Tension is building up in the Niger Delta over the dwindling popularity of President Goodluck Jonathan in the region ahead of his re-election bid in the 2015 general elections. National Mirror investigation showed that notable political and ethnic leaders as well as prominent ex-Ijaw militant commanders in the oil-rich belt, who were hitherto allies of the President, are now distancing themselves from his second term bid in 2015.
Our correspondent gathered that President Jonathan could only count on the support of the Governor of his home state, Bayelsa, Mr. Seriake Dickson and his Akwa Ibom State counterpart, Mr. Godswill Akpabio, among the five governors elected on the platform of his party, Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in the region.
Rivers State Governor, Rotimi Amaechi and his counterpart in Delta State, Mr. Emmanuel Uduaghan, were reported to have abandoned President Jonathan in the countdown towards 2015.
Amaechi and Uduaghan were said to be working with some northern interests to unseat President Jonathan in the 2015 elections.
The two governors were said to be willing to pick the vice-presidency ticket under a northern presidential candidate in the 2015 election.
The helmsmen of the two oil-rich states were said to be perfecting their plots in collaboration with some northern political leaders.
Similarly, most ethnic nationalities in the region are disenchanted with Jonathan.
It was gathered that the ethnic nationalities are concerned that Jonathan had nothing to show for his solid support base in the region in the 2011 elections in terms of appointment of their kinsmen into strategic federal positions and provision of infrastructure as well as development projects.
For the ethnic nationalities in the region, Jonathan had failed to provide democracy dividends, as there was nothing to show that the region produced the President of the country since 2010.
Specifically, National Mirror gathered that the stakeholders in the region, including ex-militant commanders are concerned about the poor state of the East/West Road and that the Jonathan administration had not completed and commissioned any strategic project in the region.
In another vein, some ethnic nationalities in the region are accusing the President of treating the region as being “synonymous with Ijaw”, his ethnic group, despite the fact that some members of his Ijaw group too were not satisfied with his performance.
A prominent Ijaw leader and popular defender of Jonathan’s administration, who pleaded that his name should not be mentioned in print, told National Mirror, that “Jonathan is disappointedly slow.”
“To be frank with you, we have nothing to show for his (Jonathan) presidency yet in Ijawland in almost three years of his presidency and yet other ethnic nationalities in the Niger Delta are claiming that the President is favouring his Ijaw people. Where are the projects in Ijawland? The Ijaw too have not got anything. It is difficult for me to come out to say it publicly but Jonathan is disappointedly slow.
“For instance, he is just announcing appointment into the federal boards piecemeal two years after he came to power. Where are coastal roads and projects in the Niger Delta? The East/West Road is still in deplorable state, killing people everyday. I regret to say that Jonathan may not be a credible product to market for the 2015 presidential election in the Niger Delta,” added the Ijaw leader, who craved anonymity.
The Urhobo Progress Union, UPU, the umbrella body of the Urhobo ethnic nationality in the region, has also scored Jonathan low.
Urhobo is the second largest ethnic nationality in the region and the sixth largest ethnic group in the country.
UPU’s National Secretary General, Elder John Onojakpor, in an interview with National Mirror yesterday, said the group had not been rewarded by Jonathan for their support for him in the 2011 election.
Onojakpor said: “We don’t have any record of benefit for the energy and money we spent on his election in 2011 to date. There is no direct engagement of the UPU for the benefit of Urhobo nation. The UPU applied to visit him since 2010 to present the position of our people to him but up till now, our request has not been granted.
“We are peace-loving but it is shameful that the government tends to dialogue and discuss with those making trouble and causing ethnic disharmony. Today, we (Urhobo) are marginalised, oppressed and we are not taken into account. We have been turned into third class citizens. How can the largest ethnic nationality in Delta State, the second in Niger Delta and the sixth largest ethnic nationality in the country be treated as if we are nobody by Jonathan’s government?
“Qualified Urhobo people are not being appointed into federal positions and infrastructures are not being provided in our communities. What have we done? This government is taking our peace-loving nature for stupidity,” the UPU scribe lamented.
The Leader of the Isoko Ethnic Nationality in Delta State, Senator Spanner Okpozo, also lamented that his people have been shortchanged by Jonathan’s administration. Okpozo said the Isoko had not reaped any benefit to compensate for the support given to Jonathan in the 2011 elections.
According to him, Jonathan must produce evidence of his administration’s performance in Isokoland before his kinsmen could consider their support for his re-election in 2015.
Okpozo said: “The Jonathan government has done nothing in Isokoland. I have not seen any benefit in Isokoland. In fact, the Isoko nation is not happy with this government. The Isoko nation cannot be happy when the government is not doing anything for them. The Isoko people are very aggrieved because of the way they are being treated by the governments at the state and federal levels.
