Did she or did she not?: Reports say First lady held meeting with Rivers security chiefs over Amaechi



Many would have been surprised that President Goodluck Jonathan travelled to South Africa on a state visit and left his wife behind. Usually, Patience Jonathan, the first lady, accompanies the president during foreign visits, even on working visits.

It turned out that she had an important task to perform back home if some reports about the matter are to be believed.

The first lady staunchly denies this, but there are reports that she was in Bayelsa where she held a meeting with some security chiefs serving in Rivers state.

The pre-eminent news of the last one month has been the onslaught against the Rivers governor, Rotimi Amaechi. And there are fears that plans are underway to impeach the governor. The agenda of this meeting which the first lady reportedly convened was however not clear.

The Vanguard Newspaper which did not want to mention names, carried an interesting report in which it described the lady involved (Dame Jonathan) this way: “At the top of the fresh moves [against Amaechi], it was learnt yesterday, is a prominent female opponent of the governor based in Abuja but a career civil servant in the Bayelsa State civil service.”

A source said the meeting “planned on how to dislodge Governor Rotimi Amaechi.” The first lady reportedly “berated the heads of the security agencies present for not tackling the ‘Amaechi situation’ clinically.

“The arrowhead (the power broker) told the fear-stricken guests that if they were all working like the State Commissioner of Police, Joseph Mbu, the Amaechi matter would have been resolved.

“The power broker purportedly told them that she is very worried that Governor Amaechi still has a stronghold on the state, despite the onslaught against him and his political structures.”

However the first lady has denied being a part of any such plot. A statement from her office, signed by Ayo Osinlu, her Special Assistant on Media, said: “This is to alert the general public that insinuations are rife in a section of the public towards drawing the First Lady into the political crisis in Rivers State.

“According to the insinuations, the First Lady is being alleged to have summoned and held a meeting with security chiefs in Rivers state last weekend where she instructed them to take firmer action on the political crisis in the state.

“We assure all well meaning Nigerians that this is the handwork of mischief makers who are hell bent to drag the person of the First Lady into disrepute.

“We therefore, advise members of the public to discountenance such impressions, as the First Lady remains committed to peace and good governance in the country.”

Messier and messier.

Patience Jonathan Denies Involvement In Rivers Crisis

First Lady Patience Jonathan has refuted reports that she is involved in the crisis in Rivers State.
In a statement today, Ayo Osinlu, her Special Assistant on Media, denied reports she summoned and held a meeting with security chiefs last weekend where she instructed them to take firmer action on the political crisis.

“We assure all well-meaning Nigerians that this is the handiwork of mischief-makers who are hell bent to drag the person of the First Lady into disrepute,” the statement said.

The denial comes amid reports that Mrs. Jonathan has relocated to Yenegoa, the capital of Bayelsa State, to engineer the escalation of the political crisis rocking Rivers state. Mrs. Jonathan is originally from Rivers, but she also holds office as a Permanent Secretary in the state government in Bayelsa, her husband’s home State.

She is currently hosting junior Minister, Nyeson Wike at Government House in Yenegoa, where she met with the top military and police leaders on Sunday night. That secret meeting involved the Brigade commander, the Air Force commander, the Naval Commander, and the Commissioner of Police.

Mrs. Jonathan reportedly told some top politicians that she will not leave Yenegoa until Gov. Rotimi Ameachi is removed from office as Governor of Rivers, where several important developments have taken place since Monday. One of them was Thursday’s invasion of the State House of Assembly by about 300 thugs, with the aid of the Commissioner of Police. Yesterday, the Speaker of the House of Assembly, Mr. Otelemaba Dan Amachree, accused President Goodluck Jonathan’s government of being behind the political crisis.

In her press statement today, Mrs. Jonathan said she remained committed to peace and good governance in the country.

Text of the press statement:
OFFICE OF THE FIRST LADY, FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA
PRESS RELEASE

LEAVE FIRST LADY OUT OF RIVERS’ CRISIS
This is to alert the general public that insinuations are rife in a section of the public towards drawing the First Lady into the political crisis in Rivers State. According to the insinuations, the First Lady is being alleged to have summoned and held a meeting with security chiefs in Rivers state last weekend where she instructed them to take firmer action on the political crisis in the state.
We assure all well meaning Nigerians that this is the handiwork of mischief-makers who are hell bent to drag the person of the First Lady into disrepute.
We therefore, advise members of the public to discountenance such impressions, as the First Lady remains committed to peace and good governance in the country.

