OCTOBER 23, 2014 BY CHUKWUDI AKASIKE, PORT HARCOURT5 Comments

THE immediate past Minister of State for Education, Chief Nyesom Wike, has alleged that the Rivers State Governor, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi, made him a minister in order to whittle down his influence in the state.

Wike, who is seeking to become the next governor of the state, explained that becoming a minister was not aimed at promoting him, adding that the target was to make him less influential and lose his base politically.

He recalled that he had wanted to vie for the senate position to represent Rivers East in 2011, but was barred from doing so, adding that the governor never told him that he (Amaechi) was nominating him (Wike) for the position of a minister.

Wike, who spoke in an African Independent Televisioninterview monitored by our correspondent on Thursday, stated that he was at a time no longer interested in working in a hostile environment when the governor hinted him of his intention to scrap the office of the chief of staff.

“Amaechi was told that if he wanted to have a successor, without anybody disturbing him, there was the need to push me away from Rivers state, to go and be a minister, for my influence in the state to be reduced. It was not a promotion for me, rather it was a strategy to make me less influential and to lose base.

“The governor never discussed with me that he was nominating me for ministerial appointment. Ten persons were nominated to be minister from Rivers state. I was the second person on the list. Atedo Peterside was the first person on the list. Tonye Cole was the third person.

“Amaechi said he was going to scrap the office of Chief of Staff and I said I was no longer going to occupy it again. I was the Director-General of his campaign organisation in 2011 and having seen what had happened, it would no longer be conducive for me to work in an environment of hostility,” he said.

On his governorship ambition, Wike explained that his initial aspiration was nit to succeed Amaechi and added that he had to consult stakeholders in the state before he decided to run.

Wike attributed the enmity between him and Amaechi to unnecessary suspicion, maintaining that he never left his constituency after becoming a minister.

Wike said, “Succeeding Amaechi was certainly not my ambition. As events unfolded and time went by, a lot of things happened and I had to consult widely on whether to run or not. It is not as if I had the ambition all along to succeed Governor Amaechi.

“After the election (in 2011), a transition committee was put in place without informing me. Amaechi asked; ‘Must you know everything?’ When commissioners were to be appointed, he (Amaechi) called a meeting and said each LGA must submit five names.

“Nobody was taken from my LGA, of the five names we submitted. I laughed and said they were up to something.”

Reacting, the Chief of Staff, Government House, Port Harcourt, Chief Tony Okocha, described Wike’s view on why he (Wike) was nominated for the position of a minister as the character trait of an ingrate.

Okocha stated that the former minister displayed ignorance when he said the governor made him a minister in order to reduce his influence and political base.

“It is a character trait of an ingrate and this shows you his level of ignorance. Someone takes you away as a chief of staff and made you a minister and you are saying he is sending you away to whittle down your power.

“Is he saying that the office of the chief of staff in Rivers is higher than the position of a minister? Ignorance kills faster than disease,” he said.

On Wike’s governorship ambition, Okocha said, “We have always zoned positions in Rivers State. Dr. Peter Odili is from Rivers West Senatorial District, while Sir Celestine Omehia and Governor Amaechi are from Rivers East.

“Only Rivers South East is left to present governorship candidates in 2015. PDP leaders will not be daft not to recognise the three senatorial districts. Rivers is not an Ikwerre State. Rivers State is made up of many ethnic nationalities and three senatorial districts.”



http://www.punchng.com/news/amaechi-made-me-minister-to-reduce-my-influence-wike/

A smart reply to a be clouded mind.

This is the same manner in which some people in the south reason forgetting that people exist in North too.

The major issue we have is that we don't use electoral college in Nigeria and we have educated illiterates too. These are the people that thinks is the person from their area that is best for an office even with the worst record and no vision.

jejemanito:
Naija politicians are so annoying

Do these guys really think we are so dumb?

Arent we?

Just passing

Wike too accept Minister post so that he can be weaken

Ignorance is worse than a combination of HIV,TB and Ebola

Waiting patiently for a return leg from Amaechi.

Nyesom Wike is one ungrateful person I have never seen in my life. If Amaechi wanted to reduce his influence as claimed by Wike, nothing stops Governor Amaechi from not nominating Wike for any other position again. Instead of saying thank u to Amaechi, Wike chose to betray Amaechi. As at the time of wike's nomination, wike was not know at the national level. He politics starts and ends in Obio/Akpor and govt house Rivers state. If by mistake Wike becomes Governor, that's the same way he will fallout and betray GEJ when the time comes.

