Rivers State All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftain Dr. Dakuku Peterside has said Governor Nyesom Wike will not be re-elected.
He described as toxic, the investment climate in the state, saying it is forcing companies and businesses to be relocating to Lagos and other places.
Peterside, who is the director-general of Nigeria Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), spoke on Sunday evening in Port Harcourt, the state capital, at a session with reporters.
He said: “I have totally turned around the fortunes of NIMASA and President Muhammadu Buhari is extremely proud of what I am doing in NIMASA. On May 29, 2019, Wike will leave as governor of Rivers State, whether I am governorship candidate of APC or not. I am totally for it. I am part of the team that will make Wike leave next year. We have never had it this bad in Rivers State. Wike and his allies act as if they are not accountable to anyone.
“Stopping Wike next year by the electorate is about the survival of Rivers State. It is about hope for Rivers people. Enough is enough of the bad governance, for Rivers people to have breath of fresh air, hope and have commensurate development. Wike’s government has more money compared with Amaechi’s administration, without anything to show for it. Wike should show Rivers people one project he initiated and completed. We built five flyovers in Amaechi’s government, but Wike is yet to build one flyover.
“Rivers State is at the bottom of Transparency Index (TI) in this country. Rivers State government’s budgets from 2015 are not published/made public. Not one Rivers State government project is advertised, except the third-party projects. Wike is running a secret government. How do you explain the fact that nobody knows the cost of projects? IGR (Internally Generated Revenue) is not known to anybody. Monthly allocation is a best kept secret. No access to information on government activities. No due process in the conduct of government business, forgetting that government is a public trust.
“Wike may have blocked all the loopholes/leakages, but he remains the pipeline of corruption in the government. Wike’s commissioners can testify to the fact. He is the sole awarding authority for contracts, he is the supervising authority, the certifying authority and the sole beneficiary.”
Commissioner for Information and Communications Chief Emma Okah urged Peterside to stop deluding himself about the possibility of defeating Wike next year.
Okah said: “Elections are not won in the media. In 2015, even with a sitting state governor (Amaechi), Peterside lost in his LGA. What has changed for him that will make APC overtake the giant achievements of Governor Wike?
”On investors leaving Rivers state, the information commissioner asked the NIMASA chief to first mention the millions of jobs lost in Nigeria, since APC came to power in 2015.
Okah said: “On the contrary, Rivers State has continued to make a difference. Economic indicators show that the IGR of the state has increased since 2015. In less than a year, Governor Wike has signed more C of Os (Certificates of Occupancy) and consents than the previous government signed in eight years. Tax reforms have eliminated double taxation.
“Security is being tackled head on and the Neighbourhood Watch scheme is receiving attention. Funding of security is a priority, despite the lack of cooperation from a section of the police.”
“Governor Wike’s massive infrastructure projects are creating jobs and have multiple effects on the economy, but unfortunately, Peterside is too bitter, deaf and dumb to know that. On priority of projects, Rivers government owes Peterside no apology, as Governor Wike is rebuilding the state from the sorry state the APC left it in 2015.”
He said Wike’s administration would not be distracted, asking APC leaders to mention what the ruling party had brought to the state, before they could boast of winning elections in 2019.
