By Simeon Nwakaudu
To be a member of the crisis-torn Rivers State All Progressives Congress (APC) simply implies that nothing is sacred to you. There are no boundaries in your willingness to dole out lies. You must embrace falsehood as a way of life.
It is on this score, that members of Rivers APC fight in utmost desperation to politicize security, hoping in futility that they will gain political mileage therefrom.
It is embarrassing that the leadership of Rivers APC learnt no lessons from the heavy defeat they suffered during the 2015 General elections and the reruns that followed.
he song according to “insecurity ” was their only campaign slogan. They framed several stories of insecurity, sponsored several Port Harcourt based radio stations, sponsored print and electronic media campaigns to sell the false insecurity narrative. On social media, they sponsored posts/tweets to deride the security architecture of Rivers State.
At the time, everywhere the Minister of Transportation, Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi and his side-kick, Dakuku Peterside went, they would concoct a story on insecurity. Any ambulance seen on the road was attributed to insecurity. These failed politicians took their childish cries to the absurd.
Their rejection during the rerun elections quitened the state. While Amaechi ran to Abuja, Dakuku ran to Lagos. The Rivers APC stopped the sponsorship of their media attack dogs to circulate fake stories on Rivers security. That was when people stopped reading the daily headlines: “Rivers of Blood”.
Ahead of the 2019 elections, the Rivers APC criminally minded leaders are back with their illogical sponsorship of reports of alleged insecurity in the state. They are back with the era of carefully orchestrated planted reports to paint Rivers State black in the media, hoping to reap political benefits.
These planted false reports on insecurity are the only entry port of the Rivers APC into the polity of the state. Otherwise, they have no other route to seek relevance. Governor Wike through outstanding performance has concluded the 2019 elections even before the casting of the first ballot.
This much was admitted by the Former Osun State Governor, Mr Rauf Aregbesola, during a high level APC reconciled meeting in Asaba. He said that PDP is out of the reach of Rivers APC.
Instead of accepting the reality, Rivers APC is spending several bilĺlions to de-market Rivers State. They pay for countless adverts and commercials, alleging insecurity. At times, they go as low as sponsoring and defending criminals. Recall that they claimed that the 32 cultists declared wanted by the State Security Council are their members.
Nationally, the statistics of insecurity indicate that Rivers State is not among the leading insecure states. Just the other, bandits killed over 60 policemen in Zamfara State, while gunmen killed 18persons at a wedding in Kaduna. The north- west especially Kaduna, Kano, Zamfara, Katsina and Kebbi are witnessing the worst form of robbery, banditry and kidnapping. The Abuja-Kaduna and Kaduna-Kano Expressway are the international headquarters of kidnapping.
Needless to talk about the collapse of security in the North Central States of Benue, Plateau, Nasarawa and Kogi States. Fulani herdsmen have killed over 20, 000 persons and destroyed thousands of homes according to the United States Council on Foreign Relations. In the South-West, dare-devil robbers have continued to torment residents of Ondo, Ekiti, Ogun and
Osun States. In Lagos State, the badoo cult has remained a major challenge. We need not talk about the North-East.
In all these states and geo-political zones, nobody has blamed the governors for the failures of the security architecture. The reason is simple, all the security agencies are directly under the control of the failed APC Federal Government. Nationwide, the Buhari administration has failed to coordinate security operations to protect lives and property.
In the case of Rivers State, Governor Wike has taken very profound measures to protect Rivers people despite the failures of the security agencies. He has continued to initiate schemes to secure the state and create the right environment for investors to thrive and for individuals to carry out their businesses un-molested.
To strengthen the security architecture of the state; Governor Wike in the course of the last three and half years , has distributed over 300 security vans to all the security agencies in the state to fight crime.
The Wike administration has also procured six armoured personnel carriers, while 50 broken down armoured personnel carriers have been rehabilitated by the Rivers State Government for use of security agencies.
The administration has restored and sustained monthly subvention to security agencies. This is significant because the immediate past APC administration in the state failed to release funds to security agencies for over three years.
To improve marine security, Governor Wike procured and handed over 8 Security Gunboats to the Nigerian Navy. The process of the acquisition of 13 more security vans for the Nigerian Army, Nigerian Navy and Nigerian Police has been activated by Governor Wike.
More than 20 security gunboats have been rehabilitated by the Wike administration and put to use by the security agencies operating in the state. Cooperating with the Nigerian Navy Ship Pathfinder, NNS Pathfinder, the Rivers State Government completed residential quarters for Naval personnel at the Naval Base in Rumuolumeni.
Governor Wike introduced the State Amnesty Programme in partnership with the Armed Forces. This programme which was a huge success witnessed thousands of cultists and kidnappers laying down their arms, which were publicly destroyed. When a few of those who received amnesty reneged, Governor Wike initiated a system that led to the arrest of several of them by security agencies.
To ensure that cultish and kidnapping were checked, the State amended the Anti-kidnapping and Anti-Cultism laws.
Going forward, the Neighbourhood Safety Corps Agency was established via a law of the State House of Assembly to create employment for thousands of Youths as well as provide intelligence services for the security who have numerical disadvantage.
Incidentally, it was the Rivers State APC working in concert with the Nigerian Army that disrupted the training programme of the Rivers State Neighbourhood Safety Corps Agency. But Governor Wike remains committed to the peace and security of Rivers State.
Governor Wike deserves credit for his investments and commitment to security in the face of National collapse of the security infrastructure. The APC Federal Government has lost touch with the realities of National Security Administration. The security agencies seem primed for election rigging in 2019, hence they have abandoned their primary roles and are seen at APC Campaigns.
Therefore, governors like Wike work overtime to stabilise security in the state through vital engagements with well-meaning stakeholders. Needless to quickly add that Rivers APC are not part of this stakeholder community. They form the group of saboteurs who sponsor crime, negative propaganda and disheartening misinformation about the state.
In Rivers State, Governor Wike has provided an atmosphere of relative peace and security, while nationally, the APC Federal Government that controls the levers of security have turned the country into a deadly killing field where soldiers and policemen are no longer safe.
It is ridiculous for APC urchins to cry insecurity in Rivers State, when they are aware that across the country GENERALS and rank/file security personnel are being murdered daily without the least response from their failed Federal Government.
No wonder Nigerians have resolved to sack this lifeless political party at the Federal Level in 2019, so that we can get the country working again. We cannot tolerate these motor park touts any further. Let’s all join hands to rescue Nigeria.
