An elder statesman and prominent Niger Delta activist, Rev Sokari Soberekon, has expressed excitement over the judgment of the Supreme Court which affirmed the election of Governor Siminalayi Fubara, describing it as good omen for the State.
This is even as he picked holes in the privatisation of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation(NNPC) by the Muhammadu Buhari administration.
Soberekon, who bared his mind in an interview in Port Harcourt said the victory of Governor Fubara at the Supreme Court was one of the best things that have happened in the State, describing the Governor as God-sent and a leader who has come to the Brick House to liberate the State and Rivers people from the shackles of poverty.
According to him, Governor Fubara’s victory at the Supreme Court was divinely inspired and a strong indication that God has not forgotten the people.
He said as a child of good luck going by his name, Governor Fubara would not only bring good luck to the State but also wipe away the tears of the people whom he noted had been subjected to excruciating pains and hardship for several years.
The Niger Delta activist posited that the name, ‘Fubara’ is known as ‘IbiFubara’ in Kalabari land, which he said means good luck, and urged the Governor to remain focused and committed in delivering the dividends of democracy and good governance to the people.
According to him, he would love the Fubara administration to channel its attention to the resuscitation of the School-to-land programme of the Fidelis Oyakhilome administration, as this would not only create employment opportunities for the teeming youths of the State but also pave the way for massive production of food in the State.
He also indicated that paying bursary allowances to students in tertiary institutions; and introduction of free feeding programmes in primary and secondary schools in the State by the current administration would be lofty initiatives to cushion the effects of hardship currently faced by the people of the State.
While wishing the Governor well and applauding him for the Supreme Court victory, Soberekon advised him to continue to tread the path of peace in order to place on the pedestal of uncommon growth, development and prosperity in the next four years.
Commenting on the privatisation of the NNPC, Soberekon described it as fraudulent and unconstitutional, insisting that the Federal Government is supposed to only privatise what it produces and manufactures in its own factory and not products and resources God has given to the people of the Niger Delta to use and better their lives.
He said God gave crude oil to the people of the Niger Delta, adding that it is not fair the government to hijack and privatise the NNPC without the consent of the people, lamenting that the 13 percent oil derivation funds which are supposed to be paid to oil producing host communities are not accounted for.
Soberekon also gave knocks to the Federal Government for its inability to build a museum in Oloibiri Community in Bayless State as promised, contending that the government has abandoned the people of the area to suffer in poverty and neglect.
He, however, called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to intervene to correct the injustice by building a University of Petroleum Technology in the community where oil was first struck in commercial quantity in the country.