong man mentality is gone. The law has taken its place.
“There is no way a High Court can sit in judgment over a superior Court of Appeal. It is not done. It is a pity that senior lawmakers in this country will now come out to misinterpret the court judgment.”
Okocha further accused the governor of exhibiting dictatorial tendencies in his refusal to obey the court judgment which authorised him to re-present the 2024 budget before the Amaewhule-led House of Assembly.
“We are disenchanted by the governor’s disrespect for the rule of law. Justice James Omotosho granted 15 reliefs in his judgment but the governor has refused to obey them.
“You cannot run the state without an annual budget. But the governor is doing so. You cannot present a budget before a three-man Assembly. The Appeal Court called it a forum,” Okocha stated.
He, however, called for calm and expressed optimism that the parties would obey when the Supreme Court finally rendered judgment on the matter.
