Senator Magnus Abe has descended heavily on Senator Andrew Uchendu, describing his former colleague as someone who cannot be trusted.
The vicious blow delivered by the former Senator who represented the Rivers South East Senatorial District comes in the wake of alleged efforts by Senator Uchendu to re-launch his political ambition to return to the Senate.
The Etche ethnic nation despite being part of the Rivers East Senatorial District has never had the opportunity of sitting in the red chamber.
Uchendu had asked Senator Abe to drop his ambition, saying he (Uchendu) would do same in order to quicken the pace of reconciliation within the APC.
It may have been a tongue-in-cheek-slap on the part of Uchendu, a move designed to humiliate the Ogoni-born politician and reduce his appeal for peace to nothing.
Abe who accused Uchendu of acting in bad faith recalled how Uchendu lied before Etche people over a commitment that he made.
Abe said Uchendu’s behaviour before the Etche nation when he was confronted with the promise he made was very distasteful and ungentlemanly.
He said Uchendu would definitely fail a fresh election even if he were to be given the opportunity by the party to run for the Senate again.
Uchendu had told the Etche people at Afara that he would do a tenure after admitting before them that the tenure actually belonged to them.
Reacting to Senator, Uchendu’s remarks in the media, Abe noted,
“I believe that any sensible politician who understands politics and can see where the APC in Rivers State is today after all the sacrifices that members have made over the years, would be very unhappy and I am very, very unhappy.
“We need peace in the party and if we can change our language and stop talking the way we do, do things differently, we can have different results.
“I have been circumspect about my choice of words when talking about Rotimi Amaechi and have said it over and over again that he is the leader of the party.
“As far as the party is concerned, we need to bring everybody together, even Senator Andrew Uchendu, if only he will behave like an elder. We cannot be chasing one another in the public. He was my colleague at the National Assembly.
“We sat together at the Senate and common decency demands that there are certain things we should not say about one another in the public. That decency he cannot respect.
“If we can change our behaviour, rearrange our ways, curtail the excesses of our supporters, the party will unite again as one indivisible group.
Responding to Uchendu’s offer that Senator Abe and himself should both renounce their ambitions for the sake of the party, Abe said: “I am ready to do whatever we need to do to bring the party together, but if the foundation of the peace is that Senator Abe should announce that he has no ambition, I will not make that announcement. In the same vein, I will not sit here to say whether I will contest or not, that question is for the future.”
Analysts seem to think that Uchendu succeeded in letting the cat out of the bag when it comes to his ambition.
Said one analyst, “Does Uchendu need Abe’s response to a rhetorical question posed by him to drop his ambition to oppress the Etche people? What is wrong with Uchendu setting a worthy example for Abe to emulate?
“Uchendu already knows what the answer to his question would be. He knows at best, he would never get a direct answer to his question.
“It is obvious that Uchendu is unwilling to give the Etche people a break. It is a matter of conscience, not just for Uchendu but for the party”