…says he’s two wins ahead of Rivers gov, more will come

•FCT Minister will make 2027 hard for Tinubu in Niger Delta – PANDEF Youth Wing

Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Nyesom Wike, on Saturday, said he would not stop the Martins Amaewhule-led Rivers State House of Assembly from performing its constitutional obligations.

The former Rivers State governor, who accused Secretary to the Rivers State Government, SSG, Dr Tammy Danagogo, of inciting the ongoing political crisis in the state, told Governor Siminalayi Fubara that he was two wins ahead of him and said more wins would come his way.

This was just as the youth wing of the apex socio-political organisation in the South-South geo-political zone, Pan-Niger Delta Forum, PANDEF, gave a 48-hour ultimatum to Wike to retract his disparaging remarks about the Ijaw nation.

However, the Minister clarified his statements about the Ijaw, arguing that he was quoted out of context.

Wike spoke at a Thanksgiving and Civic Reception organised by a political movement named after his initials, NEW Associates, in Abalama Town, Kalabari Kingdom, Rivers State.

Before the event, Kalabari women protested and barricaded the road leading into the kingdom, just as they insisted that the Minister would not be permitted in over a comment that they were a minority in the state.

It was gathered that while the women, adorned in black attires and white lace strapped round their heads, stormed the area as early as 7 am, the King of Abalama Kingdom, His Royal Highness, King Big Tom-Tom, also urged the Associates to cancel the ceremony.

Ijaw

Meanwhile, Wike mocked those who said he would be unable to make it to the event and thanked the community for receiving him.

His words: “I heard some people argued that I won’t be here today. Who are they and how many are they? What you have done today is to tell the world that all this noise over the radio is not the real thing. If you are of the Kalabari and Ijaw nations and you are receiving me today, God will continue to bless you. I will continue to support you. “What I said during my interview is being misinterpreted, but that is their business. I want to repeat what I said, which is that we are all working together. If we didn’t work together, it would have been difficult to produce the governor. That was what I said. At the time we were deciding who would be the governor; Chief Alabraba did not allow me to rest. He nearly fainted.

“When we met that day (prior to choosing a candidate), he, OCJ Okocha and Sergeant Awuse and this boy, Celestine Omehia, were the primary reason this governor said he was not going to run (vie for the governorship) that my Commissioner for Finance, Isaac Kamalu should. Celestine Omehia said it should be Isaac Kamalu because this governor cannot effectively carry out the functions of a governor.

“OCJ Okocha and Chief Awuse said live and let live, let us not do something that people would accuse us of one-sideness. What I mean is that it was not because of the strength or the power of Ijaw, it was because we worked together. Nobody should associate anything evil to Ijaw. Ijaw people are not evil people. However, you cannot keep threatening to blow pipeline over little things. No. Engage people intellectually and diplomatically and you will get what you want. In the world we are in today, we have passed the stage of threatening people.

Members of the House’s salary

“They told you (Fubara) to seize Assembly members’ salaries and allowances for more than one year. They had no income to feed their families and pay their children school fees, yet you were jubilating and people encouraged you to continue that nothing would happen. Now, something has happened. I am not going to stop the Assembly from performing their constitutional duties. The Assembly should be allowed to perform their duties. People who love peace don’t threaten people.

“I told you that the House of Assembly will not lose their seats. I told you that the shenanigans of local government would not stand. I don’t need to be a governor. I know that what is illegal is illegal. We fought it constitutionally by following due process. What did we do wrong?

“We said all these chairmen and Assembly members suffered for you to become governor. Therefore, don’t abandon them. But they said I was asking for money. Has the money come? Those you are sharing the money, how far? I want you to remember yesterday. A man (possibly referring to himself) is bad, a man is crook and a man is a criminal, but it was that same man that made you against all odds. If I hated the Ijaw, I wouldn’t have done that and nothing would have happened. I followed my principle of live and let us live.

