Politics
2019 Is Sure For Gov Wike – Hon Eke
As preparations for the 2019 general elections gather momentum, amidst alignment and re-alignment of political forces, the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Rivers State believes that in the race for the Brick House, nothing can change the status quo.
In this exclusive interview with the Acting Political Editor, Soibi Max-Alalibo, the Chairman of Obio/Akpor Local Government Area, Hon. Solomon Abel Eke reveals why Rivers State is a no-go-area for the opposition, and many more.
How does it feel like being the Chairman?
For me, it’s a call to service. Ascending to this high position of Executive Chairman of Obio/Akpor LGA is guided by my sense of responsibility to the people of Obio/akpor LGA. So, I see it as a call to serve. And with humility and due respect, I owe everything to God, and the good people of Obio/Akpor LGA. We need to make our place better; we do not have another LGA. God brought us here, and I know it’s for a reason.
What would you say are your targets as Chairman?
I have always said that this is a government of continuum. It started from where Nyesom Wike started from 1999 to 2006. Then, from Timothy Nsirim, under whom I served as Vice Chairman, up to 2014. As a former VC of the Council, I know where we stopped; I also know some of the things we had in mind to do. These are the things I’m tackling head-on. For instance, since we broke out of Port Harcourt City Local Government, Obio/Akpor does not have a library. Currently, we have a suitable land for it. So, I’ve made necessary arrangement to embark on it. It will be among projects to be commissioned in my first 100 days in office. We also do not have a sports centre. So we’ve decided to build a sports centre for the people of the LGA. We do not have a cemetery. This will also be provided. And, considering that Obio/Akpor is still developing, with people migrating to the LGA almost daily, we also need to make provision for absorbing the influx of people to avoid unnecessary congestion of our roads, and in order to create sanity on our roads, we’re building more parks for cars. If you live in Obio/Akpor you’ll know that road congestion has been a key issue. We’ve already created some parks, but we shall still come up with more modern enclosed parks like we see in advanced countries, to be commissioned within our 100 days in office. Within the first 100 days too, we are going to institute a green culture: we’ll plant flowers and trees at strategic places in the LGA, such as roundabouts and parks to beautify them. This will be done through the Parks and Garden Committee. We also have in our agenda, a deliberate and planned step to sanitise, secure and develop Obio/Akpor.
In sanitising Obio/Akpor, we want to make sure that cleanliness is maintained. To ensure this, we have commenced fencing some of the key markets on major roads, such as the Oil Mill market. We’ll also do same for the market at Rumuokoro Roundabout, and any other place such markets are found. This is to ensure that those who sell are cordoned off the major roads on which they have hitherto caused nuisance.
We will also provide a health insurance scheme for everybody in Obio/Akpor. They include indigenes, those who live in and do business in the LGA. With just a token of N4,000.00 (for men) and N5,000.00 (for women within reproductive age) for registration in the scheme, bills from people’s health challenges will be catered for by the LGA.
The amount for registration for women within reproductive age is higher because some of them may require caesarean section that would require more money. But it will be done with no additional cost to the patient. The LGC will foot the bill.
Again, we have commenced the training of our youth in various skills to either make them employable, or turn them to entrepreneurs knowing that Obio/Akpor is a viable LGA that is developing at a fast pace. For this purpose, we are training our youth in such skills as pipeline welding, soap making, hair dressing, etc. As the popular saying goes, “an idle mind is the devil’s workshop”, we do not want our youths to be idle, so they cannot easily be tempted to go into social vices.
Any challenges so far?
There’re indeed challenges. But such challenges are not insurmountable. Most of the challenges we face now are the result of people being used to doing things in a given way, and so find it difficult to change to a better way. For instance, markets are provided for traders to sell their wares in them. But these traders prefer to sell on the roads, thereby constituting nuisance. So, when we now tell them to go into the market to sell, they go to the streets to protest. We have decided to take steps to talk to them in order to convince them that beyond the need for them to sell in the markets, they also endanger their lives by selling on major roads. As we do the talking, we are also taking precautionary measures to gradually send them to the market.
What would you say are the chances of PDP in Rivers State in the 2019 governorship election?
The truth is that in Rivers State, there is no rivalry to the fact that PDP is a household name. Governor (Nyesom) Wike has done so much that virtually all parts of the State have something to thank the government for. His projects are far reaching. Beyond this, he has a listening ear. It is for the same reason he has ensured that the third tier of governance, which is the Local Government, is resuscitated to enhance governance by bringing it down to the people. Rivers People are very comfortable with the PDP-led Government, so there’s no way they can give room for APC, which has already failed Nigeria at the centre People are wiser now, they can compare the hardship caused by the APC-led Nigerian Government, and so nobody can come and deceive Rivers People to the point of not voting for PDP in 2019 in Rivers State.
