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Wike Seeks Oshiomhole’s Sack Over Diri’s Swearing-In As Bayelsa Gov

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The Rivers State Governor, Chief Nyesom Wike has explained that the embattled National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Comrade Adams Oshiomhole and his associates came from a background of armed robbery to steal the mandate of Rivers people, but were strongly resisted, hence Oshiomhole’s bitterness towards Rivers State.
Wike, who stated that he was not a violent politician, emphasised that under no circumstances would Rivers people allow Oshiomhole and his associates to temper with Rivers mandate.
The Rivers State governor called for the resignation of Adams Oshiomhole in view of his failure to stop the inauguration of Bayelsa State Governor, Senator Douye Diri, as he boasted.
He spoke in an interview at the Government House, Port Harcourt, last Saturday.
Wike said: “This is a country where you see people who do not have character, today, they sing a song, tomorrow, they sing another song. I think Oshiomhole as the national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) is not a character that anybody should associate with.
“First of all, I have never been violent and I will never be violent. However, when you see an armed robber come to your house, will you plead with the armed robber, and say, please, I beg you, leave my house. People think that armed robbers are only those who cart away people’s money. The worst form of armed robbery is when you steal people’s mandate, just like what Oshiomhole is noted for.
“He thinks because he’s in the ruling party, he can use security to steal the mandate of the people. He was taught a lesson, a bitter lesson, and I want to repeat, if you come to steal our mandate, the people will respond accordingly. They will oppose your stealing of their mandate, and so, Oshiomhole thinks that because he is in the ruling party, nobody should say anything or do anything. Stealing is not only when you go to rob a bank. The worse form of armed robbery is when you steal the mandate of the people.”
Wike described Oshiomhole as a politician without character, noting that the APC national chairman was always driven by survival instincts.
He stated that Oshiomhole cannot lay claim to having canvassed for one man, one vote because he was not practising the philosophy.
The governor noted that he stopped attending the National Economic Council (NEC) meeting because Oshiomhole turned it into a forum to bash former President, Dr Goodluck Jonathan, when he had gone to praise Jonathan at Aso Villa for ensuring credible elections.
“When Jonathan made sure the election was free and fair, Oshiomhole came to the Villa and thanked Jonathan. When Jonathan left office, one of the reasons why I don’t go to NEC meeting is because of Oshiomhole. When he was a member, when Jonathan left, there was no day at the NEC meeting Oshiomhole will not bring Jonathan down. Meanwhile, that was the same man Oshiomhole went to praise for allowing one-man, one-vote. But when the man left, Oshiomhole changed. That is his character,” he added.
Wike said that Oshiomhole became governor through questionable means, emphasising that the questionable emergence of Oshiomhole led to constitutional amendment for governorship matters to terminate at the Supreme Court.
He said: “Nigerians know one matter that led to the amendment of the Electoral Act, where governorship election has to go to the Supreme Court is because of the Oshiomhole matter. So, he cannot come out and say he was clean in terms of electoral process. That will be very bad.
“Oshiomhole said he fought godfatherism and the same time he wants to install himself as a godfather in Edo State. Why is he fighting Obaseki? It is because the man doesn’t take instruction from him. He preaches what he doesn’t practice.”
The Rivers State governor maintained that Oshiomhole lacks the powers to challenge the pronouncement of the Supreme Court.
Wike said that Oshiomhole’s comments questioning his membership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) were the unintelligent talk of an illiterate, and declared that he was a strong and unrepentant member of the PDP.
He said the fact that he speaks out his mind at all times does not mean that his membership of PDP was in doubt.
The governor said that he was not at the same level with Oshiomhole, noting that what Oshiomhole was doing was to regain the confidence of APC governors and leaders.
He said: “I will not be a member of their party, I have always been a member of PDP, and they know that. Oshiomhole knows that his party did not even score up to 25 per cent in my state. He cannot tell me that. There is a saying in my place: ‘Somebody who has nothing to say, he says see how you are’. So, Oshiomhole has nothing to say about me. And I want to tell him that his party is probing him about the so-called hospital he says he built. I am not the one.
