Dr. Dakuku Peterside is an acceptable alternative to an Ogoni governorship candidate.
The people of rivers state will be voting into power, another governor that may stay in power until 2023. Across ethnic divide in the state, there are serious concern of one ethnic group taking it all from 2007 when Governor Celestine Omehia begun, until when the Supreme Court handed it to Amaechi, all from Ikwerre nationality. Zoning has been the only answer to the ethnic divide of the state since democracy showed up in the country. Without zoning, the Ijaws, Ogonis and the Ikwerres which are the principal ethnic composition of the state could live like cats and dogs. The advent of Wike, by raw political mathematic, if he becomes governor, may put the Ogonis off the political radar until 2031, eight years of Wike and another eight years of a possible riverine, whom may have a better case against another upland governor come 2023. This election is therefore no longer party base but individual; tribal line and the political future of the Ogoni nation, if the Ogoni must stay in Rivers State. To our Ogoni people, congratulations on the good fight for the Ogoni project 2015. We put up a good fight but destiny (God’s will) seem not to be in our favor this particular season, rather, ironically, God gave us another Ogoni man by proxy. In my humbled opinion, of all blunders Amaechi committed, this is one thing he got right, either by omission or by commission.The party is one thing, but the soul and character of the candidate is another.“I can die for Nigeria but NOT PDP”- OBJ Hope for a Bori State – the Andoni & Opobo Factor We have just celebrated our 22nd Ogoni day in commemoration to our desire as a people to be one step closer to Freedom from political marginalization, suppression, and repression. Our hopes and dreams that one day, and verysoon, we shall have a state created out of the current Rivers, depends verymuch so on our political disposition. The good people of Opobo and Andoni, with whom we have undeniably suffered almost same political fate in Rivers State in particular and in Nigeria in general, would always be our friends andally and would undoubtedly, support our alliances on this noble quest. The Opobo people especially in our recent history demonstrated loyal friendship to us during the Paul Okuntimo/ Dauda Kumo supervised communal clashes within Ogoni and her neighbors in early 90s, by refusing to attack and antagonize the Ogonis that fished along the Ikot Abasi- Opodo – Ogoni River; rather the Opobo people gave our innocent, unsuspecting helpless brothers covers. We have notforgotten this noble gestures and we could reciprocate this by supporting an alternative Ogoni son, legbo pya Ogoni, an Opobo son, Dr. Dakuku Adol Darlington Peterside as the governor of Rivers State. Just in case we have forgotten, Opobo is a small Island that commiserate with Ogoni people, coincidentally, the person in question is an Opobo/Ogoni man…. We can never get it better than this in the interim. A good friend is better than a bad brother. As a young man in Bori in the early 90s, again, Dakuku proved to be a man of trusted loyalty because, even when Bori was deserted during the military invasion and occupation, he didn’t abandon Bori and Ogoni. There are lots of us that remember how Dakuku and us used to sit down at court road, Bori, strategise how to defeat our detractors. Even till date, Dakuku remembered all his childhood friends from Bori, those still at home and those that travelled to the US and will always call them by their names anytime he sees them. His charming personality and his disarming smiles endears him to kings and Queens and ended up as commissioner for works in Rivers State during which Bori got a face-lift in infrastructural improvement and development. We have had some of our own in various levels of government functions and responsibilities, but have shown less concern about us than Dakuku. If Dakuku could transform Bori Town with his limited resources and authorities as a commissioner for works, which most of our people with same level of authorities and responsibilities couldn’t do, you could imagine what he [Dakuku] would do with much authority as a governor. We the Ogoni people have served several Rivers State government in various capacities, diligently and loyally, but no governor has called us his friends, because they do not know us and do not care about us. They only call us offensive and abusive names. They abused us, used us and dumped us. And they are coming again because they think we are deceivable, disposable, reusable etc……, not this time!. We know who our true friend is…..Dakuku Peterside is a true friend of Ogoni. This is the first time we will have a governor that will travel to Bori and Opobo as where he call home. Why