In his first three years in office, Wike commissioned projects every day for over a month. There is no Government in Nigeria that achieved such feat, at least not in this present dispensation. And, the good thing about these projects is that one way or another, they touch the lives of the people positively. So, having done this much within three years, it is obvious that Rivers people will support the Governor to do more in delivering more dividends of democracy to them.
What is your advice to the people of Obio/Akpor, Your co-chairmen in the State, and Rivers people?
My advice for the people of Obio/Akpor, who voted me into power, is for them to have faith in me. I can only urge them to follow my leadership path for which they voted for me, promising them that I will not lead them astray. I am making sure that I carry on with the development pattern set from the tenure of the Governor when he was Chairman.
To my Co-Chairmen, I urge them to toe the line of the Governor in developing their LGAs by executing projects that will touch the lives of their people directly, because it is the only way to live up to the expectation of the people and our “Mr. Project”.
To Rivers people, I can only say that everybody needs a good life, and the Governor is creating the enabling environment, so, let’s support him. Let us not be deceived by these “money bags”. Since three years they have been in power at the national level, they’ve not brought any development to Rivers State. But the PDP Government in Rivers State has been doing a lot because they are answerable to our people: communities that do not have roads, they cry out to the Governor and he provides for them in good time. He promises and fulfills his promises. There are so many things. The essential thing is that anything identified as the problem of the people and brought to his knowledge, he takes care of it. He has a listening ear, and this is what we demand of our leaders. Let us therefore come out fully to support him and resist any attempt to compromise this position because at the end of the day, if you sell yourself for peanuts, you’ll suffer for it.
Soibi Max-Alalibo
In a statement issued on Wednesday, December 31, 2025, and signed by its National Publicity Secretary, Mr Obiora Ifoh, the party said it had taken note of Mr Obi’s defection alongside some of his supporters, as well as what it called a “lacklustre speech” delivered by the former Anambra State governor at the defection event.
“We wondered what new he intends to sell to Nigerians,” the party said, adding that it was not surprised by the move, having “since September 2024, parted ways with Peter Obi and some of his blind supporters in the National Assembly.”
According to the statement, the faction said it had patiently awaited Mr Obi’s exit, describing it as a blessing.
“The party is finally liberated by this defection and as party leaders, we count it as a blessing,” the party said.
The faction further disclosed that it had previously urged Mr Obi and his supporters to leave if they were unable to work with the party leadership.
It claimed that several lawmakers had been suspended for anti-party activities and that similar action would have been taken against Mr Obi but for the intervention of “some well-meaning Nigerians.”
It also blamed its internal crisis on Mr Obi and Abia State Governor, Dr. Alex Otti, accusing them of sponsoring what it described as an insurrection against the Julius Abure-led leadership.
“The crisis we had in the Labour Party was caused by Peter Obi and the Abia State governor, Alex Otti,” the statement alleged, adding that it was surprising Dr Otti had not followed Mr Obi out of the party despite his suspension.
Reacting to Mr Obi’s defection event in Enugu, the faction claimed the gathering was largely boycotted by prominent political and traditional institutions in the South East, insisting that those present were “political spent forces who cannot win in their wards should there be an election today.”
It warned that this development signalled the failure of any future Mr Obi presidential or vice-presidential ambition, claiming he had “clearly lost the charm that had endeared him to the people prior to 2023.”
The faction also accused Mr Obi of misleading the South East during the 2023 elections, alleging that the region suffers political marginalisation under President Bola Tinubu’s administration as a result.
“He must be told that the South East lost out completely in President Ahmed Tinubu’s government because they trusted and believed in him in 2023,” the statement said, alleging disparities in ministerial appointments and infrastructure allocation to the zone.
The Abure-Led LP apologised to Nigerians for its decision in the last election.
“We gave Nigerians a candidate we thought was good for the nation in 2023, but time has since proved that we made the greatest political mistake. We plead for forgiveness from Nigerians,” the party said.
It urged Nigerians to watch out for a rebranded Labour Party, promising to present “the best prospect” capable of returning Nigeria to what it described as its “glorious days.”
steadily toward unity, justice, and shared prosperity”, he said.
Speaking to journalists on Wednesday at his country home in Ikere-Ekiti, Dr Oluyede said the development came as a shock, stressing that INEC supervised and monitored the PDP governorship primary that produced him as the party’s candidate.