“So, he should face his problems but shame should be on him that at the end of the day, the PDP candidate has been sworn-in as the governor of Bayelsa State. You can’t come out and open your mouth, and say ‘it will never happen’. Now, it has happened.
“If I were him, I will resign, I will leave. I am not his friend, so, he cannot say ‘my friend’. How can I be a friend to somebody who will say one thing today, tomorrow, he says another thing. In the night, he visits same person, that’s not me. When I want to see you, I see you in the day time. Oshiomhole visits people at night. It is very unfortunate for him, and I pity him. All his efforts to regain his chairmanship have failed.
“All he is doing today is because the governors and some leaders of the party are saying that this man cannot lead our party. Oshiomhole has failed. He is a man who opens his mouth anyhow. And this should be his last time, the moment he goes further; then, he will know that Rivers State is not what he thinks it is.
“We will tell him where he belongs. I will tell him where he goes in the night, and where he goes in the day time.”
Wike said the former unionist was very corrupt, as he used proceeds from workers to build his political career.
He said: “Oshiomhole claimed he was a unionist. He said he worked in the textile industry. Mention one man who works in the textile industry and is as rich as Oshiomhole today. He used to wear ordinary Khaki, today; he wears Safari with diamond buttons. Simply because I said Oshiomhole cannot destabilize this country, who the hell is Oshiomhole to say that nobody can be sworn-in when the Supreme Court has made a pronouncement whether good or bad.”
On Oshiomhole’s parable that he (Oshiomhole) was an antelope, while Wike was a tortoise, the Rivers State governor stated that his pedigree and education were beyond the embattled APC national chairman.
He said: “It’s unfortunate that Oshiomhole will use that word to say ‘a tortoise’ challenging ‘an antelope’. It’s like saying in a country where Chimpanzee can be anything. How can Oshiomhole compare himself to me? I’m well read. I am a lawyer. I am a life bencher. I have my first degree in Political Science, and my second degree in Law. I went to the Nigerian Law School, and I passed very well.
“Let Oshiomhole tell me which university he attended. As a unionist, he enriched himself. How did he become the governor of Edo State, who doesn’t know? It’s just the country that we are in; people who cannot boast of any certificate can be national chairman. Let Oshiomhole tell me one university he attended. I attended the University of Port Harcourt, Rivers State University and served in old Gongola State.
“How dare he open his mouth and call himself an antelope. Oshiomhole has become an antelope because he is the national chairman of a ruling party. It’s now a ruling party because they told Nigerian lies. Let Oshiomhole come out and tell us his background except that he became a governor through a dubious way and that was what led to the amendment of the Electoral Act that says governorship matter in terms of the election will not end at the Court of Appeal but will get to the Supreme Court. I have become a local government chairman, chief of staff, minister and governor, and by the grace of God, a second-term serving governor.
“Oshiomhole has the audacity to say nobody will be sworn-in in Bayelsa State; causing crisis in the country and nobody wants to call him to order but for people like us in Rivers State. Because of people like Oshiomhole and his style of leadership, his party lost so many areas they ought not to have lost. What made them not to have candidates in Rivers State and Zamfara? It’s because of Oshiomhole. Oshiomhole led to the problem they have in Bayelsa. Oshiomhole takes from two sides. He is not a man of integrity, and nobody should take him seriously.”
Wike added: “It is not my position to say it is right or wrong but Oshiomhole cannot open his wide mouth to say it can never happen, and now, it has happened. What will he do? Don’t destabilize the country. Don’t cause crisis for this country. You may be closer to the President and that is not the way to retain your position as chairman of the party because Oshiomhole doesn’t have the support of most of the governors because of his style of leadership. It is very clear, so, Oshiomhole doesn’t have the right to tell me that I am a man of violence.
“Oshiomhole came from the background of an armed robber to steal the vote of Rivers people and we defended our vote. Oshiomhole is ashamed that we defended our votes, and we still defend our votes till tomorrow. Rivers State is not like his Edo State where he can talk to anybody the way he likes.
“This should be the last time Oshiomhole should open his mouth and talk to anybody in Rivers State. We are not at the same level in terms of education. Rivers State is not like Edo State where you bring down a sitting governor because he wants to install another governor. It depends on the people of Edo State to allow that, but for Rivers State; we won’t allow anybody who wants to be a godfather”, he emphasised.

