By: Felix Ikpotor
Youths of the South South region under the aegis of South South Youth Initiative (SSYI) have called on the governor of Rivers State, Chief Nyesom Wike to forget about his presidential ambition and attend to the various developmental issues plaguing the state.
National President of SSYI, Comrade Imeabe Saviour Oscar who stated this while briefing newsmen in Port Harcourt noted that in the past seven years, the governor has concentrated more on politics than governance, alleging that he has sacrificed the welfare of the people on the altar of partisan politics.
“Our dear Rivers State is in serious need of good governance which can only be achieved through commitment and concentration of a thoughtful and positive administration. However, it’s obvious that the current governor and his team do not understand what development is all about because all we see is media stunts instead of delivering the dividends of democracy,” he said.
The added that they are yet to see any programme of the government aimed at engaging youths or creation of jobs rather it has killed the agricultural and other noble ideas of past administrations such as the Songhai farms, Buguma fish farms, Tai plantain plantation amongst others.
Giving further reasons why Wike should shelve his presidential ambition, the group lamented that, ” at a time when we were hoping for jobs, the governor closed the state’s owned transport company, RTC, Rivers State Sustainable Development Agency, RSSDA and also sacked 400 lecturers who were duly employed by the immediate past administration.”
It stated further that, ” our retirees are left at the mercy of continuous protest for their right without any positive response from the government. Also, our civil servants have stayed stagnant for too long without promotion”.
SSYI said it was too painful to see aged retirees on the streets of the state every time for protest, advising the government to immediately pay the retirees their pension allowances and gratuities and effect promotion for civil servants.
The youths also called in the governor to create 60,000 jobs as the promised 5,000 jobs are no longer enough to absorb the teeming unemployed youths.
The group also advised the governor to begin the process of decongesting Port Harcourt City and Obio Akpor and move development to other local government areas of the state.
To this end, the group stated, “We are urging Chief Nyesom Wike to put his presidential ambition on hold until he fulfils the promises he made to Rivers youths and workers seven years ago. The governor promised during his campaigns to create jobs, empower youths, pay pensioners, gratuities, scholarship as well as bursary to our students but as we speak, none has seen the light of the day.”
The youths while giving the governor two months to address their demands warned that, “If Wike fails to heed to our advise and goes ahead with his presidential ambition, we will have no other option than to takeover the Rivers State Government House in protest ad we will call the attention of the world to the pain and disappointment of this administration”
