Politics
2020: Major Events In Govt House (I)
As the year 2020 winds off, it is pertinent to have a look at some major events that took place in the Rivers State Government House, Port Harcourt otherwise known as the Brick House.
The Next Governor of the State
As political pundits concern themselves with the all-important question of who becomes the next Governor of the state, the sitting Governor of Rivers State, Chief Nyesom Wike on various occasions has given indication that neither himself nor anybody else knows on whose head the cap would be.
While receiving the People of Kalabari and Oyigbo Ethnic nationalities who had paid him solidarity visits in various occasions, Gov. Wike explained that he has never promised any ethnic group in the state the position of Governor of the state.
He said: “ Only God has the capacity to make the next Governor, not me or any man”.
He advised ethnic groups interested in the seat to liaise with other ethnic nationalities as no single ethnic group could single-handedly produce a governor without the assistance of others.
Burial of Late High Chief O. B. Lulu- Briggs
Governor Wike has expressed worry over the continued delay of the burial of a foremost philanthropist and oil mogul, Late Chief O.B. Lulu-Briggs as a result of family feud.
He made his feelings public when the leaders and people of Kalabari Ethnic Nationality paid him a solidarity visit in Government House, this year.
The Governor promised that the state Government would honour the late philanthropist with a befitting state burial and appealed to the leaders of the area as well as the family of the deceased to set aside their differences and bury the high chief.
“ I have intervened more than three to four times, having meetings, but was disappointed by the wife. I have to say clearly to all of you, I have never received insult like that in my life”, Gov. Wike said.
RSG’ s Court Victory Over Soku Oil Well
Another major event in 2020 was the eventual victory of Rivers State on the controversial Soku Oil Wells in Akuku-Toru Local Government Area.
An Abuja High Court had declared Rivers the rightful owner of the oil wells.
Gov. Wike, who spoke during the state celebration of the victory expressed satisfaction that at last justice was done. According to him, the state does not believe in fighting but in due process.
“ Thank God the Federal High Court has affirmed and they should pay us our money which they have collected. The revenue derivation should continue to be paid into Rivers State coffers,” he said.
The Governor reiterated the determination of his administration to continue to fight towards ensuring the protection of whatever belonged to the state.
Traditional Rulers, political leaders, youth leaders, women groups and the business class in the state celebrated the victory and commended Gov. Wike for leading the state to victory.
Victory Over OML 11 & Kidney Island
In a similar vein, Rivers State Government also won her suit against the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC) on the ownership of the OML 11 & Kidney Island acquired by the State Government.
Ogoni- Clean Up Programme
Rivers State Government had expressed dismay that since the flag of the exercise by Federal Government, no tangible milestone had been achieved.
Gov. Wike who disclosed this when the Minister of Environment, Dr Mohammed Mahmood Abubakar paid him a courtesy visit in February, said rather than tell the world the level of success attained, Federal Government had continued to deceive the people by circulating same story of handing over remediation sites to contractors as if handing over remediation sites to contractors was an attestation that the contractors had done the jobs.
He also accused the Federal Government of alienating the state government from the programme and maintained that until Federal Government stopped politicising the project, it would not achieve the desired results.
RSG, Labour Crisis Resolved
The protest by organised labour in the state scheduled to hold in September was averted at the eleventh hour following an agreement reached between Rivers State Government and the leadership of the unions in Government House, Port Harcourt.
President of NLC, Comrade Ayuba Waba who read the agreement before newsmen said both parties agreed to sign the agreement on implementation of the New Minimum Wage .He also said that the parties agreed to set up a tripartite committee to resolve the adjustment of Pension in line with the Constitution and payment of Pension and Gratiuty, among other contending issues.
COVID-19 Pandemic
As COVID-19 pandemic ravaged the world Rivers State Government was the first state in the country to declare a lockdown and also took pragmatic strategies towards controlling the spread of the virus.
The State Executive Council had in March, set up a five man committee mandated to embark on aggressive public enlightenment and awareness measures to check the dreaded Corona-Virus.
The committee which was headed by the Commissioner for Information and Communications Paulinus Nsirim, had as members the Commissioner for Health, Prof Chike Princewill, Commissioner for Environment, Dr Igbiks Tamuno, Commissioner for Chieftaincy Affairs, Barr Eloka Tasie-Amadi, and Commissioner for Youth Development, Mr Ohia Prince.
He also initiated a Two Billion Naira (N2 billion) Food Bank. Palliatives were distributed from Ward to Ward.
Wike Unveils More Legacy Projects
Gov. Wike whose first tenure was marked by a harvest of people-oriented projects across the twenty-three local government areas of the state, continued with more key projects in 2020.
Within the year, such uncommon projects as Real Madrid Academy, Ultramodern Mother and Child Hospital among numerous others were commissioned.
He also embarked on seven flyover projects and even delivered some before the scheduled period using the world class Julius Berger to execute the projects.
The flyover projects include: Rebisi flyover which was inaugurated before the scheduled time, Okoro-nu-Odo flyover, Rumuogba flyover, Rumuola flyover, GRA flyover, the Kaduna Street flyover and the Ikokwu flyover. Most of these projects are the completion stages.
Apart from the flyovers which cost the state multi billions of Naira, there were also numerous road projects both in the new and old GRAs in Port Harcourt.
Local Government Election:
The elections of Councillors and Council Chairmen in the 23 local government areas of the state are already by the corner as the State Governor has recently reconstituted the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC).
According to the time table published by RSIEC December 21, 2010, elections campaign begins on Friday, 12th March 2021 and ends on Thursday, 15th April 15th 2021 while Ward elections hold Saturday22nd May, 2021 and Chairmanship election hold Saturday, 17th April, 2021.
