Amaechi cries out over threat to life as Police Commissioner redeploys officer in charge of convoy

The Rivers State crisis continues to escalate as the state Government on Thursday night raised the alarm that the Commissioner of Police in the state, Joseph Mbu was plotting to employ all tactics in order to endanger the life of the state Governor, Rotimi Amaechi. The attention of the general public was drawn to the development via a statement made available by the state Commissioner of Information, Ibim Semenitari. The statement had accused Mr. Mbu of his continuous monitoring of Governor Amaechi’s movement. The police commissioner was also accused of redeploying officer in charge of Mr. Amaechi’s convoy, after having failed to give him (Mbu) details about Amaechi’s whereabouts. “After redeploying the Escort Commander, CP Mbu also requested the Camp Commandant of Government House, Port Harcourt, to give him prior briefing of the Governor’s daily movement. A request which in practice would be difficult to comply with unless the Camp Commandant gets prior knowledge of the Governor’s movement,” the statement said. The commissioner added, “We suspect that the request for daily prior briefing on the Governor’s movement may be to furnish strange persons with necessary details of his movement and, thereby placing him in harms’ way. “At different times, CP Mbu has compromised Governor Amaechi’s security and safety, and even personally led an attack on Government House, Port Harcourt on July 10, 2013. As Commissioner of Police, CP Mbu, refuses to brief the Governor, who is the Chief Security Officer of the state on the state of security in Rivers State.” Read complete statement here; Today, Thursday September 5, 2013, the Commissioner of Police in Rivers State, Mr. Mbu Joseph Mbu redeployed the Escort Commander, in charge of the Convoy of the Governor of Rivers State, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi. The redeployment according to CP Mbu was because the Escort Commander had refused his directive to “furnish (the CP) with prior information of the movement of the Governor.” The Escort Commander is not in charge of the Governor’s Protocol and cannot have prior knowledge of the Governor’s movement, especially in the prevailing circumstances regarding security in the State. After redeploying the Escort Commander, CP Mbu also requested the Camp Commandant of Government House, Port Harcourt, to give him prior briefing of the Governor’s daily movement. A request which in practice would be difficult to comply with unless the Camp Commandant gets prior knowledge of the Governor’s movement. The Government of Rivers State is most uncomfortable with these developments and their implications for the security of Governor Amaechi. This is more so, as the developments are coming on the heels of the Rivers State Police Command’s declaration of Governor Amaechi’s ADC (which is receiving medical attention) as a deserter. This sudden interest of CP Mbu regarding the daily movement of Governor Amaechi cannot be borne out of love. If his intentions were noble and above board, CP Mbu has Governor Amaechi’s telephone number and could have reached him directly to make the request of prior briefing of his movements. Alternatively, he could have written officially to the Secretary to State Government to make the same request. This would be the first time, since Governor Amaechi assumed office in 2007, that a Police Commissioner would be requesting prior information of his movement. This was not the case even in the hey days of militancy in Rivers State. As far as we know this is an exception rather than the rule. The fact that CP Mbu waited for the Governor to travel out of Port Harcourt to issue the invitation to policemen attached to Government House is curious and indicative of ulterior motives. His sudden interest in the Governor’s movement is suggestive of a more sinister motive. CP Mbu has not hidden the fact that he holds Governor Amaechi in disdain and would stop at nothing to either harm him or aid those planning to harm him. After all in May 2013, he allowed ex-Militants to barricade the gate into the Government House after parading major streets of Port Harcourt. He has even acknowledged before the media that he found nothing wrong in fraternizing with militants. We suspect that the request for daily prior briefing on the Governor’s movement may be to furnish strange persons with necessary details of his movement and, thereby placing him in harms’ way. At different times, CP Mbu has compromised Governor Amaechi’s security and safety, and even personally led an attack on Government House, Port Harcourt on July 10, 2013. As Commissioner of Police, CP Mbu, refuses to brief the Governor, who is the Chief Security Officer of the state on the state of security in Rivers State. The Governor had made formal report to the Police High Command concerning his worries about the CP and nothing has come out of the complaint. We have chosen to cry out to Nigerians and the rest of the world about this threat to Governor Amaechi’s life as a last resort. We therefore wish to alert Nigerians and the rest of the world that CP Mbu should be held responsible should anything evil happen to the Governor of Rivers State Rt. Hon. Chibuike Amaechi, any principal officer or top government functionary in Rivers State. We believe that his current actions are sufficient warning to us “as a tree that cries out cannot kill anyone on its path.” Signed Ibim Semenitari

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