The Campaign Council of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Rivers State says the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Tonye Cole, is no match for Governor Nyesom Wike in the March 2 election.
The governor is seeking re-election on the platform of PDP.
Mr Emma Okah, the Director of Information and Communications of the campaign council, stated this in a statement in Port Harcourt on Thursday.
Okah stated that “only enemies of the state will prescribe a pupil to a teacher.’’
He was reacting to an earlier statement issued by Ogbonna Nwuke, the spokesman for Cole’s Campaign Organisation.
Nwuke described Wike as lacking the moral right to seek re-election, having allegedly squandered whatever was left of his goodwill.
He said: “Wike has no moral right to approach the Rivers people for a second tenure in office. What is he really coming back to do?”
He said that the people gave him a chance to serve them in 2015 but rather than work for them, he allegedly disappointed them.
He said: “Three years down the line, the governor, who has squandered the opportunity to write his name in the history books, wants a second chance.
Nwuke urged the people of the state not to gamble with their future, adding that it was time to hold leaders accountable for their deeds.
“We challenge the governor to tell Rivers people what he has done with billions of naira belonging to them.
““He should tell us why we have the highest unemployment rate in the country, in spite of the billions of naira that are flowing into the state.
““He should tell us why we are No. 1 in all the wrong places: insecurity, poor waste mismanagement, HIV prevalence and the national misery index.”
“Nwuke further alleged that the governor failed woefully to improve the health and education sectors and could not address the needs of the workers and pensioners in the state.
““What he has is a bag full of colossal failure,” he said.
“He said that Cole understood the place of bureaucrats and technocrats in the civil service, adding that he would create an appropriate environment for investments, if voted into office.
““Cole knows that the greatest task of any responsible government is to protect lives and property. This is why Rivers people should ignore Wike’s appeal for a second tenure and vote APC,’’ he said.
He gave assurance that the APC governorship flag bearer would ensure adequate security for lives and property, adding that he would attract investments for jobs “opportunities and youth empowerment.
But reacting to Nwuke’s statement, Okah said that the governorship poll in the state “requires tact, maturity and expertise to excel.”
“Ordinarily, the PDP would not have bothered to campaign in Rivers, if Cole is the APC candidate but the joy of a free and fair contest is the lesson the loser learns.
“It teaches him that a child cannot be older than his father,’’ he stated.
Okah further stated that Cole ought to have started campaigning since 2011, if he truly meant “to battle a political colossus like Wike.’’
He said that the people of Rivers had learnt their lessons and would only vote for a man they knew.
“Rivers people will vote for a man they know and have been seeing. The man who has been council chairman, state campaign coordinator, minister, a bencher and governor.
“Wike made promises to develop the state during the 2015 campaigns and three years down the road, he has fulfilled his promises, winning awards and even doing more for Rivers people.’’
