There was furore in Rivers State on Monday following the alarm raised by the camp of Edison Ehie, the factional Speaker loyal to Governor Siminalayi Fubara that there was an assassination attempt on him
Ehie later confirmed the attack alleging that security operatives and thugs led by one SP Irefeike London and DSP Masarachi, tried to break into his house in Port Harcourt with the motive of killing him and members of his family.
The factional Speaker said he had become a target for attack for standing with Governor Fubara and fighting against anti-democratic forces.
Narrating the incident, he said: “Yesterday at about 11pm, I had closed the engagement, I moved upstairs and we had put the children to bed and I was interacting with my wife when we got alerted by the security attached to me that there was an attempted invasion by men in mofty and some in uniform.
“I quickly got up from the room and came downstairs, and not too long we started hearing the noise of the attempt by these security men in their Hilux vehicles to forcefully gain entrance into my residence but they were repelled by the security personnel.
“And to our greatest surprise, these security operatives led by one SP Irefeike London and DSP Masarachi ordered their men and they started shooting sporadically.
“In fact, you can confirm from the neighbours in this vicinity that nobody could sleep last night. But to the glory of God the security operative ably resisted them. And when my domestic staff went up and brought out his phone and started to shout that he was recording them they fled.
“Till now my family is in shock. My wife and my two little children are still in shock. It is so painful that people can go to that level. My children cannot go to school. They did not sleep last night because of the shock”.
Stating the motive for the attack, he said: “For whatsoever reason which of course we all know is connected to the political upheavals in the state they do not care about people’s family they now attack because obviously the plan was to forcefully enter into my residence, shoot and maybe kill everybody.
*But there is something about me which maybe their sponsor did not tell them. Everybody who knows me knows that I am dead to fear because I believe that the only thing you can kill is the flesh but you can not kill the spirit, nothing scares me.
“All these started after what happened on the 30th of October when some self-serving lawmakers, who are elected to represent their constituencies and ensure dividends of democracy, make laws including oversight functions, attempted in a Machievellian way impeach governor elected to represent millions of Rivers People. That is a joke taken too far, for goodness sake.
“And of course, the governor and chief security officer of the state getting wind of what happened at the Assembly complex went there to ascertain the level of damage and I went with him in his entourage and we all saw the humiliation by the police officers led by the DC Operations.
“We were teargassed in an attempt to intimidate us but we know that every man dies but once. And if it is the prize we have to pay for democracy then let us pay it for the price for the future of our children.
“And since after that day because we stood behind the governor to say evil cannot reign over good in Rivers State. I have come under attacks, threats, especially after I was elected Speaker of the 10th Rivers House of Assembly.
“I and my family have been under threats, false allegations have suddenly started springing up against me, and other of our supporters who are on the side and part if justice”.
Ehie said there was a plot to link him to insecurity in the state including the brutal killing of the Divisional Police Officer (DPO), SP Bako Angbasim, in charge of Ahoada-East, his local government areas.
But he said: “It is important to state that the kingdom and area where the killing of SP Bako Angbashim occurred is not my constituency. I do not represent that constituency.
“There is another assembly member representing that constituency and there is a local government chairman who receives security votes. So you see that they are just going in vein to see how to connect some of us to say why have we not made attempts to intervene in the insecurity there.
“But it is on records that I made one of the first press release, I wrote a passionate letter to the commissioner of police which was acknowledged and we copied other sister agencies.
“They are just labouring in vein moving towards the left and right. And I ask them how come suddenly you now want to heap a lot of allegations on some of us. This has happened months ago, police have investigated, extracted necessary information, concluded investigation even charged the suspects to court.
“And those charged to court have been remanded in prison custody subject to the matter. This is because of our support. We have got information that they are trying to plant arms and ammunition at my house in the village. This is how desperate they are.
“But if I am asked whether I will support the governor again, I will say yes 100 pee cent. Evil can never reign over justice. I stand with the Governor of Rivers State, sir. Siminalayi Fubara, who was voted in by Rivers people. No threat, nothing, no allegation now or in future will deter my position”.
But the Commissioner of Police, CP. Olatunji Disu, said preliminary investigations revealed that there was no assassination attempt on Ehie, whom he identified as the leader.
The CP said: “The preliminary investigations we have done so far, this morning, have not revealed any assassination attempt, all I knew was that Police officers were on patrol, convoy patrol, It’s a routine thing and then we have made frantic efforts to get across to the leader to give us any information he has, so that we can include it in what we already have. So far so good, nothing to worry about.
“My plead to him and every other person is, if there is any complain, my number is going to be made public, they should call me quickly and I will quickly look into it. For now, I haven’t gotten anything like that”.
