In a video posted on Symfoni TV, the spokesperson, simplified Rivers Elders Forum, Prof Atuboyedia Obianime recounted the events of a political crisis in Rivers State that occurred a year ago, during which 27 lawmakers attempted to impeach the sitting governor.
Despite the failure of this attempted coup, the lawmakers proceeded to leave the ruling party and, in some cases, publicly insulted the governor.
Obianime noted that these actions threatened to plunge the state into anarchy, but the situation was ultimately defused through the intervention of the President, who proposed a 10-point agenda.
While this agenda was met with apprehension by some Elders, it ultimately played a role in restoring peace and stability to the region.
According to Atuboyedia Obianime, "One year ago, a group of 27 lawmakers decided to engage themselves in a political coup to impeach a sitting governor, our governor, the River State governor. The coup failed. After the coup had failed, the president intervened. But even before the president would intervene, these same lawmakers had decided that they would decamp from the party and the vehicle that brought them to power.
Some local governments even took it upon themselves to become cowboys who would address the press and insult the person and the office of the governor. What they wanted was to push us and deliver us to a state of anarchy. But God forbid, it did not happen. After the president's intervention with a 10-point agenda, to be honest with all of us, some of us as Elders were not comfortable with the 10-point agenda. We had fears."