Politics
RSG Unveils Wike’s 100 Days Programme
Programme of activities marking the celebration of the first 100 days of Governor Nyesom Wike’s second term administration was unveiled last week .
The Secretary to Rivers State Government, Dr Tammy Danagogo, who is the chairman of the 100 days celebration committee, unveiled the activities lined up for the event during a press conference he addressed last Friday at the Banquet Hall in Government House, Port Harcourt.
According to the Secretary to the State Government, the ceremony, which kicks off today, Monday 9th September, 2019, with a Media Chat with the Governor terminates Friday, 27 September, 2019.
He stated that sixteen people oriented projects cutting across various sectors, would be commissioned at the event.
The Permanent Secretary, Rivers State Ministry of Information and Communication, Pastor Paulinus Nsirim, solicited for the cooperation and effective coverage of the events by the media.
The Governor declared the intention of his administration to transform Port Harcourt, the state capital, to a major tourist destination in the country.
He said this Friday after inspecting some ongoing projects in Port Harcourt and its metropolis, noting that facilities at the Port Harcourt Pleasure Park were being developed into global tourist attraction.
He described the new Cinema at the park as a five star facility that could arrest the drift to Dubai because of its high entertainment standard.
Still on projects, Governor Wike inspected sites of the three proposed new flyovers in Port Harcourt and Obio/Akpor Local Government Areas which he promised to construct in his second term administration. The proposed new flyover bridges are Artillery, Rumuokoro, and Garrison.
He went to the sites last Saturday with engineers, contractors and the Permanent Secretary, Rivers State Ministry of Works and the Director-General, Rivers State Bureau for Public Procurement, Mr Igonibo Emmanuel Thompson for necessary assessment.
Within the week the governor appointed Mrs Grace Akpoughanum Okwulehe, as the Acting Chairman, Rivers State Senior Secondary schools Board.
Governor Wike who made the appointment, Wednesday said the appointment takes immediate effect.
Wike also landlord held a meeting with members of the taskforce on street trading, illegal markets and motor parks last Monday in Government House and announced that mobile courts on the taskforce would become operational last week to prosecute offenders.
He said: “ From tomorrow, magistrates will sit at the various locations to prosecute offenders of the law banning street trading.
“ Your business is to arrest the offenders in line with the law and take them to the magistrates for trial. Anyone that is guilty will be sanctioned by the magistrate”.
Following this, some alleged offenders were arraigned before some of the magistrates for prosecution.
Governor Wike warned the taskforce members to operate within the confines of the law.
The governor, last week, again accused security agencies of being involved in oil bunkering and called for a strong partnership between the States and Federal Government in the fight against oil theft in the country.
Wike made the call during a courtesy visit by Konrad Adenauer ( German Foundation) with Mr Andreas Lammel and Dr Joachim Pfeiffer of the German Federal Parliament, Monday at the Government House, Port Harcourt.
He said: “ The issue of oil theft, some of the security agencies are part of it. When you see oil bunkering, the security agencies are involved. They are fully involved”.
He also accused the multinational oil firms of patronising cult groups for surveillance jobs and called for collaboration with the German Government, and the German foundation in the fight against insecurity.
Chris Oluoh
The Tide source reports that the committee, reportedly backed by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Chief Nyesom Wike, is making moves to reclaim the Wadata Plaza headquarters months after it was sealed following a violent clash between rival factions of the party.
Senior officers at the FCT Police Command told our source that while they had not received an official briefing, police personnel would be stationed at the secretariat and other key locations to maintain peace.
The Acting National Secretary of the Mohammed-led committee, Sen. Samuel Anyanwu, announced last week that the secretariat would reopen for official activities on Monday (today).
He dismissed claims that ongoing litigation would prevent the reopening, saying, “There are no legal barriers preventing the caretaker committee from resuming work at the party’s headquarters.”
However, the Tanimu Turaki-led National Working Committee (NWC) has fiercely rejected the reopening move, insisting that Sen. Anyanwu and his group remain expelled from the PDP and have no authority to act on its behalf.
Speaking with The Tide source, the committee’s National Publicity Secretary, Ini Ememobong, declared: “They are living in fool’s paradise. The worst form of deceit is self-deceit, where the person knows he is deceiving himself yet continues with gusto.
“Even INEC, which they claim has recognised them, has denied them. They are indulging in a roller coaster of self-deceit.”
Mr Ememobong further revealed that letters had been sent to both the Inspector-General of Police and the FCT Commissioner of Police, stressing that the matter was still in court and warning against any attempt to “resort to self-help.”
“The case pending before Justice Joyce Abdulmalik was instituted by the expelled members. They cannot resort to self-help until judgment is delivered,” he said.
He warned that reopening the secretariat would amount to contempt of court.
A senior officer at the FCT Police Command, who spoke on condition of anonymity, confirmed that officers would be deployed to the area to avert a repeat of the November 19 violence that led to the secretariat’s initial closure.
“The command would not stand by and allow a breakdown of peace and order by the party or anyone else. Definitely, the police will have to be on the ground,” he said.
Another officer added, “There will definitely be men present at the secretariat, but I can’t say the number of police officers that would be deployed.”
When contacted, the FCT Police Public Relations Officer, Josephine Adeh, said she had not been briefed on the planned reopening and declined to comment on whether officers would be deployed.
Asked to confirm whether the secretariat was initially sealed by police, she responded, “Yes,” but refused to say more about the current deployment plans.
The Kano State House of Assembly has debunked the purported impeachment plan against the Deputy Governor, Aminu Gwarzo.
The Tide source recalls that the Kano State Commissioner for Information and Internal Affairs, Ibrahim Waiya, recently sparked controversy during an interview session with a local radio station.
Mr Waiya called on the deputy governor to resign for failing to follow his principal, Gov. Abba Yusuf, in defecting from the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
However, the spokesperson to the Speaker of the state House of Assembly, Kamaluddeen Shawai, while addressing journalists in Kano on Saturday, described reports circulating in some media outlets about Mr Gwarzo’s impeachment as baseless and misleading, emphasising that no such plan is underway.
Mr Shawai further stated that the House remains focused on its legislative duties and oversight functions rather than engaging in speculative political manoeuvres.
The spokesperson urged members of the public and the media to verify information before sharing it, stressing the importance of accurate reporting in maintaining political stability in the state.
He said, “There is absolutely no motion or initiative within the House to remove the deputy governor.
“These reports are false and should be disregarded by the public. The deputy governor continues to serve in his capacity with full support from the House.
“Our priority is good governance and serving the people of Kano, not circulating rumours.”
She made the declaration during an interview with Nigerian football legend, Mr Segun Odegbami, during a live radio interview on Saturday.
Prof. Obasanjo, who is also former commissioner in the state, ruled out a return to the Senate, stating that her focus was firmly on the governorship race.
“So, moving ahead, I’m not going to be Commissioner. Like I said, I’m not even going back to the same party because I think that’s old and I don’t see the use of it. And I’m not going to go back to the Senate,” she said.
“Like the Americans would say, there’s no need. And this is what I told my associates, when this all started. I said, the only thing I’ll come back to do is the governorship.
“And we have started that journey. We are going to see it through. And so that’s the journey I’m on. And we are very serious about it. I mean we are very dedicated to it.”
The politician also confirmed that she recently joined the APC, explaining that her return to active politics followed persistent calls from supporters.
“Like I told you, a group of people who I did not bring together, have been working, I think, for two years now. And then they started talking to me about a year ago, saying, ‘Look, we think you are the best candidate. We want you back,’” she added.
Her declaration sets the stage for what may become a keenly contested governorship race in Ogun State ahead of the 2027 elections.
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