03 Sep 2013


By Ernest Chinwo

The Rivers State Police Command has declared the Aide-de-Camp (ADC) to Governor Chibuike Amaechi, Seimeikumo Debewari (acting ASP), a deserter, following his failure to report to the command or police headquarters since July 10.

This came as the Minister of State for Education, Chief Nyesom Wike, dissociated himself from his posters being posted in the streets of Bori, headquarters of Khana local government area of the state.

The police in a statement issued in Port Harcourt and signed by the Assistant Commissioner of Police (Administration), Augustine Sanomi, Monday on behalf of the commissioner, said Debewari had also been withdrawn as ADC to Amaechi.

The statement said: “The Rivers State Police Command wishes to inform the general public that AP/No. 100659, acting ASP Seimeikumo Debewari, who has ignored all lawful directives to see the commissioner of police or the Inspector General of Police, has not been seen either in Rivers State command or at the Police Force Headquarters, Abuja since July 10, 2013.

“His whereabouts is currently unknown to the Nigeria Police Force. Consequently, he ceases to be the ADC to the Rivers State governor.

“As the commissioner of police, Rivers State Command and by the powers conferred on me by section 398 (1) of the Police Act and Regulation Cap 359, Laws of the federation of Nigeria 1990, the officer is hereby declared a deserter from the Nigeria Police Force subject to the approval of the Inspector General of Police.”

In another development, Wike has said he had no hand in his posters that have surfaced in Bori for his alleged governorship contest for Rivers State in 2015.

A statement issued by his Special Assistant (Media), Mr. Simeon Nwakaudu, the minister maintained that he had no hand in the posters and that it was the handiwork of political enemies to discredit him.

He said: “We want to reiterate that such action is a deliberate ploy by enemies of the Honourable Minister of State to destroy his well earned reputation and to cause disaffection between him and the people of the area.

“The Honourable Minister, Chief Nyesom Wike, therefore dissociates himself from such ugly development, describing the circulation of posters with his photograph and name in the area as another failed attempt by the Amaechi administration to deceive Rivers people.”

He noted that Wike had in June raised the alarm over an uncovered plot to print and distribute posters purporting that he had declared his ambition to contest the governorship election in the state in 2015.

The minister also noted that in July, some officials of the Rivers State government actually printed posters of the minister and pasted them in a section of Obio/Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State, which the minister denied knowledge of, as it did not emanate from him.

Nwakaudu said: “It is, therefore, not surprising that this wicked and ill-conceived act is being carried out in Ogoni where these enemies feel threatened by his (Wike’s) popularity and acceptance by the Ogoni people.

“We again call on the people to disregard and discountenance such act and content of the posters as they are intended to blackmail and therefore cause friction between Wike, the good people of Ogoni and the entire Rivers State.

“It is unfortunate that Amaechi and his allies are still playing an uncivilised and vengeful politics, using primitive tactics in trying to destroy someone who is building a united, peaceful and progressive Rivers State.

“We also use this medium to call on all those involved in this malicious act to stop using our state’s resources in executing retrogressive political initiative that will not do our state and people any good.”