CP accuses Gov. Amaechi of mobilising youths against President Jonathan

Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi

THE Rivers State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Joseph Mbu, on Thursday accused the Rivers State government of mobilising youths against President Goodluck Jonathan.

Mbu said this while giving reasons for the chasing out of 13,000 newly-recruited teachers from the Liberation Stadium where they had gathered to receive their letters of posting on Wednesday.

Armed policemen had stormed the stadium and chased away the teachers.

But speaking with newsmen in Port Harcourt, Mbu explained that he acted on a security report that those at the stadium were hired to disrupt the peace in the state.

The CP said the people at the stadium on Wednesday were youths hired to demonstrate against Jonathan.

Putting the number of the youths inside the stadium at 18,000, Mbu displayed some placards allegedly recovered from the crowd.

Some of the placards displayed by the CP read, ‘Amaechi for Vice President 2015’, ‘North for President,’ ‘Amaechi for VP,’ ‘It is time for the North’.

Mbu said the action of the state government was targetted at distracting the police.

He said, “The truth is that the government of the state is trying to keep the police perpetually at work and distracting us. Those newly employed teachers in quote were hired youths. They were hired to carry placards and protest against the President of the country. I am here to show you the placards.

“They were called to go there. In all, they did not invite the police; nobody invited the police. My informants called me that they were not called to be given letters but were given card boards to protest against Jonathan.

“They tore these things into pieces (holding the placards). We put them together. As a Commissioner of Police whose ears are on the ground, I will always abort such gatherings.”

Reacting, the state government described Mbu’s claim as a fabrication aimed at justifying police nefarious activities.

A statement by the Chief of Staff in the Rivers Government House, Chief Tony Okocha, described Mbu and the state police command as liars.