Rivers: Odili Boys At War!

[Shola Sholaz]

The battle between Governor Chibuike Amaechi and his erstwhile Chief of Staff, who is now the Minister of State for Education, Mr. Nyesom Wike, over who controls Rivers State politics, has continued to assume different dimensions.  The two main actors in the battle were principal actors  during the time of former governor of the state, Dr Peter Odili.
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Amaechi was Special Adviser to Odili when the latter was deputy governor in the old Rivers State under the tenure of former Governor Rufus Ada George.
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When Odili emerged the governor of the present Rivers State, he sponsored Amaechi to the state House of Assembly where he rose to become two- time Speaker.  As Speaker, Amaechi was largely perceived as a stabilising factor for the Odili administration because there was hardly any friction between the House and the executive arm.
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On his part, Wike was a two-time Chairman of Obio Akpor local government area when Odili was governor.  He climbed to the position of National Chairman, Association of Local Governments of Nigeria, ALGON.