Governorship candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in the 2023 general election in Rivers State, Senator Magnus Ngei Abe, has declared that nobody can deny the people of Ogoni ethnic nationality their right to produce the next governor of the state.
Abe made the declaration while speaking at a reception organized in his honour by the people of Zaakpon community in Khana local government area of Rivers State.
The governorship hopeful stated that the people of the state have generally agreed that the next governor should come from the Rivers South-East senatorial district, pointing out that the slot should go to Ogoni considering their population.
He said: “In 1999, Ogoni people supported Rivers West senatorial district to produce governor. We led Ogoni chiefs and elders to former Governor Peter Odili to give the governorship to Ikwerre because everybody agreed that it was the turn of Rivers East senatorial district. Ikwerre has ruled Rivers State for 16 years and Rivers West ruled for eight years.
“Now is the turn of Rivers South-East senatorial district to produce the next governor of Rivers State. In the Rivers South-East, Ogonis are in majority. We are like the first son of the Rivers South-East.
“In this same senatorial district, there had been two deputy governors and we didn’t take. Did we complain? They have produced Speaker from this same senatorial district, we didn’t not take. Did we complain?
“Since the creation of Rivers State, has an Ogoni man led any arm of government? Today, everybody has agreed that it is the turn of Rivers South-East and nobody, I say nobody will deny us that right because we have the population.”
Abe called on Ogoni people to go and collect their Permanent Voter’s Cards (PVC), in order to have the opportunity of making the right decision during the 2023 governorship election in the state.
He said: “The second thing I want to say is to thank Dornubari Asogho, the youth leader. He called me and to say that he is the youth leader and that I should not listen to any other person. He invited me to come to Zaakpon and I assured him that I will come. Today, I am here.
“I came because the issue that concerns us is what concerns us. I am an Ogoni man and all of you are Ogoni men and women. Anybody that is putting on shoe knows where it is pinching him or her. Another person cannot come to your house to tell you where the shoe you are wearing is pinching you. It is only you that knows where your shoe is pinching you.
“So, I came to Zaakpon today to come to talk to the youths, the elders and the women. The first thing I will say is that we should know that anywhere we go to talk, we represent our family, we are representing our community and we are representing our people.
“My father told me that people that don’t know him; people that never met Rev. Abe, people who never saw Cannon Abe, will respect him because of me. He advised me to always conduct myself in a manner that people will respect him anywhere I go. Today, people that don’t know my father respects him because I respect myself.
“So, I want to advise my brothers, my younger brothers, even some of our senior ones here in Ogoni, anywhere we are, let us conduct ourselves in such a manner that people will respect our parents.
“Secondly, I came here to remind you people, that people have been going around sensitizing people to go and their collect PVC. My brothers, go and collect your PVC because there is something Ogoni people will do with the PVCs.”
Highlight of the occasion was the decoration of Senator Magnus Ngei Abe as ‘Mene be eeba 1 of Bua Zaakpon community by chiefs and elders of Bua Zaakpon led by Chief Sampson Adamgbo.