Ayo Osinlu,
Special Assistant on Media to First Lady.
May 8, 2013.

careytommy: ''thescoopng". That is your source?
Even if it's true Madam PEJ held a meeting with the security cmdrs, how exactly are they going to solve the "Amaechi situation"?
Bros i think you are just trying to be funny this morning.

Investigation: How Dame Jonathan Influenced Amaechi’s Suspension



Facts emerging show how the first lady, Dame Patience Jonathan, allegedly influenced the suspension of Rivers State governor Rotimi Amaechi by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Amaechi was suspended by the National Working Committee (NWC) this Monday on the grounds that he violated Articles 58 1(b), (c ), (h) and (m) of the PDP. But the suspension was largely seen as a direct fallout of the election of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) which Amaechi won.

A highly placed source disclosed to LEADERSHIP that a bitter Mrs Jonathan allegedly summoned the members of the NWC and handed down a stern directive to them to immediately place the embattled governor on suspension after Amaechi emerged victorious in the NGF election.

But the directive, according to the source, threw the NWC members into confusion as to what “sins” would be adduced as reason for such action. Some of them, it was disclosed, attempted to argue against it on the basis that such an “extreme measure” was too hasty and that anchoring the reasons on Amaechi’s victory at the NGF polls would portray the NWC as childish.

“It became a case of what and what reason will be strong enough to justify the suspension; even at that, some members suggested that the governor should first of all be summoned to appear before a disciplinary committee of the party before any suspension. Yet somebody was said to have reminded the members that there is no subsisting disciplinary committee in place,” said the source.

At this point, continued the source, a certain petition generated by the newly inaugurated executive of the party in the state, which had been lying unattended to in the secretariat, was exhumed. The content of the petition, which has to do with the failure of the governor to reinstate the suspended elected executive of the Obio/Akpor council became very fanciful and presented an explainable reason for Amaechi’s suspension, the source added.

LEADERSHIP was told that what was done was entirely to please the first lady who allegedly has not hidden her intent to even remove Amaechi from office.

One of such moves, the source continued, was when Mrs Jonathan allegedly met some security chiefs in Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State capital, and instructed them to effect the removal of the governor immediately. “On this, she was politely rebuffed when she was reminded that, in a democracy, it is the lot of only the state House of Assembly to effect the removal of a state governor through impeachment.

Besides, some highly placed Nigerians in government who were placed in the know of the development because of the persistent pressure by the first lady warned the service chiefs to steer clear of the democratic structures and ensure that they cleared any such directive with the president and commander-in-chief whom they are answerable to.

“The issue of clearing from the president became necessary because of the frequency with which the first lady allegedly hands down some directives on the pretext that it originated from Mr President. On many occasions, the woman had had cause to assign some ‘very bizarre’ duties using the president as a backup.

It got to a hilt that sometimes the president feigned ignorance of such development, at which time it had become too late, as the deed had been done. The implication is that the issue of Amaechi was a plot finally consummated as it was an old-time project allegedly spearheaded by Mrs Jonathan,” the source added.

However, the suspension, the source further revealed, is already generating frightening ripple effects. The NWC is said to be divided down the line, but the members are afraid to revolt in the open. Some of them are said to be miffed at the development and suspect that the first lady may grow to become so overbearing in the party in the days to come, if not checked. “The Amaechi saga is a test case and is a signal that it could get to a time when the party would be used to settle scores, even personal ones at that,” the source stated.

Efforts made to get a response from the spokesman of the first lady, Mr Ayo Asinlu, were futile at press time as he neither picked several calls to his phone nor responded to text messages sent to him.

abagoro: Sekibo cannot rule Rivers State in 2015 and there's nothing to stop the Ogoni as long as the rest of Rivers State is behind them. Even if Abbey must not emerge, then Abuja people should look for another Ogoni replacement or better still create Ogoni State.

dridowu: I admire ds woman ,I will rather kill myself than commit suicide

Bensonite:
You are a dreamer, George Sekibo cannot rule but your brother Magnus Abbey can rule. What qualities does Senator Abbey have over Senator Sekibo for you to come up with that rants. Nigerians should grow above tribalism and depend on merit.