Peoples Democratic Party ( PDP) has announced that there would no automatic ticket for sitting council Chairmen for second time.
Gov. Wike who is the leader of the party is the state who made the pronouncement in several public fora said performance and people’s acceptance would remain the variables that would determine the faith of any chairman aspiring for second term.
RSG Promises 5000 Employment Opportunities:
Another remarkable feat of the present administration in the year under review was the decision to employ 5000 persons into the state civil service.
So far, the vacancies have been advertised and interested applicants across the 23 local government areas have also applied for the jobs. The employment scheme which has been extended to non-indigens has been lauded by the people of the state.
The step, according to many, would equally go a long way in addressing youth related crimes in the state.
By: Chris Oluoh
The Tide source reports that Prof. Akinoso was elected alongside 38 other executive members of the party at the congress held on Saturday.
Other executive members are Dr Abiola Olaonipekun, who emerged as Secretary, Alhaja Latifah Latifu, Women Leader and Mr A. Adeleke, elected as Youth Leader.
It was learnt that the congress, which took place at the Obafemi Awolowo Stadium, Oke Ado in Ibadan, was attended by representatives of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), the Police, other security agencies and prominent members of the party.
The election was supervised by electoral committee members, among whom were Prince Diran Odeyemi, who served as Chairman, Hon. Awoniyi Tolulope, Mr Babatunde Gbadamosi, Queen Stepheine Oyechere, Alhaji Yusuf Abidakun, Mr Olumide Aguda and Dr Phillips Adeniyi, who served as Secretary.
Prof. Akinoso, in his inaugural address, urged members of the party to set aside intra-party differences.
He advised them to concentrate their resources on the promotion of the party, saying, “The primary responsibilities of party executive members are to coordinate party activities, ensure harmony among members, and ensure party victory during general elections.
“Our immediate assignments are to key into INEC released 2027 general election time-tables. As directed by the National Caretaker Committee of PDP, our party e-membership registration starts next week. We must be fully involved and do a membership drive.
“A political party is only relevant and benefits its members if it wins the election. This is our goal. We should set aside intra-party differences; concentrate our resources towards the promotion of the party. We will make necessary consultations and dialogue to actualise this”.
President Tinubu disclosed this during an interfaith breaking of fast with senior journalists and media executives at the Presidential Villa in Abuja on Saturday.
He also disclosed that his administration had opened up on the principles of true federalism to the extent that local governments now get direct allocation from the Federal Government.
“There’s no morning that I ever leave my house without going through the newspapers. It’s an addiction. I read all of you.
“It might not be in full detail, but headline, the one that would hit me and the ones that won’t.
“At the beginning of this administration, I was just a little bit stubborn, looking at opportunities to correct things and make life more easier for the downtrodden.
“We’ve opened up the principle of federalism to the extent that local governments are now getting their money, but how they use it is in your hands. So, don’t bombard me alone,” President Tinubu said.
The ruling party said the ADC had turned criticism of the APC-led administration into its operating manifesto instead of presenting concrete solutions to Nigeria’s economic challenges.
In a statement issued on Saturday by the APC National Publicity Secretary, Mr Felix Morka, the party dismissed the ADC’s interpretation of a report presented at a policy dialogue organised by Agora Policy which suggested that the country’s poverty rate had risen from 49 per cent to 63 per cent.
Mr Morka said the opposition party’s reaction to the report as a “damning verdict” on the government’s economic policies reflected either ignorance of economic realities or deliberate political mischief.
“The African Democratic Congress’ attempt to spin a recent report presented at the Agora Policy dialogue indicating a rise of poverty rate of 63 per cent from 49 per cent as a damning verdict on this administration’s economic policies speaks either to its shocking ignorance of economic policy or its wilful blindness to the justification for, and transformative impacts of, ongoing economic reforms,” he said.
The APC spokesman noted that the report itself recognised the necessity of reforms aimed at correcting long-standing structural distortions in the economy.
According to him, the ADC had failed to present any credible alternative policy direction for Nigerians.
“Clearly, the ADC does not recognise itself as a political party. The ADC has not articulated a single alternative policy position or prescription of benefit to Nigerians. Condemning the APC and its policies has become its operating manifesto,” Mr Morka said.
He explained that major economic decisions taken by President Bola Tinubu, including the removal of fuel subsidy and the unification of multiple foreign exchange windows, were necessary steps to rescue the country’s economy from collapse.
Mr Morka said the subsidy regime had for years placed a heavy burden on public finances, consuming trillions of naira annually while encouraging corruption, fuel smuggling and inefficiencies in the system.
He added that the reforms had helped redirect national resources to key sectors such as infrastructure, healthcare, education and social development.
The APC spokesman acknowledged that economic reforms often come with short-term hardship but stressed that the measures were essential to build a stronger and more resilient economy.
“Economic reform is never cost-free anywhere in the world. The transient hardship experienced by Nigerians was an inevitable cost of reforms meant to build and guarantee a better future for all Nigerians,” he said.
Mr Morka maintained that the country’s economic outlook was already improving, citing recent growth figures and stronger external reserves.
“Our economy has rebounded and is expanding steadily. The country’s Gross Domestic Product grew by 4.4 per cent last year and is projected to expand by 5.5 per cent this fiscal year, with foreign reserves now exceeding $50 billion,” he stated.
He also pointed to government initiatives designed to cushion the effects of economic adjustments on citizens, including cash transfer programmes, student loan schemes and the rollout of compressed natural gas (CNG) initiatives to reduce transportation costs.
Mr Morka reaffirmed that the APC-led administration would remain focused on rebuilding the economy and expanding social investments to support vulnerable Nigerians.
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