“If you watch you will find out that all those around the governor are natural ingrates. Nobody who is not an ingrate will associate themselves with what is going on. I told the governor to eat what God has given to him peacefully because it won’t be good for him to face this crisis. But they told him, you are governor you have money. I agree. But, money is not everything. All these people have nothing to offer. Can you see where we are? How far?

Origin of the problem

“Who started this problem? Danagogo used his elder brother, who is a judge. They sat down under ex parte order saying 27 members had defected; ex parte not on notice. SSG lured his brother, a judge, to give an ex parte order that the government can present budget to three or four people. Danagogo is the Secretary. The judge who gave the order is Danagogo. Look at how people can destroy a state.

“That is the genesis of this entire crisis. How will a judge sit down under ex parte order saying that people had defected and you can present budget to three people? This is Danagogo who wanted to be governor. He was so pained that he was not given. He is the one leading you and he will lead you to hellfire. You surround yourself with people who wanted to be governor; who I stopped because they don’t mean well for Rivers State. They are the ones surrounding you giving you advice.

Two wins ahead

Why do you think you will succeed? They will give you bad advice and see what the bad advice is doing to you. This is 2:0 and more will come. I haven’t seen this kind of politics where you surround yourself with those who want your seat. Will it work? They come, they abuse me and you are happy. You don’t know they are destroying you.

“You can abuse me as much as you want. I have never bothered myself because abuse doesn’t kill anybody. What is important is the result. Who now has high blood pressure? They are the ones. This was what I was avoiding. Mr President invited all of us for peace and after that day; we, the leaders sat and told the Assembly to go back and withdraw that impeachment notice since the president had intervened for peace.

Instead of them to do their own part, they instigated many court actions and used them as an excuse.

“When they won in the Court of Appeal, they held a thanksgiving. Today, we won and they said we should not do thanksgiving. Are they being fair? The judgement day has come. OCJ Okocha said Judgement Day would come and it has come. When the president intervened, people like Sarah Igbeh went to court challenging Mr President that he had no power in such matters. I was told Sarah Igbeh was in the Villa for the president to intervene; you that went to court against the President you are now going back to the President. You must be consistent. Politics comes with good and bad. When the good comes, you take it; when the bad comes, you face it. We cannot be pushed out after all our efforts and sweats. All of you suffered. All those who said they would not serve a master and his son are the ones waiting on the road opening doors for the son. People have no conscience at all. Those who wrote petitions to the Economic and Financial Crimes commission, EFCC, against this governor for him not to be governor are the ones saying they would decide. Decide for whom? Us? They are not yet born. I have defeated them before and I have continued to defeat them.”

2027

In a related development, the youth wing of PANDEF warned that Wike’s remarks about the Ijaw might have a negative effect on President Bola Tinubu’s political support in the Niger Delta.

Last Tuesday, the FCT Minister, during a media chat, said PANDEF was an unreliable organisation and described its Board of Trustee members as “political merchants.”

Addressing newsmen in Abuja, yesterday, the group’s President, Doben Donyegha, said it was embarrassing that Wike insulted the legacy of its founder, late Chief Edwin Clark, even before his burial. He said: “if he fails to apologise within 48 hours, we will take necessary actions. The Niger Delta and the entire South-South region stand united against his recklessness. It is painful to us that Wike would show such utter disrespect to our late leader, Chief Edwin Clark, even before he is buried.”

The group also recalled that as governor, Wike had a history of making disparaging remarks, citing an incident where he gathered respected traditional rulers and insulted them, telling one of them that he looked like Uthman Dan Fodio.

He said: “We have no confidence in Wike. We are calling on President Tinubu to withdraw him as a minister and subject him to the investigation of the Code of Conduct Bureau for breaching various infractions in office. Our leaders recently visited President Tinubu to promote peace in Rivers State, particularly to support Fubara, who is doing commendable work. Instead of supporting this effort, the FCT Minister insulted our respected elders, falsely claiming they were seeking financial gain.

“This level of disrespect is unacceptable, and as Niger Delta youths, we will not tolerate it.”

Sunday Vanguard