By Our Correspondent<\/p>\n
The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Chief Nyesom Wike, has taken a swipe at former Minister of Transportation and ex-Governor of Rivers State, Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, for allegedly politicizing the death of his late mother, Ezinne Mary Orduah.<\/p>\n
Wike also challenged Amaechi to account for about 117billions U.S. Dollars allegedly expended on projects under his administration as Governor, including the monorail, anti-malarial fumigation and the proposed Karibi-Whyte Hospital projects.<\/p>\n
The FCT Minister spoke on Saturday at a Town Hall Meeting with Uzugbani Ekpeye, the apex socio-cultural organization of Ekpeye ethnic nationality, held at Ekpeye House in Ahoada, Ahoada East Local Government Area of Rivers State, attended by Ekpeye stakeholders, opinion leaders, traditional rulers, LGA Chairmen from the area and other parts of the state, including the Rivers Governorship Candidate, Kingsley Chinda and other political leaders in the state.<\/p>\n
Wike said he sought the interaction through the Uzugbani Ekpeye platform to intimate the people on the happenings in the country ahead of the 2027 general elections.<\/p>\n
“We have not come for campaigns today. Political parties will come for campaigns. But it is important that our people should know what is happening in Nigeria so that you know how to organize yourselves and know the way to go. Because Ekpeye is one of the largest ethnic groups in the state and has a central role to play in the government of Rivers State and that of Nigeria,” Wike said.<\/p>\n
Reacting to Amaechi’s recent live interview with some national TV stations where he reportedly blamed policies of the Tinubu led-government for his inability to buy drugs for his late mother, Wike described the statement as unfortunate and an embarrassment.<\/p>\n
“It is unfortunate. I thought that we must respect our parents. Anybody who watched television will cry when somebody is bringing his own mother to play politics. He said if ADC wins the election, his mother will be very happy. So the only condition for his mother to be happy is if ADC wins? Too bad, ADC will not win.<\/p>\n
“He said it was the policies of this administration that made him not to be able to buy drugs for his mother. This was a Speaker for eight years, from 1999 to 2007. Governor for eight years, from 2007 to 2015. Minister for eight years, from 2015 to 2023. And your mother was sick and you are telling the whole world that because of the policy of Tinubu you couldn’t buy drugs for your mother and so your mother died. Yet you have told the world that your wife is an industrialist.<\/p>\n
“Look at the burial, private jets everywhere to bury a woman whom you could not buy drugs for. You didn’t tell your friends who came with private jets, ‘my mother is sick, help me to buy drugs’? It’s really unfortunate someone can descend so low to use his mother to play politics. Instead of me to have such a child, may I be childless,” Wike said.<\/p>\n
Wike also accused his predecessor of failing to win any credible election since 2011 and accused Amaechi of allegedly cancelling valid contracts faith national agencies, belonging to illustrious Rivers and Ekpeye son during his administration as Minister of Transport.<\/p>\n
“Let me tell you, Prince Chibudom Nwuche is an illustrious son of Ekpeye and Rivers State. He has been a businessman doing business with NPA and NIMASA. When our brother Amaechi became Minister of Transportation, the first thing he did was to cancel every contract that Chibudom Nwuche had with both agencies. Even when the National Assembly resolved against the cancellation, that it was a valid contract, our brother sat on it and said no and it was so,” Wike alleged.<\/p>\n
“Now, he wants to be Vice President. All of us are praying to have opportunity to grow. But let that growth not be the growth that will bring other people down. If he eventually becomes succeeds, does it mean he will cut our heads with knife?”<\/p>\n
Wike challenged Amaechi to publicly contradict his claims and to account for funds expended on phantom projects during his administration as governor of Rivers State.<\/p>\n
“I also watched his interview on AIT Politics Today. I want him to go back to AIT or Arise, ADBN, Channels and NTA and contradict everything I said here today. Let him show Nigerians where is the Karibi Whyte 1,000-bed hospital he said he would build. He paid $39 billion. Press people, ask him this question, what happened to the Karibi Whyte Hospital? Where is the foundation?<\/p>\n
“Today, where is the monorail? He spent not less than $68 billion. Ask him where is the monorail today? He said he was going to fumigate Rivers State so mosquitoes will not bite us and spent $10 billion. Are mosquitoes not biting us again? These are just few things I want to let you know. Invite him, let him answer these critical questions,” Wike stated.<\/p>\n
On politics, Wike urged Ekpeye people and Rivers people in general to support President Bola Tinubu, the Rivers APC governorship candidate, Hon. O. K. Chinda and all candidates of the Rainbow Coalition in the 2027 elections.<\/p>\n
Wike commended President Tinubu for establishing the South-South Development Commission, SSDC, and for giving Rivers State, and particularly Ekpeye, the chairmanship through Prince Chibudom Nwuche.<\/p>\n
“Since 1999, all the administrations that have come, compare and then take a position. Where do I go to benefit the Ekpeye people the most? Come back to Tinubu, you never sat with the President, but the first time that he established the South-South Development Commission. He gave Rivers State the chairmanship and he sent it to Orashi, in Ekpeyeland. That is the first chairman of the South-South Development Commission. That is where our President Tinubu has defined whom a brother truly is.”<\/p>\n
Wike reiterated his commitment to deliver Rivers State for President Tinubu, stating that he would resign as FCT Minister if the President fails to win in the state.<\/p>\n
“And I have committed, I have said it that if Tinubu does not win in my state in the election on 16th of January, by 17th, I will resign. Because it doesn’t make sense if I cannot deliver President in my state, what am I to become the Minister of FCT? So I’ve made commitment for all of you, and I am reiterating it. That commitment will stand if we fail. But I know we will not fail,” he declared.<\/p>\n
He thanked the President-General of Uzugbani Ekpeye for enumerating the projects he executed in Ekpeye land while in office as Governor, and urged the people to compare all administrations since 1999 and choose where their interest is best protected. <\/p>\n
Earlier in his welcome address, the President General of Uzugbani Ekpeye, Dr Alabo Ihuowo expressed the gratitude of the entire Ekpeye people to the FCT Minister for attracting various infrastructure developmental and life transforming projects to the area, including elevation and recognition of several traditional stools in Ekpeyeland.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
By Our Correspondent The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Chief Nyesom Wike, has taken a swipe at former Minister of Transportation and ex-Governor of Rivers State, Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, for allegedly politicizing the death of his late mother, Ezinne Mary Orduah. Wike also challenged Amaechi to account for about 117billions U.S. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":16810,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-18200","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18200","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=18200"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18200\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18201,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/18200\/revisions\/18201"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16810"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=18200"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=18200"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dailyechoes.ng\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=18200"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}