The Rivers State Gov­ernment has raised the alarm over al­leged fresh plot to throw the state into avoid­able crisis.
Making reference to some media reports in a statement yesterday, the government al­leged that the new Commis­sioner of Police, Dan Bature, had been directed by the Presi­dency to install a certain Peo­ples Democratic Party (PDP) gubernatorial aspirant as gov­ernor in the 2015 elections.
He stated that two national newspapers (Daily Sun not in­cluded) revealed that the new police boss had been instructed by the Presidency to use the former police commissioner, Joseph Mbu’s ‘draconian style and tactics’ in causing crisis in the state.
Under the alleged plot, the police would “tackle Governor Chibuike Amaechi, his sup­porters and Rivers people and then install the preferred candi­date as governor.”
It quoted one of the news­papers as fingering the Presi­dency in Bature’s deployment to Rivers State for the purpose of executing the ‘toxic script’.
The statement issued by the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, David Iyofor, read in part: “While it is easy for a few in the Presidency to dismiss these reports, we in Rivers State, with the benefit of hind­sight and our collective recent bitter experience in the hands of former Police Commis­sioner Joseph Mbu, who was also reported to have a similar mandate, cannot.
“Therefore, we would want to state that the people of Riv­ers State will strongly and bravely resist any attempt by anyone or institutions, includ­ing the Presidency, to unconsti­tutionally install the preferred PDP aspirant as governor of the state, now or in the 2015 election.
“There is no provision in the Nigerian constitution and laws for the ‘installation’ of a pre­ferred aspirant as governor of a state by the Presidency. What our laws prescribe is a free and fair election that must be devoid of police and security forces coercion, harassment and intimidation of voters.
“Rivers voters must be al­lowed to and will freely choose and elect their governor in the 2015 elections. It is their in­alienable democratic right that they will not and will never surrender to anyone or institu­tion.

Amaechi raises alarm over alleged Presidency directive to install PDP gov in Rivers