Former Rivers State governor and current minister of Transport, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi has explained the purpose for
purchase of the two controversial helicopters sized by the Nigeria Customs Service.
In a statement signed by the media of office of the minister, the former governor narrated how he bought the helicopters with the help of the office of the National Security Adviser contributing $15 million dollars, only for the government of former president Goodluck Jonathan to block their delivery.
The statement alleged that the former President, with the help of the current governor of Rivers state, Nyesome Wike frustrated the delivery of the Helicopters for political reasons, with considering the security reasons for which they were purchased.
Part of the statement reads,“Our attention has been drawn to misrepresentations and innuendoes as it concerns the immediate past Governor of Rivers State and current minister of Transportation Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi in the purchase and importation of two helicopters into Nigeria that was supposedly abandoned at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos.
“To set the records straight, … when Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi took over as Governor of Rivers State, criminals masquerading as militants, kidnappers and all other criminal elements were on the prowl in Rivers State.
“With a strong political will to tackle these menace and make the State a safe place, Amaechi initiated a lot of measures to deal with the menace. Purchasing these helicopters was one of the measures the Amaechi administration took to curb the clandestine and criminal activities in the state.
“And the decision to go for these helicopters was based on the advice and recommendation of security experts and specialists that were working closely with our Nigerian security agents to rid the state of these criminals- kidnappers, pipeline vandals, vicious political cultists.
“Sequel to the recommendation of security experts, the Rivers State Government bought the two Bell 412 security surveillance helicopters during the administration of Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, in collaboration with the federal government through the office of the National Security Adviser(NSA).”
