Hundreds of Ogonis, under the auspices of Ken Saro-Wiwa Associates as early as 6 this morning gathered at Zakpon Junction in Bori, headquarters of Ogoniland, staging a peaceful protest against the bill signed into law upgrading the Rivers State College of Arts and Science, RIVCAS, in Port Harcourt into a full-fledged Polytechnic, called Port Harcourt Polytechnic
The protesters who were led by Gani Topba, National Co-ordinator, Ken-Saro Wiwa Associates were mainly made up women,youths and men gathered at Zakpon Junction in Bori said they are unhappy that Governor Nyesom Wike’s administration has a grand plan to develop the new Port Harcourt Polytechnic into a world class polytechnic while neglecting the Ken Saro-Wiwa Polytechnic, thereby destroying the socio-economic development of the people of Ogoniland.
Topba alleged that with the law confirmation former RIVCAS into a polytechnic in Port Harcourt, the Governor continued the agenda of concentrating all the major tertiary institutions in Port Harcourt and Obio-Akpor local Government area which are in Ikwerre land where the homeland of the Governor.
The National Co-ordinator of Ken Saro-Wiwa Associates said: “This morning Ogoni people have gathered in Bori headquaters of the Ogoni people to speak their minds against the upgrading of RIVCAS into a Polytechnic. What has happened is to destroy the economy of Ogoni people. Remember yesterday that Senator Lee Maeba the Chairman of Governing Council of Port Harcourt Polytechnic( who ironically is Ogoni ) stated the plan by the Rivers Government to develop Port Harcourt Polytechnic into a world class Polytechnic. That means in a few days time, the Rivers State Government will close down the Ken Saro-Wiwa Polytechnic. So we have come to tell our people that no matter what happens all hopes are not lost. We’ve come to tell our people that we must look inwards to improve Ogoniland”.
When reminded that Governor Wike had made it clear that the upgrading of RIVCAS into a Polytechnic was to bring education to the grassroots, Topba said: “You can see the concentration of Universities and now Polytechnic in Obio-Akpor and Port Harcourt City local government areas. What about Degema and Etche why not site Polytechnics there?”
While signing the Port Harcourt Polytechnic bill into law yesterday in Governor House, Governor Wike decried the politicization of the upgrading of RIVCAS to Port Harcourt Polytechnic as unnecessary because if the funds we were there the government would have established one Polytechnic each in the three Senatorial districts in the state.
Source: The News
