By Efegadririm MADUABUACHI
The spat  between Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike and  Mr. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, the Minister of Transportation does not appear about to end soon.

 And as the two political actors war, the oil-rich State suffers  - as violent killings, including military invasion on February 22 and 23, maiming and burning down of properties pushes the State to the brink.

 According to Governor Nyesom Wike,  on Saturday in Ahoada West, the Minister of Transportation, Mr Rotimi Amaechi is becoming  “shameless and irresponsible"
This was his reaction to  remarks Amaechi made  in a television programme on Africa Independent Television (AIT) in Abuja, and on Rhythm 93.7 FM in Port Harcourt, accussing the State Government and the Rivers State Police Command of abetting and supporting criminals, and  for the recent killings in some areas in Rivers State.

  Wike alleged that throughout Amaechi's interviews, he appeared mostly confused and inebriated, and “provided no shred of evidence to support his bizarre allegations.”

 The State Government further followed up with a statement explaining that  “Governor Wike has given unprecedented financial and logistical support to the Police and other security agencies in the state since he assumed office eight months ago.”

 It said within two months in office, Governor Wike released over 60 security-fitted vehicles to the Police in the state.  He also released over 30 vehicles to the Joint Security forces.

 The state government said, “investigations by the Rivers State Police command have shown again and again, that the killings witnessed in some areas of the state were the result of retributive attacks launched by rival cult gangs battling for supremacy. And in each case, the Rivers State Police Command working with the State Government, has made arrests, and obtained vital intelligence from gang leaders in custody. There is a prosecutorial process already underway for those implicated in these criminal activities.”

 The government statement gave examples: “Mr. Anthony Ugoh has been arrested, and is in Police custody for the killing of MR Frank Obi and two others in Omoku, Rivers State; Mr Ndubuisi Tochi is in custody for the killing of Injite Amachree in Buguma; Mr. Luke Okimebi is in custody for the killing of Godstime Iforuiyala in Buguma. This is only a short list out of many other culprits awaiting prosecution for their crimes in the state,” the government said.

 Meanwhile,  Wike maintains that Amaechi’s open invitation to the military to invade homes and communities in Rivers State therefore has nothing to do with crime and criminality in the state, but “a devilish ploy by the All Progressives Congress (APC) to attempt to use the military to rig the forthcoming legislative polls in favour of the party. But the military recognize that their role is to protect democracy, not to undermine it.”

 He made strident calls for intervention: “We call on President Mohammadu Buhari to call Mr Rotimi Amaechi to order, because he seems desperate to plunge Rivers State into anarchy.

 “We call on the people of Rivers State to be vigilant and to stoutly resist any attempt by Rotimi Amaechi and the APC to rig the legislative polls on the 19th of March 2016.”

 The Rivers challenged the immediate past governor, Amaechi to have used the opportunity of the live interviews to give account of his administration, which he described as disastrous and visionless.

 Wike accused Amaechi of squandering N3 trillion during his eight years administration, leaving the most abandoned projects in the history of Rivers State, since 1967.

 He also alleged that Amaechi awarded school contracts worth billions of Naira to his cronies without following due process; elevated the mismanagement of public funds as the directive policy of his government; ran a government mainly by fiction, using 3D images to create visual wonder, and to deceive the people, and above all, abandoned the Monorail project over which he allegedly spent N60 billion, which stands out in its mammoth ugliness along Azikiwe Road, Port Harcourt.

 “It is a headstone to the corruption and waste that characterized the Amaechi era,”  Wike alleged.

 He added that  since he assumed office eight months ago, he has de-politicised development and reconstructed roads and other projects abandoned by Amaechi. Over 100 kilometres of roads across the state, including roads in Borikiri and Origwe where Amaechi once lived, have been completely revamped.