Transportation Minister Rotimi Amaechi, said yesterday that the Rivers State electorate will put an end to what he termed Governor Nyesom Wike’s poor performance, bad governance and misrule, during next year’s election.
Amaechi who is the leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state spoke at a grand reception for him and the Director- General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA),Dr.Dakuku Peterside, by the Free Rivers Development Initiative (FRDI) at Opobo, headquarters of Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Area of Rivers State.
Peterside hails from Opobo. Amaechi asked the people of Opobo to start mobilizing now with a view to ensuring that they produce the state’s next governor. “When we start (politics), we will compare my first tenure with Wike’s first tenure,” he said. “You must start mobilising now.
“You have not shown enough anger. You must show enough anger to chase him out of power. Show enough anger, such that if anybody warns you, you should chase the person out of Opobo.”
The minister who was apparently taken aback by alleged summoning of Opobo chiefs to Government House, Port Harcourt, midway into the reception said: “Correct Opobo/Nkoro LGA’s chiefs, some of them came (for the reception), but many of them have run away (to Government House, Port Harcourt).
“I then asked Ikwerre chiefs to join me to Opobo. One of them is Chief Chidi Lloyd (former Majority Leader of Rivers House of Assembly).
” When Ikwerre people wanted to produce governor (in 2007), they came together, were united and said they wanted governorship of Rivers State, not one of our (Ikwerre) chiefs escaped. If you (people of Opobo/Nkoro LGA) do not get governorship of Rivers State (in 2019), blame your chiefs.”
They have run away. “When things were extremely bad with me, Dr. Sam Sam Jaja (indigene of Opobo) was behind me. Not politics. He (Jaja) will agree that I introduced him to major politics. I was hungry, I had a wife and children, but no money to survive then as a young man, but Dr. Sam Sam Jaja stood firmly behind me, as things were very rough then”
” Ike Chinwo housed us and gave us food, before I met Dr. Peter Odili (former Rivers governor). Dr. Odili played important roles in my life.”
Also speaking, Peterside who was the governorship candidate of the party in Rivers during the 2015 election, said Wike is running a failed government. The government, he said, is also petty and has democratized stealing.
The NIMASA D-G described Amaechi as a visioner and a leader, who has done a lot for the people of Opobo/Nkoro LGA and other parts of Rivers State Peterside said:
“It is not always common to take up responsibility for other people’s challenges. Our leader (Amaechi), for a very long time, has taken up the challenge of the development of Opobo and Nkoro Kingdoms. Today, in Rivers State, the symbol of good governance is Rt. Hon. Amaechi. We must be grateful to him.
“Today in Rivers State, soot is killing our people. The current government (of Wike) represents the mass looting of our commonwealth. Our schools are shut down. Our pensioners are being owed and they are dying daily. Our people have no means of livelihood, that is why they are taking to illegal refining of crude oil. Rivers State secretariat is stinking.
“About three years ago, when Rt. Hon. Amaechi left office, the road to Opobo (Ogoni-Andoni-Opobo Unity Road), remained less than two kilometres to complete. Till today, Wike’s government has refused to complete the strategic road. Before Rt. Hon. Amaechi left government, it was estimated that N6 billion would be needed to complete the road, but when Wike took over, instead of paying the contractor the N6 billion, the contract was cancelled, re-awarded to themselves and they inflated the figure to N14 billion. They have democratised stealing in government.
“Rt. Hon. Amaechi believes that every Rivers person must be given an opportunity to participate in governance. He believes in equity, justice and fairness. Rt. Hon. Amaechi and his wife, Dame Judith, played great roles in my life.
“In the elections of 2015 and rerun of 2016, they (PDP members) rigged everywhere (in Rivers State), but they could not rig here (Opobo). APC has never lost any election on this soil (Opobo). We have not had a government with this type of terrible record. The government (of Wike) has failed in every respect. We know what the votes will do. The people of Opobo/Nkoro LGA will speak (during 2019 elections) and they will speak very loud.”
However,Wike, in his reaction, said he is a man of substance, with awards from all over the world. The Rivers governor, who spoke through Information and Communications Commissioner Emma Okah, alleged that Amaechi and Peterside had not attracted any development project to Rivers State, since their appointments
