By: Felix Ikpotor
As politicking for the 2023 elections continue, immediate past representative of the Rivers South East Senatorial District and a frontline governorship aspirant in Rivers State, Magnus Ngei Abe has called on Rivers students to be involved in deciding the kind of leaders that would rule over them.
Abe, who is seeking to govern Rivers State on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) stated this while speaking at a seminar put together by the Progressives Students Network (PSN) at the Rivers State University (RSU) Port Harcourt .
The former lawmaker urged the students to be part of the change they desired in the society by being politically conscious and electing the right persons into leadership positions.
He pointed out that if they remain indolent and not get up and pursue what they want through exercising their franchise , then the change and the better Nigeria they want won’t be achieved.
“Every four years in this country we have an election where we choose our leaders. But what a lot of us do not understand is the powers we have during election and we have not been able to use that powers correctly, and that is what has kept us where we are today. There is nobody today that you talk to that is happy the way we are, everyone imagines that we can be in a better place and yes, I want to agree with you that we can be in a better place but we can’t be in a better place simply by saying so.We can get to a better place by working hard to move from where we are to where we want to be. We cannot continue to do things the exact same way we have been doing them and expect a different result,” he said.
Continuing, he advised the students against voting with sentiments.
“We have been voting in this country. The way we vote and the reasons for which we vote have not changed and therefore the result that we get from the votes that we cast has also not changed. As students, you have a common problem and therefore must identify a common objectives. You have to identify people who have thesame challenges, thesame aspirations, thesame targets and work with them so that you can arrive at where you are going to. If you continue to vote by sentiments, if they continue to tell you to vote by sentiments, because this person is from here or because this person is like this, because that person is like that, it does not give you an opportunity to identify people going your direction and to work with people going thesame place with you,” he stated.
Abe added: “If you want equity, you must stand up and fight for equity. In this election, you cannot just sit down and expect that equity, justice, fairness, goodness, progress, prosperity will come to you except you get up and do what you yourself need to do, equity will not come to you. So I came here today to contribute to this conversation about electoral enlightenment.
While advising them to get their permanent voters cards (PVC), the former secretary to Rivers State Government said, “if you want a better life, if you want a better Rivers State, if you want a better university, if you want a better future for yourself, your siblings, your parents at home then don’t be indolent, we must get up and be able to fight for it”.
Keynote speaker at the event, Dr Justin Gabriel of the Department of Management Sciences, RSU, while speaking on the theme, “Citizens Participation in Electoral Processes and Democratic Prosperity,” said there is need for everyone to participate in the electoral process by joining political groups, volunteering to run for an office, voting in elections, and ensuring that they have their permanent voters cards (PVC).
“Do not be politically reluctant so you can have a say in who governs you. If we elect a good leader, if we participate in the electoral process, we would be able to reap from the ingredients of democratic prosperity,” he stated.
In his address, President-General of Progressives Students Network (PSN), Endwell Otonnah thanked Senator Abe for accepting the call to run for governorship of the state.
He explained that PSN is a body formed to network across the various institutions of the state to preach good tidings to Rivers State students, remind Rivers State students of “your antecedents and your contribution to the students community”.
He said, “Rivers State students and members of PSN are here to assure and to give you our word that we will support you to ensure that come 2023, you will be the next governor of Rivers State”.
Otonnah said the students community had made wrong choices in the past, but stated that it was time to right the wrongs.
“For sometime now, the students community, we have made mistakes in times of electioneering that’s why we end up producing people who do not understand the interest of the students and the students community.Its time for us to make that right decision and I want to appeal to each one of us again to come out in our numbers and support Senator Magnus Ngei Abe because if he occupies the seat as governor, the students will no longer cry for what is our right and what is due to the students,” he said.
Highpoints of the event was the presentation of an award of honour to Senator Abe by the students and inauguration of the RSU chapter of PSN.
