AMAECHI OPPONENTS ARRESTED WITH SOPHISTICATED WEAPONS IN PORT-HARCOURT

The Joint Task Force (JTF) in the Niger Delta, codenamed Operation
Pulo (Oil) Shield, has arrested six persons with arms and ammunition
in Rivers State, with sources indicating that the suspects are
political opponents of Governor Rotimi Amaechi, the Chairman of the
Nigeria Governors' Forum (NGF).
The Spokesman of the JTF, Col. Onyema Nwachukwu, last night, confirmed
the arrest, but insisted that the suspects were picked for illegal
possession of firearms and not for political reason.
Nwachukwu said: "As at 3rd January six suspects with arms were
arrested during a routine patrol at Ogu community in Ogu/Bolo LGA (of
Rivers State). Items recovered were: 7 x AK-47, 164 rounds of
ammunition and six locally made canon launchers.
"Suspects were handed over to the Nigeria Police yesterday (Friday).
They were arrested for illegal possession of firearms and not for any
reason of political or social affiliation as being wrongly
insinuated."
The Rivers Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), Ahmad Muhammad, a
Deputy Superintendent of Police (DSP), when contacted at 8:12 pm
yesterday, said of the suspects' handover to the police by the JTF: "I
have not been briefed of such handover, for now."
A source in Port Harcourt stated that the suspects were associates of
Senator George Sekibo, who represents Rivers East Senatorial District
and the self-acclaimed Speaker of the Rivers House of Assembly, Evans
Bipi, the representative of Ogu/Bolo constituency, who are allies of
the wife of President Goodluck Jonathan, Dame Patience.
The source said: "On January 3rd, members of the Joint Military Task
Force (JTF) arrested six youths around Ekporo Road, on their way to
Ogu in Ogu/Bolo LGA of Rivers State. They were in an off white Land
Rover jeep, with registration number JJ 441 BZ. The youths were
arrested based on their suspicious movement.
"Those arrested gave their names as Sunday Elisha, Uche Jenikachi,
Ibinabo Lawson, Okechukwu Okoro, Jerry Tonye and Daniel Ibito-Anga,
who parades himself and his known in Ogu/Bolo as Security
Adviser/Personal Assiatant to both Senator George Sekibo and Evans
Bipi.
"Both Senator Sekibo and Evans Bipi are from Ogu and are known and
have confessed publicly to be extremely close associates of the
Nigerian First Lady, Patience Jonathan, who hails from nearby Okrika
and they all speak the same native Okrika dialect.
"As a matter of fact, Evans Bipi was a domestic aide of Mrs. Jonathan
before he was elected into the Rivers State House of Assembly in 2011.
Senator Sekibo, who nurses a governorship ambition in 2015, is hoping
to ride into Rivers State Government House on the back of Mrs.
Jonathan.
All of them are also known publicly to be fighting the Rivers State
Governor, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi."
While also corroborating that arms and ammunition recovery from the
suspects by the JTF, the sources said: "Found in the possession of the
boys and recovered from them were 7 AK-47 assorted riffles, 146 rounds
of 7.62 mm special life ammunition and 10 life magazines, among
others.
"After their arrest, they were taken by the JTF team to Bori Camp, the
military base in Port Harcourt. The boys have been handed over to the
police in Rivers State. The police in the state are headed by the
Commissioner, Mbu Joseph Mbu, who is said to have been brought to head
the State Police Command by Mrs. Jonathan. Mbu has been accused of
taking directives from Mrs. Jonathan and her associates.
"Only recently, the Rivers State Governor, Rotimi Amaechi, raised the
alarm that arms, ammunition and weapons are being brought into the
state (Rivers) by those opposed to his administration, ahead of the
next general elections."
It will be recalled that Amaechi, President Jonathan, Dame Patience,
and most leaders of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Rivers state
had been at loggerheads over the scheming for 2015 and worsened with
the NGF chairman's defection to the main opposition All Progressives
Congress (APC).