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Guber Polls: Diri Charges Appointees, Others On Democracy Defence …Says APC’s Sylva Failed As Ex-Gov, Minister

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Bayelsa State Governor, Senator Douye Diri, has charged his appointees and members of the Peoples Democracy Party (PDP) to stand firm in defence of democracy at the November 11 Governorship election in the state.
He also called on local and international lovers of democracy to show keen interest in the forthcoming elections in Bayelsa, Imo and Kogi states in order to ensure a free, fair and transparent process.
The Chief Press Secretary to Governor Diri, Mr. Daniel Alabrah, in a statement, said Senator Diri spoke during separate meetings held with the PDP State Working Committee at its secretariat in Yenagoa, the state capital, and at another with his appointees at the late Chief DSP Alamieyeseigha Memorial Banquet Hall, Government House, Yenagoa.
The Governor expressed optimism that with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) ensuring transparency and fairness, and the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) working optimally, votes in the November election would count.
The Bayelsa helmsman, who decried the threats of violence by one of the governorship candidates in the election, urged politicians to play by the rules in order to deepen democracy and not throw the state or country into crisis.
He urged party members to be steadfast and committed towards ensuring victory for the PDP in the election.
“I call on all lovers of democracy in Nigeria and Africa to put their eyes on the elections in these three states – Bayelsa, Imo and Kogi – so that we can have peaceful, transparent, credible and free elections.
“If we truly love our state, this is the time to stand firm. It is the time to know the difference between those who have character, integrity and those who are like commodities in the market to be purchased.
“Beware of commodity buyers during election. Let us not turn ourselves to commodities. Let us be good party men”, he said.
Speaking on his major challenger from the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Timipre Sylva, he said he failed as a former Governor of the state and as a Minister.
He also stated that Sylva, as Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, connived with others to take away Bayelsa’s only oil asset, the Atala oil field.
Diri enjoined lovers of the state to reject the APC candidate to ensure continuity of the developmental projects of his administration.
He restated his call on the Federal Government to work with him to find a lasting solution to the Bassambiri Community crisis being ochestrated by some members of the opposition party in the state.
Earlier, in a motion moved by the Senator representing Bayelsa Central, Senator Konbowei Benson, and seconded by the House of Representatives member for the Ogbia Federal Constituency, Mitema Obordor,. the party’s working committee passed a vote of confidence on the Governor, saying he has performed outstandingly.
The committee also ratified the nomination of Oyisor Didi as the party’s new youth leader.
In his remarks, the Chairman, Mr. Solomon Agwana, charged the party’s faithful to ensure that PDP wins in all the 2,244 polling units in the state in the governorship election.
Also, the governor’s Special Adviser on Political Affairs, High Chief Collins Cocodia, said given his remarkable performance in office, Senator Diri has earned the trust and confidence of the people and that victory was assured.
In his goodwill message, the PDP National Financial Secretary, Daniel Woyengikuro, said Governor Diri is a great leader that the party at the national level holds in high esteem.

By: Ariwera Ibibo-Howells,
Yenagoa

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Obi Unveils LP Candidate’s Manifesto, Campaign Office In Bayelsa …Tasks Citizens On Electing Responsible, Accountable Leaders

