Who is waking sleeping dogs and who is making the dead walk again in Rivers State? Elections are very dangerous and powerful moments. Any man who wants to know his DNA without going to any lab test should put forward his name for election.
Rivers State has a troubled but recent past with bones of her heroes not yet interred. Besides, the blood of her martyrs are being searched for in the palms of her heroes.
The state’s democratic path since 1999 is dotted with the bones of the likes of Marshal Harry who was assassinated in an Abuja apartment; A.K. Dikibo whose murder shook the foundations of the state; Ignatius Ajuru, Gospel Biobele, etc.
Now, a new political dispensation seems to open the graves to allow the bones to rise to choke some persons and the corpses to walk and haunt the living.
The search for the killers of Rivers sons had ended in incompetent police divisions and at the Eso Panel of Inquiry, but has a fresh inquest begun? When friends quarrel, many secrets seem to tumble out.
The person leading the inquest is no other than the strongman of Rivers politics and governor of the state who seems to have many secret records. Now, Gov Nyesom Wike has recalled aspects of the Eso Panel report.
He says his erstwhile medic-political ally now turned foe, Abiye Sekibo, who is now the Director-General of the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) Presidential Campaign Council (PCC) in the State should disclose to the world the killer of A.K Dikibo, former vice chairman, South-South of PDP.
How did Sekibo provoke Wike, his former ally? Sekibo said Wike sent assassins after him when he went to clear grounds for Atiku Abubakar rally. Wike countered that he never sent assassins but went to dislodge Sekibo and his boys that were trespassing into what he termed government land.
This is enough to provoke verbal warfare between former allies now foes. Gov Wike threw up the challenge to counter the false claim put up by Sekibo that the PDP presidential campaign council was putting off its campaign in Rivers State because of the threat to the life of members of the campaign council.
Wike returned the blow, on Monday in Okrika: “All of us know who Abiye Sekibo is. Don’t we? I use this medium today to challenge him. I want to ask you wherever you are, can you tell us who killed A.K Dikibo, the former national vice chairman south-south of the PDP.”
Gov Wike was not done. “Who killed Chief Gospel Biobele? He was the one who wrote petition against Abiye not to be minister when he was nominated. Immediately Biobele wrote the petition, the next day he was killed in his house. Abiye Sekibo who killed Biobele?”
Gov Wike stated that Kayode Eso of blessed memory was chairman of Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) set up by the Chibuike Amaechi’s administration and whose report allegedly indicted Sekibo.
“Ordinarily, I shouldn’t bother myself with a man who is known for killing, and who is now saying they want to kill him. Abiye, I challenge you.”
Speaking further, Gov Wike stated that it is because of the alleged dastardly character that former president Olusegun Obasanjo sacked him as his Minister of Transport and will not have anything to do with him thereafter.
Governor Wike explained that PDP PCC in Abuja had applied to him seeking approval of a venue to use for their rally in the state, which was approved.
But having realised that they do not have the capacity to mobilise the crowd to fill the Adokiye Amiesimaka Stadium, he said the PCC went to clear another piece of land in Trans-Amadi Industrial Layout owned by the State government, which was not granted.
Instead of returning to prepare the stadium that was approved, the governor said the PCC chose to make spurious allegation of threat to life as the reason they were putting off holding their rally in Rivers State.
“They now said no, we won’t go there again. We don’t want people to die. Who is killing who? Is anybody killing anybody? I said don’t pay money, I will buy the diesel for you. I will do everything for you. Mobilise, go and fill that stadium. They ran away.”
Soliciting votes for PDP consolidation team, Gov Wike told PDP members in Akuku-Toru Local Government Area to ensure that they won their individual political units and wards for the party during the general elections that are billed to hold on 25th February and 11th March 2023.
Rivers State governorship candidate of the PDP, Siminialayi Fubara, noted the several projects given to them by Gov Wike such as the Abonnema ring-road, healthcare, phase one of Trans-Kalabari road and security.
He assured of more to come such as effective development of youths in the area, improving living condition of the people and making the state better.
Speaking at the event, the Rivers State Chairman of PDP, Desmond Akawor, who presented the party’s flags to the various candidates, urged Akuku-Toru people to deliver 100 per cent votes to all PDP candidates in the area.
Speaking on behalf of the candidates that are flying the flag of the party, the Rivers State Deputy governor, Ipalibo Harry Banigo, contesting for Rivers West Senatorial District, noted the massive turn out of the people and urged them to continue in such show of love by voting for them to win.
(Column in BusinessDay every Thursday_
