agencies under Amaechi excite admirers, but detractors say slot ‘a waste to Rivers State’
The combatants in the Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi’s matter are not seen to be downing tools yet despite the Rivers State’s ex-governor scaling through to becoming a minister.
His admirers said in Port Harcourt yesterday, a day after his swearing-in that the appointment was a great stride ahead, and pointed to the Port Harcourt International Airport at Omagwa as his first point of attention. His detractors however gave thumps down, saying the slot was a total waste to the Rivers people.
The Rivers State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC), yesterday morning, congratulated its leader, Amaechi, on his appointment as Minister of Transport, but hastened to direct his attention to issues that need his urgent attention as the man saddled with running the strategically important ministry.
“We wish to assure the President and all Nigerians that Amaechi, who has a track record of performance, will deliver even beyond expectations if given the necessary cooperation,” Rivers APC said in a statement signed by the chairman, Davies Ibiamu Ikanya.
Drawing Amaechi’s attention to some of the most pressing problems that deserve his attention, Rivers APC noted that he was assuming office as Minister of Transport “at a time the Port Harcourt International Airport is rated as the worst in the world and the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, the seventh worst on the African continent, while the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, is ranked 10th worst on the continent.
“This is not acceptable to us and we wish that Amaechi quickly corrects this shameful anomaly imposed on us by the immediate past visionless administration.”
Continuing, the party said: “Amaechi is coming in as the Transport Minister at a time when the railway system is moribund and the maritime sector in a chaotic state. We know what Amaechi is made of and we expect him not only to turn around the fortunes of the railways but also to do same to the maritime sector.”
Amaechi’s admirers, led by the chairman’s senior special adviser on media and public affairs, Eze Chukwuemeka Eze, showed the list of agencies under Amaechi as Nigerian Port Authority (NPA), Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA); National Clearing and Forwarding Agency (NCFA); Nigeria Shippers Council (NSC); Nigerian Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA), and Nigerian Institute of Transport Technology (NITT).
His supporters also rejoice that Amaechi is also head of Aviation sector and thus in charge of Federal Airport Authority of Nigerian (FAAN); Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA); Nigeria Air Space Management Agency (NASMA); Accident Investigation Bureau (AIB); Nigerian College Of Aviation and Technology (NCAT), and Nigeria Meteorological Agency (NMA).
He is also in charge of the Land Transportation including the Nigeria Railway Corporation (NRC), and all federal roads in Nigeria (including but not limited to construction, maintenance and supervision).
In that case, Stella Oduah, former aviation minister, had impounded and grounded the Rivers Bombardier Jet bought with $45 million, causing huge loss. Now, Amaechi may have an opportunity to take a second look at the incident.
However, Amaechi’s detractors insist that he should not have been made minister at all. The Rivers State chapter of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) says Amaechi’s as the minister of transportation will not make any meaningful impact to the Rivers people because he is an alleged misfit.
Felix Obuah, the state PDP chairman, said this through a statement by his special adviser on media and publicity, Jerry Needam, while reacting to the official swearing in of the new ministers.
According to the PDP boss, a ministerial slot for Rivers State given to Amaechi was a loss to the state because he (Amaechi) is at war with the state and did not believe in the development vision of the state governor, Nyesom Wike. Wike had said earlier in the nomination that he had no interest in Amaechi becoming a minister because he had once been a minister. Events however pointed to the contrary.
Now, the PDP says Amaechi’s appointment has put a question mark on the Buhari’s war against corruption and has given Nigerians a clear picture that Buhari’s war against corruption is targeted at perceived political enemies and opponents.
Instead, the PDP says: “Rivers State has an appreciable number of qualified, prudent and humble sons and daughters with burning desire to move the state forward and help promote the existing peace and love among the people, which Governor Wike has graciously put in place in only five months in office.
“We’ll therefore be happy to have the Federal Government or any other agency that means well for the state to always pick from this pool of resourceful and more enterprising human capital other than those with penchant for misleading, mishandling and mismanaging the scare resources of the state as exemplified by the Amaechi administration.”
