‘Private agreements do not supercede constitution’

Omatsogunwa Jerry is a political stalwart in Rivers State and close ally of Governor Siminalayi Fubara. In this interview, he speaks about the political crisis in the state and the peoples’ support for the governor.

Does the political situation in Rivers State pose any challenge to the second term aspiration of Governor Fubara?

Our people say something, that the little child to goes to shake coconut tree, thinking that he is shaking the tree not knowing that he is just shaking his head. I don’t think what they are doing right now has any threat to the second term ambition of the Governor Fubara. First and foremost, you hear the FCT Minister, saying that agreement is agreement, a lot of people have asked what is agreement is agreement? What is the agreement, in our constitution, there is a section that said any agreement or any document that is contrary to the constitution, and to that extent to it’s contrariness is null and void. If the constitution says the governor has the right of first four years and another four years, that is where we stand. I don’t know what he means by agreement is agreement, it has nothing to do with the ambition of the Governor. Like our people always say, the frowning of the he-goat does not stop the native doctor from using it for sacrifice.

But rumours have it that the Governor accepted the agreement not to seek for second term when the president brokered peace during the period of emergency rule?

Have you seen where you are a landlord of a house and somebody else is living in that your house and his rent has expired, after the period he paid for and he is now bringing a new tenant and asking you the landlord to say look, based on the agreement I had with Mr B, that is what you the landlord must abide by; have you seen it that way before? The Minister was a tenant in government house, and at the end of the day, his tenure expired or his rent expired and he left. Does that make him the owner of the house at the end of the day? So under which auspices, under which right is he now having to determine who should stay and who should not stay?

Now that the Governor is the leader of APC in Rivers State, does it in any reduce the influence of the FCT Minister in the state politics?

I don’t know what you mean by the influence of the Minister. First and foremost, the Minister, Nyesom Wike is not the first person that has ruled Rivers State, what I know, this thing is like a relay race, so as far as I’m concerned, I don’t know what you mean by his influence  dwindling, because Odili ruled, handed over to Omehia/Amaechi. Amaechi also ruled, Wike took over, Wike has also done his own part. When they talk about structures for instance, structure is something that the new person inherits, it is not something that is somebody’s property, when you leave the trail, you leave for another person and the person works with that structure. I tell you a typical example, you know Shettima the Vice President, he was interviewed at a time and they asked him about his greatest achievement, he said his greatest achievement is supporting Zulum to become the governor of Borno State. That he is so proud that he supported the young man and he is doing well, is FCT minister bigger than the Vice President of Nigeria? He supported somebody to become governor, yet he never saw himself as a leader, the Vice President was in Delta State to receive the governor, and he said Sheriff you are the leader of our party in Delta State. Akpabio, the number three man, the Senate President, also went to Akwa Ibom to receive Governor Umo Eno, Akpabio told Eno look, you are the leader, I am under you when it comes to the state affairs. Is the FCT Minister bigger than these people I have mentioned? Number two and three persons in this country, so I don’t know what it means by his powers dwindled, I don’t understand.

Would the impeachment notice by the House of Assembly affect the performance of the governor or discourage him from second term ambition?

I can tell you for free that that is the last kick of a dying horse, it won’t go anywhere, the governor is not deterred with all those things, what they are doing right now is just like a fowl that is admiring a groundnut inside the bottle, what can he do?

Ahead of 2027 election, it’s appears the governor is not in control of the structures at the grassroots, because all the local government chairmen are not with him?

For 2027 election, when we get to that bridge, we will cross it. If you also remember vividly, in 2015, before the election in Rivers State, Amaechi did local government election, and at the end of the day, it was the Amaechi people that were in government, but did Wike win that election at the end of the day? So if Wike with the local government chairmen that Amaechi brought in can win to become governor of Rivers State, it shows that with local government chairmen, they can also be beaten, so I don’t see that as a threat to the aspiration of our governor.

How about the issue of budget presentation, because it’s one of the reasons the state assembly is processing impeachment against the governor?

Why are they bothered about budget? We are in Nigeria right? The President of the country has not presented budget to the National Assembly, and he said the government will run with this old budget, that is 2025 budget till February, that is at the National Assembly. During the emergency rule, the President took the Rivers State budget to the National Assembly, budget of N1.4 trillion, and at the end of the day, the National Assembly approved that budget around May or so, and by June, the President assented to that budget, so if we want to follow squarely, you will see that what they are alleging is not even true. If you have a budget that is still running, what is the noise about budget or no budget that, because the budget that was signed in June, is still in force. Moreover, the Constitution allows the governor to spend part of the budget before it is passed at the end of the day; so what is this allegation about spending without approval?

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