Politics
Rivers PDP elders tackle Ada George over attack on Wike
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The Rivers State Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Elders Committee yesterday objected to the attack on the Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, by former Governor Rufus Ada-George.
In a letter of September 13 to President Bola Tinubu, the committee described Ada-George as a “meddlesome interloper” who does not speak for the people of the state.
Signatories to the letter included the Chairman of the Rivers Elders Forum, Chief Ferdinand Alabraba; Chief Emmanuel Anyanwu; former president of the Nigerian Bar Association, Chief O C J Okocha (SAN); Senator George Sekibo, former House of Representatives Deputy Speaker Chibudom Nwuche; Senator Olaka Nwogu, Chief Ken Chikere, Chief Frank Owhor, and Chief Kenneth Kobani.
Others were Ambassador Desmond Akawor, Chief Boma Iyaye Chief Felix Obuah, former Assembly speaker Ikunyi Owaji-Ibani, Prof Henry Ogiri, Chief Emmanuel Deeya, Dr Sampson Parker, Alabo Dakorinama George-Kelly, Chief Marcus Nle-Eji, Isobo Jack, Chief Igo Aguma, Rufus Godwins; Director-General of NOSDRA, Chukwuemeka Woke, and Chief Nyema Weli.
The elders also accused Ada-George of encouraging Governor Siminalayi Fubara to renege on the peace brokered between him and Wike by President Tinubu.
They said the letter written by the elder statesman and his group did not represent the interests of the people.
According to the elders, from all indications, the subject-matter of that open letter is the statement made by Chief Nyesom Wike, immediate past Governor of Rivers State and the current Minister of the FCT, at the recently successfully concluded Rivers PDP State Congress in Port Harcourt.
“The letter also included other matters totally irrelevant to the subject-matter but designed deliberately to attack the person of the Minister.
“Ordinarily, we would have completely ignored the publication for two reasons. First, the letter was written by an amorphous group falsely claiming to be speaking for Rivers people and secondly, the authors are mere meddlesome interlopers in a purely Rivers PDP affair.
“But for the benefit of the reading public, we deem it necessary to correct the various false claims, petty insinuations and outright misrepresentations contained in their letter.
“The Minister, speaking at the Rivers PDP State Congress held in Port Harcourt, informed delegates of attempts by some PDP Governors to interfere with Rivers politics and political crisis and went on to advise such governors to steer clear as anything contrary shall elicit a retaliatory response from him as he would also interfere in the politics of those states.”
Throwing its weight behind Wike, the elders said This metaphorical comment during the Rivers PDP congress did not imply that he would bring in arms and ammunition or bring in petrol to set fire in any state.
They added: “That was the statement made by the Minister and which Chief Rufus Ada George and his group took out of context, mischievously twisted and characterized as “an invocation of violence”.
“This is the latest act of grandstanding by Chief Rufus Ada George and his group pretending to support the Governor of Rivers State, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, while masking their real motive to escalate and prolong the political crisis in Rivers State for their selfish interests.
“We are not surprised at the antics of this same group who, on 26th December 2023, addressed that ill-conceived letter titled: “Peace in Galilee” to the governor of Rivers State, urging him to renege on his commitment to peace as enshrined in the peace plan brokered by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.”
The elders also accused Ada-George and his group of disdain for peace in the state by instituting lawsuits to stall the implementation of the President’s Peace Plan by Fubara.
They said the latest letter sent by the group to President Tinubu to malign Wike had exposed them as the people fuelling and setting “real fire into the crisis in Rivers State.”
The elders called for the interrogation of every member of the group by security agencies for the invocation of violence in Rivers State.
They added: “How else can one characterise such elders who are only out to escalate the crisis in the state even when the governor himself had committed to peace?
“ It is therefore, laughable that they have the impudence to send a letter of appeal to Mr President whose kind and fatherly intervention to resolve the Rivers crisis was rebuffed by them.
“Furthermore, the letter by the Chief Rufus Ada-George group is replete with several false and frivolous narratives, totally irrelevant to the subject-matter, all in an effort to tarnish the political standing and achievements of Chief Nyesom Wike.
“But they failed woefully in that regard and only succeeded in exposing themselves as truly envious of his unassailable political profile which is already in the public domain.”
Hailing Wike, the elders said he left an “indelible legacy of achievements unmatched by any former governor of Rivers State and this was openly attested to at several public fora by no less a personality than a former two-time Governor of Rivers State, His Excellency, Sir (Dr) Peter Odili CON, GSSRS.”
They stressed: “His Excellency, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, recognised Wike’s achievements, appointed him Minister of the FCT and Wike is currently replicating his excellent performance as Governor in the FCT.
“It was therefore, no surprise that Wike, who received the prestigious Presidential Award of Excellence on Infrastructural Delivery as Governor of Rivers State has again been honoured with that award as Minister of the FCT.
“We expected Chief Rufus Ada George and his elders to commend this proud son of Rivers State for that uncommon feat and stop frustrating themselves by writing frivolous letters against him.
The elders said the group, in pursuit of its “clannish agenda and leveraging on the political crisis in Rivers State, have made it its “pre-occupation to write open letters with Chief Nyesom Wike as target.”
They stressed: “These are people who did not supported Tinubu for President and not happy that Wike was invited to serve as Minister in the Tinubu administration and is doing very well.
“It is only fair to remind them that Wike is a visionary leader, highly detribalized, whose principled stance on zoning and power-sharing, not only at the national level but also in Rivers State, puts him way above their divisive ethnic sentiments. Wike handed over a peaceful state to his successor.”
According to them, Wike’s tenure as vovernor was not “only successful in delivering unparalleled dividends of democracy, but also positively changed the dynamics of inter-ethnic relationships through his strategic collaboration with the political leadership of the ethnic groups in the state.”
