Group Endorses Amaechi For 2nd Term

Apparently satisfied with the performance of Governor Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers State, a Port Harcourt-based civil society group, the Niger Delta Non Violent Movement (NDNVM), has endorsed the governor’s second term bid, saying that Amaechi deserves a second term to actualise his dreams for a new Rivers State.

The President of  NDNVM, Mr. Onengiya Erekosima who made the position of the group known while addressing newsmen in Port Harcourt last Friday said the group was impressed with the security situation of the state, attributing it to the excellent manner the Amaechi administration had combined crime control in the state and social reforms.

He acknowledged Amaechi’s giant strides in education and health sectors as well as in the areas of road construction and infrastructural development, describing the strides as a welcome development which had given the administration a plus.

Giving further reasons on why the group endorsed the governor for second term, the NDNVM President said, “in all our dealings with the political class, Amaechi has remained straight forward, devoid of craftiness”, adding that, “based on facts available to us, and in the spirit of objectivity, Rt. Hon Rotimi Amaechi has done well and the movement has endorsed him for a second term”.

He, however, urged Governor Amaechi to give priority attention to agriculture and the empowerment of Rivers people when he secures a second term mandate. According to him, the need to address unemployment was important since there was general poverty in the land.

The group also called on the governor to convoke a forum of civil society groups, the clergy and journalists to brainstorm on areas in the state which require improvement in his second outing.

Erekosima appealed to other civil society groups to put the machinery in motion for monitoring the forthcoming primaries of political parties and the elections proper to ensure that they are credible, free and fair.

“We also call on the youths of  Rivers State to take their destinies in their own hands by registering during the forthcoming voters’ registration exercise. Only in that way can they ensure that Amaechi returns to power”, he declared.

He explained that the endorsement of the governor was not an indication that the group was compromising its dogged fight for justice, equity and fairness in the Niger Delta in particular and the country in general.

He said if the administration failed the people of the state during the governor’s second term in office, the group would be the first to raise an alarm against the government.

Donatus Ebi