News: How Did I Betray You? Opara Replied.

But Hon. Austin Opara declined to keep mute as he fired back. He said Amaechi did not influence him to his former position.


Opara, while addressing newsmen in Abuja wondered how it was possible for Speaker of a State Assembly to influence anyone to be made Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives.

“How can Governor Amaechi make me the deputy speaker when he was not even a member of the National Assembly? The process of electing the presiding officers of the House of Representatives is well known. It is through election on the floor of the House.

“The Southeast representative was disqualified and we met a PDP panel presided over by the then national chairman of the party, Audu Ogbeh. Hon. West Idahosa and Hon. Temi Harriman said that that if not that it was Austin Opara that was contesting that they would have contested against me.

“I spoke to other governors of the south-south and sought their support. Amaechi was only one of those that spoke to Governor Peter Odili to support me. Even before that, I had spoken to other governors of the zone and appeared before the PDP panel in Hilton hotel.

“Since the office of the deputy speaker of the House of Representatives was zoned to the south-south, I spoke to all the governors from the zone and my state governor. How did Amaechi make me the deputy speaker.” the former deputy speaker said.
Opara equally denied that he betrayed Amaechi, saying, the governor was misplacing contest for betrayal.

“How did I betray him? I contested the governorship primary election against him and through the former governor, Dr. Peter Odili, I was asked to step down and I did. So does contesting the governorship primary election amount to betrayal, may be that is what he means by betrayal?

“Ordinarily, I would not have bothered to reply, but because he spoke at the altar and said that he made me and that I betrayed, hence, I am responding to put the records straight. It is unfortunate to see how a state assembly member can make a presiding officer of one of the arms of National Assembly.

“I was the only member of the PDP in Rivers state that was returned unopposed in the primary election in 1999 and also elected a member of the House of Representatives unopposed. We all know how Amaechi became a member of the Rivers state House of Assembly. He lost the election, lost at the tribunal and only won at the appellate arm. We all know what happened.” Opara said.

Source: Leadership