2023: There Is No PDP Without Rivers – Wike Boasts, Issues Warning

Nyesom Wike, the governor of Rivers State, has declared that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) will not exist if the needs of the state are not prioritized.

He predicted that the upcoming election would demonstrate the state’s strategic political significance.

The Governor insisted that Rivers cannot go on being a garbage dump where the needs of the populace are ignored in a speech on Monday at the start of construction on the Elele Civic Center in the Elele Internal Roads, Ikwerre Local Government Area of the state.

He made the case that because the state is so important to the affairs of the nation, it is only right that support for an individual be returned.

He issued a warning to those in Abuja who were making political threats against the government, telling them to think twice or face consequences.

Wike described how despite a significant military presence in the state, Rivers refused to negotiate with the All Progressives Congress and did not cast 25% of the votes for President Muhammadu Buhari in the 2019 election.

He boasted that people should tremble when he speaks, claiming that Rivers ranks higher than any other state.

The governor of Rivers State revealed that politicians have begun exerting increased pressure on the National Assembly to swiftly pass the Niger Delta Development Commission’s (NDDC) N500 billion budget in light of the 2023 general elections.

Since NDDC was established, look at the money that has gone into NDDC. What can we show for it? The NDDC has become a cash cow for politicians. The President has just inaugurated the new board of the NDDC. Do you know what is going on now? There is a N500bn budget for NDDC. The election is coming on 25th February, Now, what the politicians have done is to put pressure on the National Assembly so that they will pass the N500bn budget for NDDC.

He explained that some politicians with an interest in the general elections in 2023 have already decided how to siphon off the NDDC budget, and if they are successful, the region will suffer even more.

Governor Wike criticized the commission for never considering it appropriate to consult the oil-producing States when preparing its budget, despite the fact that those who oversee the NDDC’s affairs are sons and daughters of these states.