would any Ogoni man in his right mind trade this for another Ikwerre man? As speculated, Dakuku will not be a surrogate to Amaechi, by birth, he is an Ijaw man, and this will give us a good case when he hands over to Ogoni eight years down the road. Raw reasons why Ogonis must reject Wike. Wike was the architect of Amaechi’s slavery policy of Banana Plantation and Bori Camp in Ogoni. Evidence shows that the policy originated from the Chief of Staff’s table, but took a long time to be sold and accepted by Amaechi. Wike will make another attempt to move Bori camp from where he claims is Ikwerre to Ogoni if he becomes governor. Currently, if Wike becomes governor, Okrika will have the Speaker, Kalabari Deputy Governor and Ikwerre continue as governor. All of these were cleverly mapped out by Wike long before he lied to Dum Deekor to mobilize Ogonis with a vague promised of speakership to Ogoni. Wike, and Evans Ipipi (the proposed Speaker from Okrika) has concluded plan on how to effectively eliminate Igboro (Eleme) and turn Ogu (Okrika) the heaven they want. Uche Secondus hard line support for Wike is to actualize what he called Andoni revenge on Ogoni. Uche Secondus and the Andoni class fears Ogoni sovereignty and the only way they could checkmate us is to keep us politically down as long as they could. Wike is another approach to this policy. Very strong report also has it that, the idea of Rivers State government staying lukewarm on the UN report on Ogoni was initiated from Wike’s table as chief of staff. As powerful as Wike was, running Amaechi and the government of Rivers State, nobody was able to speak on it and every effort to get it to Amaechi’s table took a natural death. Therefore, Amaechi’s crime against Ogoni is a lesser devil, the bigger devil is when Wike becomes governor. In 2007, shortly after the fall of Celestine Omehia, Wike identified the strongest Ogoni voice in Rivers State house of assembly (Hon. Befii Nwile), cut it down and replace it with a very weak Ogoni voice that will do his bidding. This is why Befii Nwile recently defected into APC hearing that it was clear Wike will get the PDP ticket. Dum Deekor, though an Ogoni man, but a strong tool in the hand of our detractors. The Clipping of Senator Magnus Abe ambition started whenWike was the chief of staff. Wike had seen Magnus Abe as an Ogoni eagle in PDP, now APC, and did everything to frustrate the office of the secretary of the state government. There were reports that the Chief of staff was also the sectary of the state government in practice while Abe was a rubber stamp secretary. Every political aspirant currently with PDP ticket from Ogoni are handpicked by Wike through his DGI group, to ensure continual political marginalization of the Ogoni people. He ensures he picked the worst political proxies over other political fencers to keep Ogoni politically marginalized. The only higher position that Wike’s surrogates from Ogoni are expecting now is a ministerial position. But just like he deceived them about speakership, Wike already promised more than four people from different tribes the same position. The truth is, Rivers State have only two ministerial slots and not four. We are wondering which ministerial slot will be given to Ogoni. And just in case we forgot, an Ogoni man was supposed to be given a minister under Amaechi, Wike told Amaechi there was no law that says a governor and a minister cannot come from the same tribe. To let peace reign, Amaechi nominated Wike for minister. Under Wike, as usual, selected Ogonis will be given Commissioners and special assistance, these are all non-decision, non-policy making positions. Is a way to keep Ogoni under developed and repressed. The activities of Wike and Uche Secondus, trying to use the Ogoni day to cause mayhem on Ogonis by asking their hoodlums to throw down canopies and blocked Dakuku Peterside from coming to the event shows the red flag that the Ogonis are to face if Wike becomes governor. There will be killing in Ogoni which never happened in years. Ikwerre’s Precedent and the Annihilation of the Long Standing Unity of Rivers People. As disappointed as it may be, responsible Ikwerres like Celestine Omehia, Austin Opara etc….. are at the vanguard of this ethnic political divide in Rivers State. They seem not to see the danger of perpetuating their ethnic group in power at the detriment of other ethnic groups. The signal this has created shall spread beyond just politics in the near future. Even when Wike lose this election, Ikwerre people may have done Ikwerre nation more harm than good. We are therefore calling all Kalabaris and Ogonis to massively vote for Dr. Dakuku Perterside to be the governor of Rivers State.
- Idamkue MeneKpugi Lawrence For and on behalf of Ogoni Watch
Source: Eagle Reporters