They added: “Whether Chief Rufus Ada George , Chief E K Clark and their elders like it or not, Wike still maintains a very huge and stable political following in Rivers State.”
The elders said the people have lost faith in Ada-George and his group, after Wike and Fubara failed to attend a reconciliation meeting organised by them.
They urged them to “reflect on that clear failing and play a more constructive role by placing the interest of the State above personal gains.”
They said: “It is now clear beyond doubt that the resentful attitude of the Chief Rufus Ada- George group towards the Tinubu presidency is the same, if not worse, than their attitude towards Wike’s ministerial status.
“They should have examined their conscience to know if they deserved to be heard by Mr President, having rejected his Peace Plan and continued to put fire into the political crisis in the state.”
The elders urged President Tinubu to disregard their letter in its entirety for lacking merit and reason.
They added: “For the Chief Rufus Ada-George group and the likes of Chief E.K Clark, we advise them to assume a more noble role as statesmen as every attempt at witch-hunting Chief Wike will remain a wild goose chase and refrain from further fuelling the crisis in Rivers State so that Governor Fubara, who they refused to support during the elections, can govern in an atmosphere of peace and tranquillity.”
The African Democratic Congress, ADC, presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has advised President Bola Bola Tinubu to emulate former presidents Goodluck Jonathan and Muhammadu Buhari, saying they never deregistered opposition political parties.
Atiku made the call on Saturday in reaction to an attempt to deregister the Nigeria Democratic Congress, NDC, through the courts.
The former Vice President said attempts to restrict political competition run contrary to democratic principles and could erode public confidence in the electoral process.
Former Presidents Goodluck Jonathan and Muhammadu Buhari never deregistered opposition political parties. Copy and learn from them.
“If you’re truly popular and your policies have positively bettered the lives of the citizens, you shouldn’t be afraid of a free and fair competition,” Atiku said.
The Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) has raised concerns over plans by President Bola Tinubu’s administration to establish state police through a constitutional amendment.
In a statement signed by its National Chairman, Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, the opposition party said the Tinubu administration’s credibility and competence were at an unprecedented low in Nigeria’s democratic history.
The party acknowledged the need for a major review and overhaul of Nigeria’s security, law and order institutions to address insecurity and strengthen citizens’ confidence in leaders and critical institutions.
However, it argued that the All Progressives Congress (APC)-led administration lacked the moral standing and public trust required to undertake a major restructuring of the country’s policing system.
“Going by precedent and record, this administration will almost certainly secure what is needed to amend the constitution and actualize its desire to establish State Police,” the statement said.
“While Nigeria needs major review and overhaul of its security and law and order institutions to address national security and create an environment that should raise citizens’ confidence and faith in leaders and critical institutions, this administration lacks the moral assets and the trust of Nigerians to undertake a major shift in the policing structure of the country.
“The APC administration has failed to manage our security structure and institutions. Its plan to engineer the emergence of State Police is suspicious and it should be rejected.”
The PRP said the forthcoming election should serve as a test of credibility and popular acceptance before the country takes decisions on major issues such as the creation of state police.
It also urged the Federal Government to intensify efforts to secure citizens and bring an end to the insecurity facing the country.
President Bola Tinubu had on Tuesday transmitted to the Senate a bill seeking to amend the 1999 Constitution to provide for the establishment of state police services across the federation. The upper chamber passed the bill on Wednesday.
The Nigerian Democratic Congress, NDC, Presidential Candidate for the 2027 election, Peter Obi, has advised President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to consider resigning his position, having failed woefully in discharging most of his campaign promises. And having failed to improve the standard of living of the citizens.
Reacting to the announcement of the British Prime Minister’s resignation, which is not unconnected with the complaints of British citizens about their deteriorating standard of living under his watch, Obi, in a tweet he titled “owning up to Leadership Failures and Political Responsibility”, advised Tinubu to emulate the British PM and save the country from the worsening economic situation.
Writing on his X handle, the 2023 Labour Party presidential flagbearer said, “This morning, I listened to the British Prime Minister’s speech announcing his planned resignation in July. As a keen observer of global politics, my primary interest lies in examining what successful nations do right and the structural factors that cause others to lag or struggle with governance and development.
“The Prime Minister’s planned resignation comes amid mounting public frustration over a stagnant economy, a worsening cost-of-living crisis, and a perceived failure to honour key campaign pledges.
“Looking inward in our dear country, we can recall our own situation. Before 2015, our President on several occasions championed the call for the then President Goodluck Jonathan to resign over economic hardship and insecurity affecting Nigerians. During the Chibok school kidnapping incident, he demanded the immediate resignation of President Jonathan, arguing that the government had failed in its most fundamental duty of protecting lives.
“During the 2023 election campaign, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu made several promises, including improved electricity supply. He also challenged the electorate not to vote for him for a second term if he failed to deliver on those commitments—particularly in providing stable power, fighting corruption, and improving the welfare of Nigerians.
“At present, however, these conditions have worsened. Electricity supply remains unreliable, insecurity has intensified in many areas, including kidnappings, and economic hardship has deepened rather than eased. Similar concerns are reflected across other critical sectors such as security, infrastructure, transportation, and anti-corruption efforts, all of which have regressed. We are in the worst possible condition.
“I, therefore, join Nigerians of goodwill in calling for the resignation of the President over monumental failure in governance. Such a gesture would help enthrone a political culture rooted in accountability and responsibility, rather than further entrenching impunity. It would also send a powerful message that public office is a sacred trust, not an entitlement, and help build a society in which future leaders understand that failure carries consequences. Only by ending the culture of impunity can we secure a better future for the society our children will inherit in a New Nigeria that is possible”
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