Admin l Thursday, July 12, 2018
PORT HARCOURT, Rivers, Nigeria – Niger Delta Volunteer Force(NDVF) and the Niger Delta Peoples Force(NPF) have condemned Rivers State Governor, Mr. Nyesom Wike for hobnobbing with anti-jonathan forces by extending invitations to them to commission projects in the state.
Wike had invited former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar and some governors, including former Governor of Jigawa State, Sule Lamido, and President of the Senate, Dr. Bukola Saraki to commission projects in the state.
But in a communique signed by Harry Lawson, Chairman, Niger Delta Freedom Volunteers Force and Preye Wilson, Chairman, Niger Delta People’s Force, the group identified former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar; Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki; Governor of Sokoto State, Aminu Tambuwal; Former Governor of Sokoto State as among top-flight politicians who conspired to dump the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, to deflate the electoral chances of Jonathan in winning a second term of four years in 2015.
The group saw the invitation of these Jonathan forces as needless waste of resources and that the governor must learn from the mistakes of the past.
They commended the governor for what he has done so far in developing the state, adding that
the recent approval of interest free loans for civil servants on grade levels 1 to 13 in the state and the approval of N200 million monthly grants to encourage traders and young entrepreneurs is the way to go.
The called on other governors in the South-South to emulate him.
See details of communique below
Communique by the Niger Delta Freedom Volunteers Force and the Niger Delta People’s Peace Force after a meeting in Port Harcourt, Rivers State on Saturday, July 9, 2018.
The Niger Delta Freedom Volunteers Force and the Niger Delta People’s Peace Force are youth based advocacy groups in the South South that monitors political and socio-economic activities within and outside the geo-political zone in a bid to call leaders and those in positions of trust to account and demand proper governance aimed at improving the living conditions of the people.
After reviewing some recent political activities in Rivers State and the South-South at its triennial meeting, the groups commended Governor Nyesom Wike on the numerous developmental and quality projects he has put in place in Rivers State within his first tenure in office.
We are however worried that wasting taxpayers’ money to invite high profile politicians and traditional rulers to commission projects in the state by the governor is not in the best interest of the state.
Former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar and some governors, including former Governor of Jigawa State, Sule Lamido, to mention a few, are prominent Nigerians that have been invited to the state to commission one project or the other.
It is our belief that the resources being used to cater for these prominent individuals would be enough to initiate, start and complete another project in the state.
What the governor is doing is a sad reminder that political leaders of the Niger Delta, nay the South South, are yet to learn from the mistakes of the past.
AdvertisementWe are all witnesses to how a Niger Delta son and immediate past president, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan was fought and removed from office by some powerful forces.
So, this gives us concern as to why Wike is presently hobnobbing with the likes of Atiku and Sule Lamido who fought Jonathan while he was in office.
Former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar; Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki; Governor of Sokoto State, Aminu Tambuwal; Former Governor of Sokoto State were among top-flight politicians who conspired to dump the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, to deflate the electoral chances of Jonathan in winning a second term of four years in 2015.
To shore up the dwindling electoral fortunes of the PDP prior to the 2015 general elections, Jonathan single-handedly selected Wike, against all protestations, as the governorship candidate of the PDP in Rivers State. Wike won.
Now, Wike is romancing with the same PDP bigwigs who conspired against Jonathan in 2014 by dumping the PDP for the APC, thereby, lubricating the political machinery that thwarted Jonathan’s second term bid.
This, Indeed, is not the right and proper way to reward Jonathan who facilitated his governorship ambition, including providing the required logistics to enabled him to win the governorship election in 2015.
By his position as former President of Nigeria, Jonathan is the leader of the South-South and should be accorded that respect at all times. What is wrong in inviting Jonathan to commission five or six projects in one day, rather than inviting personality ‘A’ to commission one project, today and invite personality ‘B’ to commission another project tomorrow?
We therefore call on well-meaning Rivers people, including royal fathers’ and other political leaders in the zone to advice governor Wike to stop expending tax payers’ money on frivolities. It is high time he (Wike) should make concerted efforts to address issues of unemployment for the teeming idle youths and. He should also be concerned with empowering the people of Rivers State.
The recent approval of interest free loans for civil servants on grade levels 1 to 13 in the state and the approval of N200 million monthly grants to encourage traders and young entrepreneurs is the way to go.
Apart from projects, exploring other areas of development especially for people in the rural areas as well welfare programmes such as free medicals for the aged and pregnant women should be looked into to put smiles on the faces of citizens like it is done in civilized climes.
We also call on other governors in the Niger Delta to emulate Wike in the area of delivering quality projects, but urged them not to make the same mistake Wike is making by inviting politically exposed persons and other VIPs outside the state to commission projects, because there are other ways to showcase ones’ achievements.
Signed,
Harry Lawson
Chairman, Niger Delta Freedom Volunteers ForcePreye Wilson, Chairman, Niger Delta People’s Force
