Yesterday, I was briefed by our legal team, that the Supreme Court of Nigeria fixed our appeal for hearing on the 14th of March, because the Amaechi’s group had written a petition against the sitting panel of the Court and there was no time to constitute a fresh panel to hear the case before the elections.
Every effort made by our legal team to get a date for hearing before the elections tomorrow was unsuccessful. As a lawyer, I understand the position of the Supreme Court, and I urge all Rivers people who hoped and prayed for a different outcome to respect and honour the position of the Court. The Supreme Court is the final hope of every oppressed Nigerian and the only true rock on which our democracy can rest.
With that position of the Court, the APC as a political party will not be on the ballot for tomorrow’s elections for Governorship and the House of Assembly.
The only moral justification for the Amaechi faction’s petition to block the urgent hearing of our appeal and allow the APC to have candidates in this election is to further justify the narrative that we stopped the candidature of Tonye Cole and others. This narrative is of course false to our knowledge and to most Nigerians who followed events in Rivers state objectively.
The candidature of Cole and others was deliberately built on a foundation of disobedience to Court orders and orchestrated violence against the courts. These were actions taken by the APC leadership in Rivers state despite our warnings and appeals, that these actions were clear pathways to political disaster.
Having successfully blocked our quest for justice and redemption for the APC, the same leadership has gone ahead to form an alliance with another political party the AAC, as I write I have not received or seen any statement from the national headquarters of our party directing our members in Rivers state to join or participate in any alliance with another political party in Rivers state, indeed the national leadership of the AAC has come out publicly to disassociate itself from the alliance.
On a personal note I cannot participate in the alliance, for the reason that myself and other leaders of the APC in Rivers state considered as not loyal to the minister of transportation were not consulted. I therefore support the position of the state chairman of the party Prince Peter Odike that there is no Alliance with AAC in Rivers state.
The alliance is nothing other than another attempt to enforce Amaechi’s right to pick a Governor for Rivers people that is loyal to and answerable to him alone.
We urge all Rivers people, particularly members of the APC to reject it, and vote for candidates of their choice. After all is said and done, the only reason the AAC party candidates is being supported by the Minister today is because he either left or refused to join the APC, if he was member of our party, the Minister would rather destroy the party than support him.
The reason for the fight in the APC is the absolute determination of the Minister of transportation not to consider any APC member for the Governorship race on the Platform of our party.
Finally, we must all condemn the escalating violence in Rivers state, I appeal to all politicians in Rivers state to conduct themselves in a manner that acknowledges that no Rivers man has a greater claim to Rivers state than another.
In the present situation, the safety of voters cannot even be guaranteed, neither will the results of the elections be acceptable to the broad majority of our people if they are not allowed to freely exercise their franchise without the fear violence.
I thank the security agencies for their vigorous efforts at ensuring peaceful atmosphere for elections in Rivers state but I must urge them to act at all times in the best interests of our country and its citizens.
Finally to my supporters, please keep faith, we started this journey with nothing but our faith in God, if we loose our faith then we are left with absolutely nothing.
Our God has been faithful, we have never plotted evil, mobilized violence or betrayed our principles in the quest for power.
Every evil plot, every sponsored blackmail against us will not only fail but will fail woefully and the truth will prevail.
The God of justice will definitely speak, and every other voice shall be silent.
Magnus Abe
