James Onanefe Ibori, former governor of Delta state, says Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, ex-governor of Bayelsa state, who died on Saturday, built just one house and was never corrupt.
Many allegations of corruption were levelled against the deceased.
In September 2005, the UK’s metropolitan police detained Alamieyeseigha after finding about £1 million cash on him, and another £1.8 million in cash and accounts.
He was subsequently charged with money laundering but he jumped bail and returned to the country.
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However Ibori, who is serving jail sentence in the United Kingdom, after being convicted for corruption and money laundering, said his former colleague was a “victim of virulent politics”.
“Alamieyeseigha became the victim of great hypocrisy masquerading as nationalism and anti-corruption fight,” Ibori said in a statement signed on his behalf by Tony Eluemunor, his spokesman.
“Alamieyeseigha was lied against, as heaps upon heaps of untruths were piled on him, and national hysteria replaced public discourse whenever the subject was Alamieyeseigha.
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“He was plotted against by those who swore they were fighting on the side of good even though they had taken high seats in the devil’s court.
“How many people would believe that Alamieyeseigha had only one house? And that is in his village, Amassoma! One day, no matter how long the delay, Alamieyeseigha’s real story would be told, the truth about him would be unearthed and the world would know the kind of virulent politics he was victim of.”
Ibori showered encomiums on Alamieyeseigha, recalling his agitation for resource control and fiscal federalism.
“We were not just colleagues in the governors forum from 1999, in the man I found a boundless and dependable warrior in the battle for the cause of the Niger Delta. He was fearless, forthright, outspoken and dedicated his life to the causes he believed would benefit his people,” Ibori said.
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“In fact, he was consumed by the cause of the Ijaw people, the degradation of their environment and collective psyche. He was in a hurry to see that the injustice under which they laboured be redressed; and he was ready to bear any pain, pay any price, to see that their day of liberation arrived fast.”
“Rest in peace great Ijaw leader. Rest in peace, the Governor General of the Ijaw nation. May God grant your family and the Ijaw people the grace to bear this monumental loss.”
Alamieyesiegha died from cardiac arrest induced by high blood pressure and diabetes on Saturday after falling into a coma and was rushed to the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital, where he was reportedly placed on a life support machine.
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17 comments
Ibori’s comments sounds like a comic relief. Coming from a man of his current status gives as much credibility to his assertion as the fact that my grandmother is a virgin too. Having one house and billions of looted other assets shows how saintly the late Alamieyeseigha was. A pity not one kobo will go with him to heaven. Now he would wish he could have used his time and opportunity to help his people while on earth. A lesson for others I must say, unfortunately people here are too dumb to learn from this kind of situation. Expect more to end miserably as looters and unsong. I am still waiting for my Nigerian hero as Alamieyeseigha answers to his creator.
that is showing us how very proud and BOLD corruption has become in naija ………….
How on earth Ibori could make this assertion befuddles me. Our culture precludes one from speaking ill of the dead suffice to state that there’s a plethora of facts to support the findings and conviction of the deceased for fraud, corruption and criminal neglect. Facts are sacred!!
What do you expect? Ibori too was hounded into London prison, via Dubai. He built no house and was never corrupt.
This is the beauty of democracy and freedom of speech in a country where even convicts are given space to live in self delusion. Ibori is truly shameless and is free to continue to assault our sensibilities even from a prison situated in a developed country. He must be retried properly in Nigeria and jailed here to serve in our prison as his type left it. He will never get away with his loots within Nigeria otherwise our government will be paying lip service to security in Niger Delta and indeed the entire country with thieves like Ibori empowered with stolen wealth.
Wonders as they say shall never end, ok I believe Ibori, but let him pls clarify the huge cash Alams was caught with and the lump sum in his account in UK as I cannot reconcile his statement with the situation at hand as at then. When thief defend thief what do you expect? Shameless fools. I only like Ibori not bcos he’s a thief but bcos he invested in Nigeria with his loots.
yeah,alams’ houses seized in london were mine …………….the million and million eight hundred thousand pounds were from very hard work ……………. waiting for his real story from you ……………..by the way,why are you in prison in the u.k.? false accusation? noooooo ……………………
Birds of the same feathers, the cartel of twisted religion and saints of corruption. The hallelujah of Nigerian judgement seat. Enter into your kingdom where the poor have no say, and the press men are muzzled.
As par Ibori standard, Alam was never corrupt. I concur! After-all, how much did Alam stole compared to the mind-blowing amount, that will make even the devil weep, that Ibori looted. There is actually levels among thieves.
I quite understand! Speak well of the dead. Ibori, you’re too much a thief to speak
YES ! YOU ARE RIGHT JAMES IBORI. COMPARED TO HOW MUCH YOU STOLE THAT LANDED YOU IN THE RIGHT PLACE THAT YOU BELONG, ALAMS IS A SAINT. WHO ASKED FOR JAMES’ OPINION ? YOU HAVE NOT EVEN GRADUATED TO AN EX-CONVICT YET LIKE ALAMS AND YOU ARE STILL TALKING RUBBISH. SHAME !
Ibori should tell that to the marines! if Alams wasn’t corrupt and had only one house in the village, how about the one million pounds CASH found on him ? is that not madness ? and the other 1.8 million pounds ? possibly on the scale of the corruption Ibori and the governors were involved in, 2.8 million pounds is “chicken change’. If that be the case, I truly agree with Ibori. birds of the same feather.
The governor-general was never corrupt indeed. When the truth comes out, Nigerians would find out that the money found on him and in his house were for Ibori and they planned to give it as dash to Tony Blair and Gordon Brown to support the resource control. Tony Eluomunor, this is a self message, it could never be the mind of Ibori. It is a shame that a so-called journalist could package this together for his boss. It is a great insult to the Ijaw GG himself and must bee squirming in Hades now. How can you say a whole Alams was not corrupt when in actual fact he wasbsleeping and waking with sleaze.
“He was moved to UPTH from his house in Port Harcourt on Wednesday. He died this afternoon around 4pm. They said his death was as a result of cardiac arrest.”
If the above statement is true from breaking news of his death in the news media Saturday evening, how come James Ibori is claiming that he had only one house built in his village? Please Mr. Ibori, enjoy your time out there in UK prison and don’t make any attempt to re-write history by painting a “saintly” picture of Mr. Alams who died due to the phobia of being repatriated back to the UK to face charges bothering on money laundry and corruption.
What are they feeding Ibori in prison? Ebola virus? This one he is talking virulent all over the place. Compared to Ibori, Alams was definitely a saint. Viewed from the googles of an unrepentant criminal in prison, definitely the man who suffered cardiac arrest instead of facing justice in a foreign land is a saint. The only problem is that we are not all prisoners or corrupt .
Selective justice is worse than injustice. OBJ said he was fighting corruption. Good! Why then did Peter Odili and Gbenga Daniel escape any prosecution while Alams paid the high price for it simply because he opposed third term and supported Atiku. So, in the end, OBJ set in motion the forces that eventually led to the death of Alams. Ironically, even the same OBJ is deeply corrupt especially with the funds for the power sector. So who really is fooling who? Also, no governor in the North has ever been convicted of corruption. Yes, not even Nyako or Sule Lamido, are we saying they are all clean?
Yes ke – built one, bought several!