…dares him to publish NDDC audit report
The Rivers State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has lambasted the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, over recent allegations made against Dame Judith Amaechi, wife of former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi.
Wike, while speaking recently, claimed that Judith Amaechi allegedly received ₦48 billion from the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) for the training of women in the region.
He further alleged that the former Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, covered up the matter.
Reacting to the allegation, the APC Publicity Secretary in Rivers State, Darlington Nwauju, who is aligned with the Amaechi faction of the party, described Wike’s statement as a deliberate distraction from the numerous issues haunting his time in office.
He also accused the FCT Minister of a pattern of disrespect towards women and family values.
Nwauju challenged Wike to push for the public release of the NDDC forensic audit report, insisting that such a move would validate or invalidate the allegations.
“We empathise with Nigerians who have been entertained twice in 48 hours with a cocktail of lies, half-truths and the usual double speak, the latest being the declaration by FCT Minister Wike that he will resign his position if the report of the NDDC audit is released without an indictment on Dame Judith Amaechi, the wife of his former boss,” the statement read.
“This goes to tell so much of his personality traits. The shame of dragging other people’s wives into the political arena while clothing himself with a feeling of self-importance confirms the fact that Minister Wike has no respect for family values.
“This is symptomatic of his low esteem for womanhood and absolute disrespect for his own wife.”
He added, “We challenge Minister Wike to instigate the publication of the NDDC audit report for Nigerians to see and read for themselves.”
Nwauju further called on Wike to include in the publication “the list of awards and cash releases from the NDDC to your cronies and yourself while using your 27 Assembly members to prosecute a selfish political battle against the Government of Rivers State.”
He described the entire NDDC audit process as “a choreographed show targeted only at scaring away other Niger Delta stakeholders from the Commission while solely micromanaging it.”
“These are documents in the archives of both chambers of the National Assembly, with the public hearings held in June and July 2020,” he noted.
In a sarcastic swipe, Nwauju suggested that the national leadership of the APC should consider appointing Wike as the party’s spokesperson or even as Director-General of the 2027 presidential campaign, “as metrics to measure his popularity amongst Nigerians and confirm if he is a moral burden on APC Nigeria or not.”