…PDP planning to plant materials in our members homes-APC
By: Felix Ikpotor
Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike has expressed confidence that his party, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, will win the forthcoming Rivers rerun legislative elections without violence.
He stated that electorates in the state will not allow anybody to impose representatives on its people, stressing that they should be allowed to elect their representatives.
It would be recalled that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has fixed the rerun elections into the Senate, House of Representatives and state House of Assembly for December 10.
The governor who spoke during a PDP dedication service for the flag-off campaign of 2016 rerun/supplementary election at Saint Paul’s Anglican Church in Port Harcourt on Sunday, urged INEC to be neutral in the course of the rerun election to ensure that the will of the people prevails.
“This election will prove whether INEC is ready to conduct free and fair elections in Nigeria,” he said.
The governor noted that the PDP remains committed to violence-free elections, pointing out that the opponents of PDP should play by the rules of engagement.
“What causes violence during election is when the umpire wants to manipulate, rig or write results. We will resist any attempt to write results.
“PDP will not be involved in anything violent, but we will not allow anyone to steal our votes. We will protect our votes and ensure that the people’s mandate is declared,” he said.
The governor explained that the PDP was dedicating its forthcoming campaigns for the rerun elections to God, because the party relies on God for victory.
He noted that the PDP is sure of victory at the rerun polls because of the achievements of his administration in the last 17 months.
Few days ago, Wike had accused INEC and the Nigerian Police of colluding with the All Progressives Congress, APC, to manipulate the upcoming re-run election in the state.
Meanwhile, the Rivers State Chapter of the All Progressives Congress, APC, has responded to Sunday’s press release by Jerry Needam on behalf of the State Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Felix Obuah in which the PDP Chairman claimed that the All Progressives Congress, APC, and some of its leaders in Rivers State are plotting the arrest of PDP members in Rivers State as a result of the forthcoming rerun elections in Rivers State.
The APC in a statement signed by its spokesman Mr Chris Finebone, considered the statement by the PDP Chairman as a “revised strategy by the PDP to provide cover for their ongoing project of planting incriminating materials in homes and offices belonging to notable APC leaders in Rivers State and have them incarcerated with the connivance of hired security officers as was done in the botched matter concerning No. 12, Isiokpo Street D/Line, Port Harcourt recently.”
Continuing, the party noted that, “it is indeed very clear that having bungled its attempt to rope in a notable APC chieftain, Hon. Emma Chinda and others, in a purported printing of INEC materials which was planned, executed and orchestrated by the PDP, the latest accusation that APC is planning the arrest of PDP members is only a clever-by-half strategy to create a façade for the Gestapo-style project of the PDP which recently suffered its first setback between No. 12 Isiokpo Street and Government House Port Harcourt.”?
“Having decided to continue with their evil machinations, the PDP and Gov Wike are now raising the accusation of possible arrest of their members in anticipation that their plans may suffer further setbacks which may result in some of their members directly driving the project to be arrested by eagle-eyed security agents who may have put them under security watch after their first bungled attempt.
“However, very disturbing but not surprising is the mention of Sen. Magnus Abe and Dr. Barry Mpigi as some of the APC leaders behind the fictional plan to arrest PDP leaders. We believe that this can only be an extension of the morbid fear by Gov. Nyesom Wike and the PDP for these notable APC leaders in Rivers South-East in particular and Rivers politics in general. It must be said that the towering political stature of Sen Abe and Dr. Mpigi has been a source of sleeplessness for the governor and his party. It is very difficult for the APC to help the governor and his party over their looming electoral resounding defeat by Abe and Mpigi on December 10 or any other date. Gov. Wike and his party must deal with their indwelling fear by themselves and leave APC alone.
“The PDP in Rivers State must learn to abandon its warped and crooked concept of politics and learn to play by the rules. Making fetish of their fear for Sen Abe, Dr. Mpigi and the APC cannot be helpful to Gov Wike and the PDP – not now, not in the future”, the statement finally averred.
