As Wike Enters Second Half…

Chief Nyesom Ezenwo Wike’s ascension to the position of the Executive Governor of Rivers State on May 29, 2015 was heralded by much expectation from the people of the State.   He is perceived as the man that will fight corruption, fix the porous economy, provide adequate security and rebuild the long abandoned State.
Since all Rivers citizenry expect much from Wike’s administration in this second half of his four year tenure, he should not disappoint.  The stakes are, indeed, high and to whom much is given, much is also expected.  Rivers State electorate have through their votes expressed their trust and love for Governor Wike. It is now time for him and his team to reciprocate that gesture in equal measure.
This is also the time for the governor to unite the people that have been fractured by ethnicity and politics.  He should give the people a sense of belonging in the State, especially those at the rural communities and lay to rest all divisive tendencies that have worked against the growth and progress of the State.
To move the State forward, the governor should run an all-inclusive government in this second half of his leadership of the State. The winner-takes all syndrome in the State has not, for years, helped our cause. This is the time for radical change, and a change in this direction is apt and timely.
It is necessary for Wike to set up credible and formidable team of technocrats to work with  in his subsequent appointments in order  to stimulate the state’s economy.  He should also be more gender friendly.
His promise to run a transparent and listening government will aid him immensely if he abides by it. Let him bear in mind that he is now the governor of  the entire State and not that of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP. He should act as the leader of the entire State and treat all parts of the State, importantly the rural communities, as his constituency.
There is no doubt that the residents and citizens of the state are so eager to have the power sector, water, health, education, youth and women development, among others, given priority attention this time around.  If these sectors  are taken care of, the rest will fall in line with time.
There is no point for the regime to bite more than it can safely chew.  Our past experience has shown that setting too many objectives can only lead to failure to achieve sufficient results in any of them.
Since governance is a continuum, Governor Wike should continue with his policy of completing his predecessors’ good programmes.  The bane of government in this part of the country is lack of continuity of good and result oriented programmes from one administration to another. Just as he has dutifully done in the area of roads, let the Wike led government retain his predecessors’ good programmes on other sectors of the state economy and dutifully improve on them, while initiating his own roadmap.
Exploitation of solid minerals that abound in some parts of the State will be a right step in the effort to diversify the State’s economy.  Another gold mine begging to be tapped in the State is agriculture.  The State’s agricultural potentials, if well harnessed, can fetch us more foreign exchange than any other sector. Fortunately, the State has enormous arable land for mechanized farming.  The future of the State economy  lies in agriculture and manufacturing.   Our fishing industry should be made viable and new ones built to end the long years of over dependence on oil.
The tasks before Governor Wike in this second round of his four year tenure are, indeed, huge, but they are not insurmountable.  I, therefore, enjoin him to choose the people that will work with him carefully and closely monitor them to ensure that they remain on track. He must make himself clear on his expectations from his commissioners and other political appointees and ensure zero-tolerance for corruption and incompetence.
The governor must also remain resolute and focused on his objectives to ensure that he is able to make a positive impact on the lives of the people of the state, particularly the rural dwellers.
While I congratulate the golden and award-winning governor of Rivers State on his numerous achievements in the first half of his four year tenure, I also commend the Rivers people on the successful celebration of the 50th year anniversary of statehood, recently. More importantly, I urge the Rivers people, irrespective of political affliations and ethnic cleavages, to support in full fledge, the administration of Governor Wike, who has displayed purposeful leadership in the last two years, and for which he was nicknamed ‘Mr Projects’ by the Acting President Yemi Osinbajo, as well as rewarded with several awards by the media and other independent organisations across the nation.
Toby writes from Port Harcourt.

Bethel Toby