The allegations recently posed by Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi against President Goodluck Jonathan and First Lady Patience Jonathan did not remain unnoticed, as a both top officials immediately reacted.
It would be recalled that on Saturday Amaechi accused Jonathan and his administration of failure to implement the projects initiated by the governor, of encouraging corruption. Moreover, the politician insisted that his problems with Dame Patience started when he refused to share “Rivers people’s money ” with her.
According to the reports, October 26, both spouses replied to the member of card holder of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Goodluck Jonathan made a statement through his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Dr. Reuben Abati, calling the allegations “baseless”. The country leader expressed shock over the fact that Amaechi had lost the sense of responsible political behaviour adding that he was pursuing his selfish political interests.
“Governor Rotimi Amaechi took his obnoxious willingness to denigrate the highest office in the land in a reckless bid to advance his selfish political interests to a new level of irresponsible and rascally behaviour yesterday (Saturday) in Port Harcourt with his totally false and baseless vituperations against President Jonathan, the First Lady and the Federal Government.”
Jonathan also accused Rivers governor of losing the “touch with reality”.
“We can only assume therefore that he is deliberately spewing malicious falsehood in a desperate effort to incite the people of Rivers State and Nigeria against his assumed political foes.”
He warned Amaechi against crossing both legal and moral limits by such claims, which aim at tarnishing his wife’s reputation.
“The immunity which he currently enjoys notwithstanding, Governor Amaechi should be under no illusions: A day of reckoning will surely come when he will answer for all his actions and false allegations against President Jonathan, the First Lady and the Federal Government. He should also know that Nigerians are aware of the truth and will never be fooled or swayed by his arrant opportunism and anti-Jonathan ranting.”
On the same day Patience Jonathan reacted with a statement made by her media assistant, Mr. Ayo Adewuyi, describing Amaechi’s allegations as a lie meaning to rubbish Presidency.
Having waited patiently for Governor Amaechi to refute the statement credited to him about the First Lady, (with the assumption that he was misquoted), it has become clear that it was a deliberate attempt to malign Dame Patience Jonathan and score cheap political point. The governor may have been beclouded by the political uncertainty surrounding him to make such a jaundiced and unsubstantiated allegation that the First Lady asked him to bring Rivers State’s money to share.”
President’s wife shared her opinion that Amaechi “is looking for a cheap excuse for his failure in the governance of the state”.
She debunked the claim that she had ever requested him to giver her Rivers money, either directly or indirectly. Patience Jonathan, who comes from River State, stressed the importance of setting peaceful, free of political wars, atmosphere in the state for improving socio-economic development in the territory.