According to him, INEC officials documented the process, completed all required forms, and even affirmed his candidacy in court through sworn affidavits arising from cases linked to the primary election.
He maintained that no court order or injunction currently restrains INEC from listing his name as the PDP candidate, arguing that the electoral body lacks the constitutional power to determine who emerges as a party’s nominee.
Dr Oluyede described such decisions as the exclusive responsibility of political parties, not the electoral umpire.
While playing down panic over the released list, Dr Oluyede noted that electoral processes often involve reviews and corrections.
He disclosed that he had commenced wide consultations, including engagements with PDP leadership and formal correspondence with INEC, to seek clarification on the omission and determine the next line of action.
The PDP candidate assured his supporters across Ekiti State that he would appear on the ballot, expressing confidence that the situation would be resolved in his favour.
He described attempts to exclude candidates from elections as dangerous and undemocratic, warning that such tactics undermine the people’s right to freely choose their leaders.
Dr Oluyede called on the people of Ekiti to reject any form of disenfranchisement, insisting that elections should be contests of ideas, records, and acceptance by the electorate rather than exclusionary maneuvers.
He also declared that the PDP in Ekiti had resolved its past internal crises and was now united, focused, and ready to win the forthcoming governorship election.
He urged party members and supporters to remain calm and focused, expressing optimism that, with divine grace and the will of the people, the PDP would emerge victorious at the polls.
Mr Obi spoke while formally declaring for the African Democratic Congress (ADC) at a well-attended event in Enugu on Wednesday, where he outlined what he described as a fresh roadmap for rescuing the country from its socio-economic challenges.
Addressing party members, supporters and other stakeholders, the former governor stressed that leadership must be driven by integrity and accountability, warning against the culture of double standards in public office.
“We cannot continue to deceive our people. Leadership is about telling the truth and leading by example. You cannot promise one thing in public and do another in private. That is not leadership, and that is not the change Nigeria needs”, Mr Obi said.
He maintained that genuine national rebirth would only be possible if entrenched wrongs were corrected, adding that governance must be guided by competence, discipline and a clear sense of purpose.
Mr Obi also underscored the need for fresh thinking in the nation’s political space, urging political actors to move away from recycled ideas that have failed to deliver sustainable development.
“We must come with new ideas,” he said, adding that “Nigeria’s problems are not mysterious; what has been lacking is the courage and competence to address them differently. We need a new approach that puts people first and focuses on production, not consumption.”
Calling for a broad based political collaboration, Mr Obi appealed to parties and stakeholders across ideological divides to work together in the national interest.
“This country is bigger than any party or individual. All parties must come together to change the present trend. What matters is not the platform, but the future of Nigeria and the wellbeing of its citizens”, he declared.
Looking ahead to the 2027 general elections, Mr Obi challenged aspirants seeking elective offices to ensure transparency in their credentials, warning that the era of falsified certificates was drawing to a close.
“Anyone contesting for any position in 2027 must come with genuine certificates. All the machinery is now in place to verify what is genuine and what is not. Integrity must start from the very foundation of leadership”, he stated.
Drawing lessons from international development models, Mr Obi cited Rwanda and Indonesia as examples of countries that rose from difficult beginnings to become thriving economies through disciplined leadership and sound policies.
“These countries were once behind us,” he noted, adding that “Today, they are moving ahead because they chose competent leadership, clear vision and policies that support local production and human capital development.”
He also criticised the economic policies of the present administration, particularly the continued importation of food items that can be produced locally, describing such practices as inimical to national development.
“You cannot grow an economy by killing local production. Importing food that we can produce in Nigeria destroys jobs, weakens our farmers and drains our foreign exchange. A serious country must produce what it consumes”, he argued.
The event featured renewed calls from ADC supporters for sustained engagement and mobilisation, as Mr Obi reiterated his belief that Nigeria remains redeemable if led with honesty, competence and a commitment to shared national progress.
In his remarks, the National Chairman of the ADC, Senator David Mark, expressed confidence in the emerging coalition, assuring Nigerians that the party would deliver good governance at all levels of administration if entrusted with power.
The gathering also witnessed the defection of several prominent politicians from different political parties across the South-East and beyond.
The motion endorsing the defection was moved by a former Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Chief Emeka Ihedioha, and seconded by former economic adviser to ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo, Prof. Osita Ogbu.
Goodwill messages from notable political figures, including Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe, Mrs. Aisha Yesufu, Chief Sam Egwu, Dr. Okwesilieze Nwodo, Chief Achike Udenwa, Mr Onyema Ugochukwu and Senator Gilbert Nnaji among others, further underscored the growing momentum within the ADC.
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