“Rivers people gave him a chance to serve them in 2015 after the abracadabra that took place. Rather than work for them, Wike turned against them and chastised them from day one. Rather than keep the people safe, heads of innocent and defenceless persons were gruesomely cut off. Whole families were wasted by hit squads, while property worth millions of Naira were destroyed in several parts of the state," the statement read.
Tonye Cole, the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State, says Nyesom Wike, the state Governor, lacks the moral right to seek a second term in office.
He challenged Wike to publish his achievements since he began his tenure as Governor, noting that his hit squads wasted entire families.
In a statement issued by Ogbonna Nwuke, spokesperson to the APC governorship candidate, Cole claimed that Wike "squandered the opportunity to write his name in the history books" by turning against the people after being elected Governor.
His words: “Rivers people gave him a chance to serve them in 2015 after the abracadabra that took place. Rather than work for them, Wike turned against them and chastised them from Day One. Rather than keep the people safe, heads of innocent and defenceless persons were gruesomely cut off. Whole families were wasted by hit squads, while property worth millions of naira were destroyed in several parts of the state.
“Three years down the line, the Governor who has squandered the opportunity to write his name in the history books wants a second chance. Even members of his party who have seen how bad he is, are not looking forward to a Wike second term.
"We challenge the Rivers Governor to tell Rivers people what he has done with billions of naira belonging to them. Before asking for a second tenure, Wike should tell Rivers people where he kept N117billion that the EFCC says has been stolen from the coffers of Rivers State. Wike should tell Rivers people where he is getting the billions of naira that he is using to buy them out of their land and acquire palatial structures all over Port Harcourt.
“He should tell us why we have the highest unemployment rate in the country despite billions of naira that are flowing into the State. He should tell them why we are No 1 in all the wrong places, insecurity, waste mismanagement, occurrence of HIV and the national misery index.”
He urged the people of Rivers to support Cole, stating that “Cole knows that the greatest task of any responsible government is to protect lives and property. This is why Rivers people should ignore Wike's appeal for a second tenure and vote APC".