Political leaders in the Rivers State chapter of
Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)
met Wednesday night in Abuja to seek a peaceful
way to select their governorship candidate for
next year’s election.
At the end of the marathon meeting, the leaders
agreed to urge President Goodluck Jonathan and
the party leadership to make zoning a key
determinant of who becomes the next governor
of the state.
The resolution may have scuttled the
governorship aspiration of the immediate past
minister of state for education, Chief Nyesom
Wike.
Governor Chibuike Amaechi, whose tenure is
expected to terminate next May, is from Wike’s
senatorial district. Both men are Ikwerre.
Should Wike get the PDP ticket and is elected
governor for the next eight years, the Ikwerre
would have governed the state for 16 years, a
scenario the other ethnic groups, notably Ijaw
and Ogoni consider a nightmare.
The former minister had Tuesday reportedly
boasted before amazed party leaders and
supporters, that nobody, including President
Jonathan can stop him from becoming governor.
The former minister, who has a reputation for
making unguarded outbursts, reportedly made
the comments at the commissioning of his
campaign office in Bori, traditional headquarters
of the Ogoni.
Last month, the former minister was caught on
tape urging PDP faithful to ensure that President
Jonathan does not win in 2015. He has not
denied make such pkea.
Pointblanknews.com gathered that the elders
recommended that, in addition to senatorial
districts, the riverine/upland structure of the
state be key considerations in zoning
determining who succeeds Amaechi.
They also proposed that the “illegal” ward and
local government executives of the party be axed
for caretaker committees.
The reasoning, it was gathered, was that aside
Brother Felix Obuah, state PDP chairman and his
secretary, no other party position was upheld by
the court order that sacked Governor Chibuike
Amaechi’s loyalist-chairman, Chief Ake.
The Obuah-led executive had over the months
refused to bow to pressure to conduct
congresses to replace ward and council
executives sacked by the same court that ousted
Ake.
At least 24 persons from Rivers State bought the
party’s nomination form, making it the state with
the highest number of PDP governorship
aspirants.
At Wednesday’s meeting which held at the Abuja
Sheraton hotels, party leaders from the state
agreed that zoning be key consideration in
choosing a flagbearer.
The meeting was chaired by First Republic
minister of information, Chief Edwin Clark.
In attendance was a member of the party’s
Board of Trustees, Alabo Tonye Graham-Douglas,
Alabo Dagogo Fubara, notable lawyer, B. M. Wifa
(SAN), Senator Silas Nuniel and Barrister Obi
Njoku.
Also in attendance was the leader of Niger Delta
Volunteer Force, Alhaji Asari Dakubo, among
other prominent Ijaw, Igbani, Ikwerre and Ogoni
political leaders.
A former governor of the state and Wike apostle,
Dr. Peter Odili reportedly backed out of the
meeting upon realising that most party leaders
are opposed to his candidate.
Wike served as council chairman during Odili’s
tenure as governor. The former governor is
reportedly bent on staging a political comeback
as senator. Sources claim he is relying on Wike,
whom he now calls “Leader” to bankroll his
senatorial project.
In his opening remarks, Clark said he was moved
to intervene in Rivers State the same way he has
in several south-south states, in the collective
interest of the zone.
The foremost Ijaw leader expressed worry that
the festering crisis in Rivers PDP could harm the
party in the 2015 state and general elections.
He said that it was wrong to speak of injustice at
the national level and yet promote same at the
state and council levels, stressing, “injustice to
one is injustice to all.”
Chief Clark lamented that “ambitious politicians”
had through inordinate ambitions, sown the
seeds of disharmony amongst the peoples of the
state he said had been known to live in harmony.
“We are here to discuss the transition into 2015
so that people who have voluntarily been living
together in peace and inter married before and
after the white man came can continue to do so.
Sadly, we now have ambitious politicians who
have come in to create some cracks. This is very
dangerous and giving the signal of crisis and
destruction. That is not the Rivers State we
know,” noted the elder statesman.
He continued, ” In the past we had grievances
arising from land disputes, and sometimes
communal crises, but they’ve been settled.
“We are here to find peaceful transition to 2015,
and to find peace, many things will have to give
and take. Nobody is an island unto himself.
Injustice to one is injustice to all. Justice to one is
justice to all.”
He warned, “we have iscovered that the
governorship election will not be an easy one if
we do not dialogue and negotiate- give and take
positions. That is the only way we can have a
crisis-free election in 2015. Meeting is to find a
way at arriving at a peaceful understanding of a
free and fair election.”
Chief Clark said it was wrong to employ what he
said was double standards in nominating the
next governor of the state, advising that the
principle of zoning adopted in other states apply
to Rivers.
“I don’t like double standards or using different
yardsticks for different strokes. If what is
practiced elsewhere is practiced in Rivers, there
will be peace.
He blamed former Governor Peter Odili for
reneging on a 1999 promise to, at the end of his
tenure in 2007, shift power to riverine part of the
state.
“I wrote a letter dated 23rd November 2006 to
Odili reminding that we had resolved that there
be a peaceful transition in 2007.
“There are those who believe that what we have
holds fast; that as long as you are a governor you
can hand over to your son. Others say, no, let it
spread. Let it go round. That is what we should
discuss,” he declared.
Clark advised his audience, which included
governorship aspirants Dumo Lulu-Briggs, Tonye
Princewill, Beks Dagogo-Jack, Lancelot Anyanya,
among others, to embrace peace.
“What I’ve told you about how Dr. Goodluck
Ebele Jonathan became president shows that
what is yours will always come to you. No
quantity of machetes will bring it your way. Rivers
is too precious for our personal interests.
“We should think of the presidency we got on a
gold platter. If Rivers which gave him over two
million votes in 2011 is in crisis, President
Jonathan won’t get that number of votes. We
need the Presidency more than we need the
governor. Place Nigeria first. Place Rivers first.
Place Jonathan above your personal interests,”
he advised.

Lets see how this matter is resolved.

I love what is happening to pdp in River state and every other state chapter of the party. Let them continue to bing on intra-party rancour as the progressives prepare to send Dakuku to the gov't house.