By Simeon Nwakaudu
On Monday, 30th November, 2015, the hierarchy of the APC propelled their defeated and misguided minions in Rivers State to orchestrate conflict and truncate the entrenched developmental process that has engulfed the state. Fortunately for the people of Rivers State, these purveyors of under-development and unmitigated falsehood failed.
Their expectations of evil did not see the light of day because darkness which they represented by their black costumes will never overcome progress. So, as they attempted to provoke violence, the good people of Rivers State watched them patiently, allowing them to exhaust their bag of mischievous tricks.
As an important information, every case of reported violence before and during the last general elections can be squarely placed at the doorsteps of the immediate past Rivers State Governor, Rotimi Amaechi who was APC national electoral financier. Few weeks to the election, Amaechi took advantage of the then collapsed judiciary which he personally crippled to unilaterally release over 300 arrested militants and cultists awaiting trial into the streets of Rivers State. I will come back to this unpatriotic Amaechi’s act later in this piece .
As they marched on Aba road before they moved to the venue of their campaign rally where they used unprintable words soaked in illegality, the good people of Rivers State took the time to promote safe practices aimed at reducing HIV/AIDS in line with the World AIDS Day that came up on December 1. Unlike the harbingers of evil news, the people of Rivers State wore white signifying peace and development.
The Rivers State APC failed Black Monday march had all the trappings of a poorly scripted Nollywood film. It was like a scene of hired mourners who did not take time to rehearse their lines before stepping on stage.[pro_ad_display_adzone id=”70560″]
Because the Rivers State APC and her leaders have been notorious for falsehood and make-believe, they were unable to be truthful for once. First, the list released by the party was premised on fiction as many of the names had no correlation with the state.
Secondly, a notoriously violent former defeated state lawmaker, Chidi Lloyd, conspicuously led aspects of the march with concealed sword tucked in a walking stick. Lloyd in pictures released by the Rivers State APC was in a celebratory mood. A former federal lawmaker, Senator Magnus Abe led other party leaders to take celebratory photographs in the course of the failed march. These celebratory pictures were released by the Rivers State APC and her members.
That the event was convinced in devilish thoughts against the progress of Rivers State is no longer in doubt. It was simply funded by those who embezzled Rivers State funds but are scared of the superlative performance of Governor Nyesom Wike. All they wanted was to create panic. But the vast majority of Rivers people know their tricks and refused to be deceived.
The fact that the state chairman of the defeated Rivers State APC had the effrontery to call for state of emergency at their campaign rally after the failed march speaks volumes of the hatred that these failed politicians have for the less privileged people of the state. In their desperation, they are keen to stop the massive construction and development work going on across the state.
With failure staring them in the face, Rivers State APC resorted to employing additional tricks of using false media propaganda to mislead those who were not in the state on Monday. Of course, APC owned newspaper, The Nation was the first option. The paper concocted a story wherein it claimed 10 buses were burnt as PDP attacked the failed rally. This was a rally aired on live television without any incident. Also, a pro-APC reporter who helps his paymasters in a Lagos-based newspaper, fabricated another set of lies for the APC to justify funds released. Luckily for everyone, the police has cleared the air, advising the two newspapers to tow the path of professionalism. We doubt if these reporters will heed that candid advice.
What the Rivers State APC failed to get through the inglorious march, they thought they would achieve through sponsored media falsehood. Like the failed march, their propaganda has also failed.
Monday, 30th November, 2015 was a day where the cause of development in Rivers State was further advanced . Contrary to the speculation of the APC, all economic activities were carried out successfully across the state. Multinationals conducted their businesses in a peaceful atmosphere while educational and social activities went unhindered. All developmental projects making the people of Rivers State happy went on as scheduled. All the destructive plans of the defeated Rivers State APC failed to yield the ungodly results they had planned.
Back to former Governor Rotimi Amaechi’s unpatriotic acts that almost threw Rivers State into confusion before, during and after the election. The fact that he released militants and cultists awaiting trial is a well documented fact, which was widely reported. The Rivers State APC had lost all forms of credibility and what was left of its damaged reputation was marred by the unbridled corruption of the Amaechi administration which had failed in all responsibilities to the people of the state.
Therefore, they were never ready for election, hence Amaechi released criminals with the intention of unleashing mayhem. In support of these criminals, Amaechi funded pliant mainstream and online media to concoct baseless reports. This was the scenario.
The Rivers State APC had no premise to contest the last general elections and were not ready for the elections. The people of Rivers State weathered the storm of the criminals released by Amaechi and voted for the candidate of their choice, Governor Nyesom Ezenwo Wike. Without doubt, the security agencies who provided the right environment for the elections deserve our commendation. The desperation of Amaechi and his political godson, Dakuku Peterside stands condemned. These men are only interested in their personal gains. They hardly put Rivers State in their equation. Otherwise, they would have seen the handwriting on the Rivers land and everywhere.
They are traitors who only serve the interest of their regional lords. They have no mind of their own. Governor Wike has made a solemn pledge to protect the state from external and internal resource predators. He is living up to his promise and will continue to live up to this pledge. These unwholesome tricks will not distract Governor Wike as his eyes are on the ball of development.
*Nwakaudu is Special Assistant to the Rivers State Governor, Electronic Media.
