The Rivers State All Progressives Congress APC has described reports that Governor of Rivers State, Chief Nyesom Wike, spent a whopping N15.5 billion of Rivers State resources to sponsor Saturday’s Elective National Convention of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as shocking,unfortunate, unacceptable and condemnable
The party said the fund was used to install Wike’s lackey, Prince Uche Secondus, as the new National Chairman of the party.
The Rivers State Chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) made the condemnation in a statement issued on Monday in the state capital, Port Harcourt.
“We are truly miffed and embarrassed about the damning report reaching us indicating that Governor Wike wasted a whopping sum of N15.5 billion of Rivers State funds to finance the candidature of his stooge, Prince Uche Secondus, for the office of the National Chairman of PDP,” the party said in the statement signed by the State Chairman, Chief (Dr.) Davies Ibiamu Ikanya.
Rivers APC also mentioned the need to probe an alleged additional N7billion on PDP judicial battles.
It also noted the outcry against use of money by former President Ibrahim Babangida ahead of PDP convention,just as it pointed ut the reasons adduced by Bode George before he withdrew from PDP chairmanship race.
APC said “Further linking our dear Governor with such heinous undemocratic act of circulating a Unity List containing the names of winners of the convention even before the commencement of the convention that made Prof. Tunde Adeniran the only candidate from the South West left to contest the election to reject the conduct of the election exercise even before the results was announced repositions PDP as a party doomed and Governor Wike as its nemesis.
Rivers APC described as shameful, a situation where Governor Wike has abandoned governance in Rivers State, denying the State dividends of democracy, only to use Rivers funds to play Father Christmas in his dying party.”
Continuing, the statement said: “We have always been aware of the notoriety of Governor Wike in acts like this, so we are not surprised that he is today derisively referred to as The Port Harcourt ATM by PDP top stakeholders on account of his huge financial inducement as he is leaving no stone unturned in his bid to take full control of PDP ahead of the 2019 general elections.
“Governor Wike has a reputation of heavy financial inducements; his name has cropped up in every major political bribery saga since 2015. He was caught on tape compromising and threatening INEC officials who were in the State to conduct the several re-run elections and most of the victims of his financial inducement are in currently either in jail or dead.
“Sadly, back home in Rivers State, the government owes a lot of backlog in salaries to civil servants and arrears of pension to pensioners. The Governor is also known for embarking on low-value projects spiced up with massive media coverage. He has destroyed our education by recalling our students on scholarship overseas, etc, in addition to several other atrocities.”
Rivers APC said it would have asked the State House of Assembly “to investigate all these anomalies but, unfortunately, we have an Assembly that only sits when the Governor wants it to sit.”
The party, therefore, urged the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) “to immediately step in to investigate all these alleged diversion of the public funds of the people of Rivers State into unprofitable ventures and cause those concerned to account and assist to retrieve these sums in order to end the unimaginable ordeal of the good people of Rivers State in Wike’s hands before he completely liquidates the State.”
