By Kolawole Ojebisi
The Rivers State Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Tony Okocha, has stated that the suspended Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, will only be forgiven if he initiates genuine reconciliation with lawmakers in the State Assembly.
Okocha maintained that joining the All Progressives Congress (APC) through the window, instead of through the door, will not wash away the embattled governor’s sin.
Okocha stated this on Tuesday while addressing newsmen at the APC National Secretariat in Abuja.
He further emphasized that despite the presidential directive, the suspended governor has not reached out to the aggrieved party in the state, stressing that “no reconciliatory move is ongoing in the state.”
Asked if the governor will be forgiven if he defects to APC, Okocha said, “If Fubara decides to join APC today, his sins cannot be forgiven because his suspension has nothing to do with politics.
“You will jump into the APC today, and your sins are forgiven. That can’t be true. It won’t work that way. Then, it would have made the APC a dumping ground for people who commit misdemeanours and believe that by and large, we will come for reconciliation. No.”
On the presidential directive on reconciliation, Okocha said: “I can confirm that there is no reconciliation effort currently underway in Rivers. The suspended Governor Fubara has not made any move to reconcile with the lawmakers. Only genuine reconciliation can save him from impeachment, as the Supreme Court judgment stands.
“There is no reconciliation ongoing, not to my knowledge, I should know because I am the Chairman of the Rivers APC. I have spoken with all the strata of the society in the state, but none has agreed that the bygone should be bygone”.
He continued: “APC is not a dumping ground. He must follow the procedures before he can be admitted. He can not come through the window. He must come through the door. He has to join from his ward”.