PointB: Powerful woman she is then. Amechi's should have tangoed with his mate, rather than picking a fight with a woman. By the way, I didn't read any of those propaganda and beer parlour scoops.

careytommy: ''thescoopng". That is your source?
Even if it's true Madam PEJ held a meeting with the security cmdrs, how exactly are they going to solve the "Amaechi situation"?
Bros i think you are just trying to be funny this morning.

ichommy:
u re d next in line after Amaechi

Patience Jonathan did not ask PDP to suspend Amaechi, presidency says



The presidency described the report as ‘laughable.’
The Presidency has denied allegations that the First Lady, Patience Jonathan, influenced the suspension of Rivers State Governor, Rotimi Amaechi, by the National Working Committee of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP.
It described as ‘laughable’ reports that the first lady handed the suspension instruction to the National Working Committee of the PDP, which suspended the Rivers Governor.

The Special Assistant to Mrs. Jonathan on Media, Ayo Osinlu claimed the report was a calculated attempt to sustain Mr. Amaechi’s travails in public domain, as well as to explore the possibility of keeping public sympathy in his favour.
Although she has no constitutional powers, Nigerian first ladies are known to wield tremendous influence over state and party organs and are considered most powerful outside of the president.

Mr. Amaechi has been having a running battle with the PDP leadership and the presidency over his stance on major national issues.

Though recently elected as Chairman of the Nigeria Governors Forum, NGF, the loser in the election, Jonah Jang of Plateau, allegedly with the backing of the presidency, has declared himself chairman. The Rivers Governor was suspended by the PDP days after his re-election as NGF chairman.

Even before his present travails, he had had an exchange of words with the first lady, who is from Rivers State, over some of his policies in the state.

The full statement by Mr. Osinlu reads: “It has again come to our notice that a new twist has been introduced to the carefully orchestrated scheme to anchor the political fortunes or survival of certain embattled politicians on a deliberate demonization of the First Lady, Dame (Dr.) Patience Goodluck Jonathan.

“This new twist came by way of a so-called “investigation” reported on the front page of today’s, 30/05/2013, Leadership newspaper.

“According to the report, the First Lady, as characteristic these days, is being alleged to have influenced the suspension of Governor Rotimi Amaechi from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) by the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party.

“We consider it laughable that it can be assumed by any sane person that the First Lady could possibly “summon” the members of the NWC of the party for the purported purpose of handing down “stern directives” on crucial party decisions.
“We ask, on what platform? Within what contexts? In what capacity? Is it not an unfortunate insult on all the elders that constitute the NWC to insinuate that they were assembled by the First Lady, or anyone else for that matter, and instructed on positions of the party? And why couldn’t Leadership’s “investigators” name at least a few of those in attendance of this famous meeting?

“We consider it a most unbecoming insolence, to say the least DISRESPECTFUL, of any one to suggest that the whole of the Peoples Democratic Party was led by the nose and influenced by a private interest, in a matter that so evidently borders on party discipline and administration.

“Only recently, we were compelled to make a statement, warning those who have become specialists in looping their self-induced political travails around the First Lady, to develop another strategy for their survival.
“This was when another vicious lie was circulated that Her Excellency had, again, “summoned” service chiefs in Rivers State, and instructed them to be firmer in handling the Rivers matter.

“Let us state once again, that the First Lady is not an elected official of state, neither is she a party functionary. She therefore recognizes very clearly her place in the scheme of things and acts always accordingly within context.
“In our safe estimation, the whole of this is a conscious calculation to sustain the issue of Governor Amaechi in full public view, as well as to explore the possibility of keeping public sympathy in his favour.

“While we have no challenges with the Amaechi camp struggling for political survival and relevance, we wish to state categorically our strong objection to the wicked use of the name and profile of the First Lady in the process.

“For us this is not only dubious, but also diversionary, unfair, unkind, and therefore totally unacceptable.

“We wish to warn that if this trend continues in the near and distant future, we may be constrained to take action within legally permissible limits to protect the integrity of the office and person of the First Lady”.

Abagworo: At least the truth of the Amaechi saga as I had always mentioned here on NL is gradually being revealed. Amaechi has no problem with Jonathan and is not contesting 2015 Presidency. Amaechi is going for Rivers East senate which Nyesom Wike is also nursing the ambition. However the whole saga is about Rivers governorship which Patience wants her brother Sekibo to contest against the earlier agreed Ogoni which Amaechi is obviously backing Abbey.

berem: Hmmm... Abagworo! Is Amaechi contesting for Senatorial position? Am hearing this for the first time. Na wah!