The Minister of Transportation and Leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State, Rotimi Amaechi has disowned Senator Magnus Abe.
Amaechi also said Abe’s actions are targeted at weakening and destroying the party.
Amaechi in a statement in Abuja on Sunday by his media office, said Abe cannot refer to him (Amaechi) as a leader when he publicly insults him, his wife and others.
The Senator representing Rivers South-East in the National Assembly had last week, at the APC National Secretariat in Abuja, told reporters that Amaechi is his Leader.
He said: “Amaechi is my Leader. He is not contesting the elections. If he were contesting, I won’t contest against him. The battle for the party ticket is between me and anyone who felt he has something better to offer than me and not with the Minister.
“I want direct primary but he prefers indirect. If the primaries are conducted today in a free, fair and transparent manner and members of the party felt that I should not represent them, I will accept it in good faith and support the party”.
Reacting to the statement credited to Abe, the Minister at the weekend said Abe should stop deceiving the public by saying ‘Amaechi is my Leader’.
According to the statement: “I am not Magnus Abe’s leader. Abe has long left me and the political family that is largely responsible for his rise and fame in politics.
“How can I be Abe’s leader when he and the minions sponsored by him (Abe), privately and publicly abuses, insults, cast aspersions on me, my wife and members of my family, daily? Is that how a follower treats his Leader?
“It’s cheap and indeed shameful political sophistry for Abe to stand in the APC secretariat and deceitfully say I am his Leader, while all he has done, both privately and publicly in recent times is to undermine me, the APC and desecrate the APC in Rivers State.
“As a matter of fact, it is indeed very doubtful if Senator Abe is still in the APC. He mouths APC but his actions belie his words and clearly tell a different story.
“A man who wakes up, create an imaginary parallel party executive and went ahead to open an office for the non-existent parallel executive, that has no base and foundation, cannot be said to be committed, in anyway, to the party. As a matter of fact, his actions are obviously targeted at weakening and destroying the party.
“Such a hypocritical, devious character cannot be my follower. I am not his Leader,” he stated.