“If they have done anything let them come out to show it. As a matter of fact, we do not have anything to show for our support for Jonathan’s government in 2011 by way of appointment into the federal positions and provision of development projects. Jonathan has to show and convince us about what he has done for us if he wants our support and votes again.”
The Chairman of the Itsekiri Regional Development Council, Chief Ayirimi Emami, described the government “as inept and insensitive.”
Emami, however, said he was not surprised by the conduct of Jonathan’s administration, adding that he never expected “anything good from this government.”
“Since inception of this government up till date, there is no progress. I am not surprised by whatever I am seeing,” Emami lamented.
Jonahan’s popularity has waned even among the ex-Ijaw militant leaders in the region. The exwarlords, who had earlier threatened chaos if the re-election of Jonathan is truncated are today singing different tunes.
Most of the ex-fighters have withdrawn their support for the President mainly because of his perceived close ties with one of their colleagues, Chief Government Ekpemukpolo, popularly known as Tompolo.
It was also gathered that the ex-militants were up in arms against Jonathan because of his refusal to renew their multi-million naira contracts for the protection of the oil pipelines in the region.
Findings showed that the contracts which expired in February 2012 were yet to be renewed by Jonathan, who cited non-performance by the militants as reason for his action.
But the relationship between Jonathan and Tompolo has engendered growing disaffection among the ex-warlords in the region.
Tompolo was being accused of playing an underserved role as an overlord in the region and his colleagues are lamenting that President Jonathan was not treating them as equal partners with him.
Specifically, it was gathered that most of the ex-warlords were grumbling that the Presidency only consulted with Tompolo for key appointment into federal ministries and parastatals as well as award of juicy contracts into the federal agencies.
It was leant that the growing disaffection was accentuated by the prominent roles played by Tompolo in the appointment of the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Elder Godsday Orubebe; the Managing Director of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA, Mr. Patrick Akpobolokemi and the Special Adviser on Niger Delta and Chairman of the Amnesty Programme, Mr. Kingsley Kuku, among others at the apex government.
The ex-warlords were reportedly disenchanted that Tompolo was the major beneficiary of the largesse from NIMASA, Ministry of Niger Delta Affairs, Amnesty Office and other federal parastatals and agencies.
Already, the attention allegedly accorded Tompolo by Jonathan has divided the ex-militants in the region into two camps. It was gathered that Tompolo, who heads one group has only a repentant militant leader from Ondo State, Chief Bobapre Ajube, a.k.a. Shoot-at- Sight, as his loyalist.
Those opposed to Tompolo are camped in another group. The members of the dissenting group are identified as President of the Niger Delta People’s Volunteer Force, Alhaji Mujarhedeen Asari-Dokubo; Chief Ateke Tom, Ebikabowei Victor Ben, alias Boyloaf; Egberi Papa and Farah Dagogo. Consequently, the ex-militant commanders were said to have agreed to distance themselves from the re-election of President Jonathan in 2015.
National Mirror learnt that the aggrieved group was of the position that Jonathan should rely on Tompolo alone to facilitate his re-election in 2015.
It will be recalled that Asari-Dokubo has granted media interviews, saying that the re-election of Jonathan was doubtful.
Ateke Tom and Victor Ben, in a recent advertorial, also berated Jonathan for his perceived lacklustre performance, especially in the region.
“So far in summary, we believe the government of President Jonathan has not done its best in meeting the yearnings and aspirations of Nigerians, who overwhelmingly voted for him, even we, his own people, are seriously dissatisfied with the way things are going and may be left with no option than to withdraw our support if things don’t change in the best interest of Nigerians,” Ateke Tom and Victor Ben, stated in a statement jointly signed last week.
But Tompolo dismissed the claims as the ranting of “frustrated persons”, adding that he was equally “aggrieved” by the conduct of Jonathan.
According to Tompolo’s Media Assistant, Paul Bebenimibo, who spoke in a telephone interview with National Mirror, “As far as Jonathan’s administration is concerned, we are also aggrieved. Tompolo is also aggrieved. Tompolo has not benefited from Jonathan’s government compared to the role he has played for the peace and economic growth of the country. You can imagine that the country was producing 700,000 barrels of crude oil per day in the heat of the Niger Delta crisis while the country is producing 2.8 million barrels per day today due to the onerous efforts of Tompolo.
These people who are claiming that Tompolo is getting so much from the Presidency are just mischievous. They are lying and they are not sincere. The government has always been promising Tompolo to no avail but I can assure you that things will get out of hand very soon. Even the surveillance contract for the oil pipeline being handled by Tompolo and others has not been renewed since February 2012 and yet the team continued to work. The team continues to protect oil facilities and arrest oil vessels and oil thieves while the government failed to meet its obligation.”
Source: OgoniNews