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Presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in the 2023 Presidential election, Mr Peter Obi, midweek, inaugurated the campaign office of the the Bayelsa State Governorship candidate of the LP for the November 11, 2023 gubernatorial election, Eng. Udengs Eradiri in Yenagoa, the State capital.
The Tide reports that Mr Obi, who also unveiled the manifesto of the candidate, christened “People, Education, Agriculture and Power (PEAP)”agenda, noted that the bane of the nation’s underdevelopment and poverty was because Nigeria, rather than being a production economy, has drifted to a consumption economy in the comity of states.
He reiterated that the only way out of the worrisome situation was for the citizenry to hold leaders accountable through unbiased investigation into the antecedents surrounding their emergence.
He also said all campaign promises and manifestos of candidates standing for any election in the nation be subjected to citizens scrutiny prior to, and in the post elections era.
Obi also described the state as the cradle of the hydrocarbon industry, maintaining that upon his arrival to the state, there was no commensurate development which has been made to bear by the Federal Government of Nigeria.
“After Sokoto, Bayelsa State is ranked the second poorest state in Nigeria. That’s because the Federal Government has not been fair to the state. Nigeria hasn’t really been fair to Bayelsa State.
“Driving from Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, to here in Bayelsa State, I’ve not seen any good road.
“Last year, this State was completely flooded. It was under water, and so I visited this State and found out that the Federal Government totally neglected this State. Nothing came from them.
“For over 67years the Federal Government has been exploring and exploiting crude oil in this state and there’s no good road leading to this state.
“If for the over sixty years that they’ve been drilling oil here, the Federal Government has done something, even if it a was just a kilometer of road, by now there would have been good road to this state.
“The only alternative to change this bad scenario is to vote for Eng. Udengs Eradiri, the Labour Party’s governorship candidate, come November 11th, 2023″, he said.
Also speaking, the National Chairman of the Party, Barr. Julius Abure, said the national Secretariat of the party and its presidential candidate decided to come personally to campaign for its governorship candidate, and unveil his manifesto because the party believes in his candidature.
Abure noted that the party was poised to winning the polls, saying Eradiri was the most qualified and competent amongst all the candidates from all the parties which have fielded candidates for the elections.
“The Labour Party candidate, Eradiri, is the only candidate contesting the 2023 Bayelsa State Governorship elections with a blueprint. APC and PDP don’t have a blueprint.
“Remember that our Presidential candidate, Obi won the 2023 Presidential elections. I advise you to vote and defend your votes for the Labour Party governorship candidate, Udengs Eradiri”, Abure said.
Meanwhile, Eradiri reiterated his willingness to partner youths and other well meaning individuals towards the rapid socio-economic development and transformation of the State from its current ranking as a poor state to a wealthy state.
He stated that he would build technology and manufacturing hubs in the state if elected as Governor, come November 11th, 2023.
The Tide gathered that the Bayelsa State Labour Party’s governorship candidate, Eng. Eradiri, was one time President of the Pan-Ijaw youth body, the Ijaw Youths Council (IYC Worldwide), and was also a former Commissioner in the Bayelsa State Ministries of Youths Development, and Environment.
“We’d build export hubs in our airport, and we’d begin to export our commodities here in the state to Europe and other parts of the world, thereby creating jobs for our unemployed youths and creating wealth for our people.
“We’d make Bayelsa State the best in Education and Power, Agriculture. We’d put our people, that’s you and you and all of us first in our plans and programmes. We’ld make our health sector work. We’d infact have the best health system and education system in the nation, West Africa and all over the African continent.
“We don’t have money to give to voters on election day. But we know they’d bring you money. That’s your money, and not theirs. But just collect the money and vote for Udengs Eradiri and Benjamin Nathus as Governor and Deputy Governor, come November 11th, 2023, and your life, this state will never be the same again”, Eradiri said.
Speaking earlier, in his opening remarks, the State Chairman of the Labour Party, Mr Eneyi Zidougha, thanked Bayelsans for having confidence on the party’s gubernatorial candidate.
He stated that amongst nine aspirants that contested for the party’s gubernatorial primaries, Eradiri emerged victorious because he was the best and most competent for the position, noting that the party was going to win the November 11th, 2023 polls with landslide victory.

By: Ariwera Ibibo-Howells,
Yenagoa

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Address Erosion Problem In Etsako, Rep Member Urges FG

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Rep. Dekeri Anamero (APC-Edo), representing Etsako Federal Constituency, has urged the Federal Government to address the gully erosion ravaging the constituency.
Anamero made the call during an assessment visit to the Jattu-Fugar-Agenebode Road cut off by gully erosion.
He said the erosion had cut off Etsako West Local Government from Etsako Central and East local Government Area, which are part of the constituency.
Anamero described the situation as worrisome while calling for urgent action by government.
“I want to deeply express my concern about what you have been passing through.
“All I can appeal for is to exercise little patient, I want to assure you as your representative that I will not stop until succor is brought to the people of Etsako Federal Constituency”, Anamero said.
The lawmaker disclosed that officials from the ecological agency had visited the site and called on government and relevant authorities to expedite action on the fixing of the road and other gully sites in the constituency.
“I want to use this medium to call on the Federal Government to pay attention to the plight of my people towards addressing the menace of gully erosion threatening my constituency”, he said.

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