How We Paid June Salaries Without FAAC -Wike …Condemns Attack On Fayose …Urges Rivers People To Defend State In 2019

The Rivers State Governor, Chief Nyesom Wike has stated that his administration is able to pay the salaries of civil servants for June, 2018 without releases from Federal Accounts Allocation Committee (FAAC) because of careful financial engineering.
Addressing journalists after projects’ inspection, yesterday, Wike said that workers’ welfare was a top priority of his administration.
He said: “Our business is to pay workers’ salaries, do projects and develop the state. We reasoned, do we because FAAC has not been released, fail to pay workers’ salaries?
“We had to do some financial engineering to accommodate workers salaries, while projects are still going on. We came to serve and there are no excuses”.
The governor noted that his administration is built around making Rivers people happy through projects and programmes that will enhance their well-being.
Wike inspected the ongoing construction of the Bonny-Bille-Nembe Jetty that will serve Rivers riverine communities and their Bayelsa neighbours.
The governor expressed satisfaction with the quality of work and the percentage completion at the jetty.
He solicited the understanding of traders around the premises as they will be relocated to create space for the contractors to conclude the shore protection of the jetty.
“As you can see, the people are happy. They are celebrating this project. As usual, they have trooped out in their numbers to show their appreciation”, he said.
The Rivers State governor was accompanied on the project inspection by the Commissioner for Transport, Hon Michael West, Special Adviser on Land, Dr Anugbum Onuoha, Chairman of Rivers State Civil Service Commission, Chief Oris Onyiri and Chief Ejor.
Meanwhile, the Rivers State Governor, Chief Nyesom Wike has condemned the brazen attack on Ekiti State by the Nigeria Police, saying that the attack was an affront on the inalienable rights of the people of Ekiti State to a peaceful, free, fair and credible election.
In a press conference, last Wednesday night at the Government House, Port Harcourt, Wike said that the Ekiti State Governor, Ayo Fayose was lucky to have escaped alive after he was battered by the policemen on the orders of the Presidency.
He called on Rivers people to be prepared to defend their mandate in 2019 as the Buhari administration will apply the same technique on all the states.
Wike said: “I therefore join well-meaning Nigerians to condemn this brazen attack on the inalienable rights of the people of Ekiti State to a peaceful, free, fair and credible elections in the strongest possible terms and warn the perpetrators of the grave danger such actions pose to the survival of our democracy.
“I wish to also draw the attention of the people of Rivers State to the fact that what is happening at Ekiti State is clearly a foretaste of what the APC-led Federal Government has planned to unleash in our state, and indeed, the entire country, in their desperate attempt to rig 2019 general elections and retain or return to power having performed woefully and lost the support of the generality of Nigerians.
“As a matter of fact, people did not quite believe me when I told the world that the APC-led Federal Government has plans to assassinate me to enable them capture Rivers State because they know they have no electoral foothold in the state.
“Today, the whole world has seen how Governor Ayo Fayose was barely lucky to have escaped the state-sponsored attempt at his life with a fractured hand and bruised face because, with him around, hale and hearty, they will never win the Saturday elections free and fair in Ekiti.
“In the face of these challenges therefore, I wish to call on the people of Rivers State to be prepared to fight and defend their rights to freely and democratically elect their leaders in the 2019 general elections.”
He assured the people of Rivers State that he would never surrender their mandate, saying that he will defend the interest of the state with his life.
Wike said: “ As your governor, I will never surrender your mandate and abiding interest of our state to our enemies who seek to keep us enslaved and plundered even at the pain of death.
“ I wish to commend and congratulate the irrepressible Governor Ayo Fayose and the people of Ekiti State for standing up and standing firm in defence of their rights to freedom, democracy and good governance.
“I want to assure you of the support of the government and people of Rivers State at these trying times. You need not fear as God will surely defeat your enemies and grant you a resounding victory come Saturday 14th July, 2018.”