Total display of cluelessness

Dis man self, infact am short of words. someone nominated u for post of ministarial appointment and u are still having it in mind because of ur shelfishness that he is trying to weaken u. This life infact......

WIKE , i ask, MUST U KNOW EVERYTHING...?
WIKE , from ur countenance here...U seem not to have RESPECT for the OFFICE of your GOVERNOR...
U seem to be running his LIFE with him...
U seem to be questioning his ORDERS....

Initially, Wike's propaganda Against Amaechi was "Amaechi for VP", but now the truth is out and it is "Ezenwo Nyesom Wike for Governor" instead of the widely touted Amaechi for VP by Wike.

Whatever infuence wike claims to have is actually because he was made minister!!its not as if he had a nobel prize winner or a celebrity prior,besides no one forced him to become minister in the first place

jejemanito:
Naija politicians are so annoying

Do these guys really think we are so dumb?

My dear, most people are, sadly. Nairaland is crawling with such people.

People have a way of acting and I will tell you ...these ikwere are just too stubborn . The oil in rivers has affected politity so much that brothers fight

Nwike or wike means son of power in Igbo language same with ikwere dialect
Amaechi means who knows tomorrow in Igbo languageand in all iIgbo dialects ikwerre inclusive

So they are acting up their names

Ndi Ara

Don't they have kinsmen to settle this scores as its done in Igbo and eastern society

They should stop washing their dirty linen in public

That's an eyesore

Wike will regret saying this.

nedu2000:
Whatever infuence wike claims to have is actually because he was made minister!!its not as if he had a nobel prize winner or a celebrity prior,besides no one forced him to become minister in the first place

Whatever makes gej president today is because he was deputy Gvnr of bayelsa state' not a celebite & not a prize winner, Wike 2015.

size38:
Nyesom Wike is one ungrateful person I have never seen in my life. If Amaechi wanted to reduce his influence as claimed by Wike, nothing stops Governor Amaechi from not nominating Wike for any other position again. Instead of saying thank u to Amaechi, Wike chose to betray Amaechi. As at the time of wike's nomination, wike was not know at the national level. He politics starts and ends in Obio/Akpor and govt house Rivers state. If by mistake Wike becomes Governor, that's the same way he will fallout and betray GEJ when the time comes.

U must be blind from reality to see has the first lady of the federal republic of nigeria, Dame P e jonathan, raise Nyesom wike hand & give him to dr Peter odili, (former gvnr) as a father of the state to lead wike home to victory come 2015. She as a mother to wike is giving him her support he should go & win in River state. Once again u r blind from reality, Wike 2015.

I have never read any very intelligent comment from Tony Okocha. First of all, he has just told us that APC or should I say Amaechi has single handedly handed his successor to the ogoni people by argueing that south east senatorial distrcit hasn't gotten a chance before to lead. So a smart person should know where they will ptich their tent except he spoke out of turn and ignorance. Talking about wike and the position of chief of staff in rivers state. It is a matter of interest, he knows where his interest is and he believes that going to ABJ would reduce his influence cos most of the time he won't be around the state and won't have time to shuttle abj and ph. Talking about income, the position of the chief of staff "in rivers state" pays more than being a junior minister. We know what he was able to do with GDI even as a minister, imagine what he would have done if he didn't have anything else taking his time. Whenever you want to down grade this man you ask yourself why amaechi made him his chief of staff and yet wasn't able to appoint a new chief of staff till wike left for abuja? And why did amaechi make him his DG for his re election campaign. He has his reason for saying what he said. He who wears the shoes knows where it bites him.

Friends, both Amaechi and Wike are no saints. When the going was good between them, Wike once mobilized my cousins in the Ikwerre Youth Movement to protest against Amaechi's right hand man chief Nwokocha. In a highly charged meeting, the Pressmen were asked not to cover it. It became obvious that Wike is treacherous and could stab his friend in the back. From that day, Amaechi became scared of him. IT IS TRUE THAT AMAECHI WANTED WIKE OUT, WITHOUT A BACKLASH AND FIGHT. HENCE HIS MINISTERIAL NOMINATION. BUT REASON IS THAT WIKE BETRAYS ANYONE. WHO WANTS A JUDAS IN HIS FOLD?

Sometimes I wonder if this people's degrees are authentic...They behave so strangely..In other countries, these people will be janitors or something..so ignorant.

To you Wike, when Amaechi nominated you for a ministerial position and you knowing very well that the intention was to whittle down your influence in Rivers State, why did you accept to go to Abuja as a minister?



Nonsense oozing from an unrepentant ingrate!

Mr Wike so u know from the onset and greedily accepted the offer.