Chieftain of the African Democratic Congress (ADC),Chief Eze Chukwuemeka Eze has dismissed the assertion by former federal lawmaker, Elder Chidi Wihioka that Rt. Hon. Rotimi Amaechi would be “caged” in 2027.
Eze came up with this In a statement in reaction to Wihioka’s boast that Amaechi would be “caged” ahead of the 2027 general elections as well as his reported claim that he possesses documents relating to the “balkanisation of Ikwerre” which, according to him, would prove that Amaechi is not an Ikwerre man.
He described the statement as an expression of the mentality that regards politics as a contest of domination rather than a democratic process.
His words; “Amaechi cannot be caged. The people cannot be caged. Democracy cannot be caged.
“What can be caged in 2027 is the arrogance of those who have convinced themselves that Rivers State and its people are their political property.
“Who gave Chidi Wihioka the authority to distribute the votes of Ikwerre people? Is Ikwerre now a political estate owned by Nyesom Wike? Are the sons and daughters of Ikwerre now political subjects who must receive instructions on whom to vote for?
“Let it be clearly understood: Ikwerre people own their votes. Not Wike. Not Wihioka. Not Amaechi. Not any political godfather.”
Eze further said Wihioka’s claim that Amaechi would be forced to announce a boycott and subsequently be escorted to the airport was equally laughable.
“Amaechi does not need Chidi Wihioka’s permission to contest an election, nor does he need Wihioka to determine his political future.
“The man who rose from the political landscape of Rivers State to become Governor of Rivers State, Minister of Transportation and a major national political figure cannot suddenly become politically irrelevant because one former lawmaker has discovered the vocabulary of ‘caging’.”
The ADC chieftain challenged Wihioka to explain his own political journey and the opportunities he allegedly enjoyed during Amaechi’s years of influence, including allegations concerning accommodation, a vehicle and contracts.
“If these allegations are false, let Chidi Wihioka publicly deny them with facts.
“And if they are true, then the people are entitled to ask a simple question: what has changed?
“Why has yesterday’s political relationship suddenly become today’s historical prosecution of Amaechi’s ancestry?
“This is precisely why the people must be wary of politicians who attempt to rewrite history whenever political circumstances change”, he stated.
Furthermore, Eze said Wihioka should also understand that Ikwerre identity cannot be determined by political loyalty.
“Being Ikwerre is not a political appointment. It is not conferred by Wike, Wihioka or any political faction. It is not lost because a man chooses to support a different political platform.
“If Wihioka believes otherwise, then he should bring forward his evidence, identify the historical authorities upon which he relies and allow the matter to be properly interrogated rather than using inflammatory statements to create confusion among our people.”
He maintained that the emerging political contest in Rivers State would ultimately be determined by the people and not by political godfathers.
“Let them continue to distribute Ikwerre votes from their sitting rooms. Let them continue to declare who is an Ikwerre son and who is not. Let them continue to threaten opponents with imaginary cages.
“But when the people enter the polling booths, none of these politicians will be there to control the finger of the voter.
“Wike will not be there. Wihioka will not be there. Amaechi will not be there. The voter alone will decide.
“That is why their political mathematics will ultimately collapse if it is not supported by the genuine consent of the people.”
Eze urged Wihioka to release the documents he claims to possess instead of using them as a political threat.
“If Chidi Wihioka has the document, let him publish it. We are waiting.
“Let him tell Rivers people precisely what the document says, who authored it, when it was made, the historical sources upon which it relies and how it arrives at the extraordinary conclusion he is now advertising.
“Until then, his claim remains nothing more than a political allegation designed to serve a temporary political purpose.”
He stated that the 2027 elections would expose the difference between genuine grassroots acceptance and political intimidation.
“Rivers State is not anybody’s political plantation. Ikwerre is not anybody’s political estate. The people are not anybody’s property.
“2027 will be a referendum on the politics of intimidation, entitlement, manipulation and godfatherism.
“Chidi Wihioka may boast today that Amaechi will be caged and may threaten tomorrow to produce documents questioning his Ikwerre identity.
“But the people of Rivers State will have the final word.
“And when history is eventually written, it may not be Amaechi who is remembered as having been caged. It may well be the politics of arrogance, ingratitude, ethnic manipulation and political desperation that walks into the cage of its own making.”
Eze appealed to Wike to come to the aid of Wihioka before hunger turns him into a lunatic and idiotic imbecile.
While describing the outburst by the former, claiming that Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi is not an Ikwerre son, as a desperate attempt at political revisionism, sign of insanity, historical manipulation and ethnic blackmail, Eze urged Traditional Rulers of the Ikwerre Nationality not only to sanction Wihioka but disown him accordingly.
” This sad outburst by a man that hunger has turned to stupidity has unknowingly insulted the entire Ikwerre Nationality and Rivers State as a whole. I expect the Traditional Rulers of the Ikwerre Nationality not only to sanction this mentally deranged fellow but disown him accordingly
He challenged Wihioka to stop making sensational declarations and produce the documents publicly, insisting that ancestry, identity and historical belonging are not matters to be settled through political threats, press interviews or convenient interpretations of history.
“If Elder Chidi Wihioka genuinely possesses documents capable of disproving Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi’s Ikwerre ancestry, let him publish them and subject them to independent historical scrutiny.
“Enough of political theatrics. Let the documents speak. Let historians, traditional institutions and the people examine them. But he should not imagine that an unsupported political assertion suddenly becomes historical fact merely because it is repeated before journalists.
“Indeed, if Wihioka has such documents, why the threats? Why the suspense? Why not simply release them and allow the facts to speak for themselves?”
According to Eze, Wihioka’s claim is particularly curious coming from a man who, by his own political history, has had extensive interactions with Amaechi and the political establishment in Rivers State.
Eze described Wihioka’s assertion as a man who is suffering from acute hunger and looking for how Wike can come to his aid and not that he is serious with any of his utterances as he is incapable of producing any document to support his boast.
Eze also described Wihioka’s assertion as a total insult not only to the entire Ikwerre Nationality but Rivers State as a whole.
” Based on this, I expect the Traditional Rulers from the Nkwerre Nationality either to call this man to order or sanction him accordingly.
“Though Wihioka’s is a notorious imbecile and coward who is incapable of walking his threat as his claim that Amaechi is his son and if that is the case it means that Wihioka himself is not a genuine born of Ikwerre Nationality. This will prove that the man needs a medical help as soon as possible which if not done he may become a public nuisance
He said the attempt by Wihioka to suddenly question Amaechi’s Ikwerre identity because of contemporary political disagreements amounts to political desperation of the highest order and an obvious effort to draw the attention of the FCT Minister to sort his hunger.
“Identity should not become a political weapon that one deploys only when it is convenient. You cannot recognise a man as a son, associate with him politically and benefit from the political environment around him, only to begin questioning his ancestry when political interests change.
“History is not a political garment that can be worn today and discarded tomorrow”, he noted.
