Wike: Vote Buying By Other Means

Deji Elumoye reports that there is more to it than meets the eye the recent move by Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers state to appoint 100,000 political aides across the state

Rivers state people and by extension Nigerians  last week heard the news of the appointment of 22,000 aides for Governor Nyesom Wike. In a matter of days, the number had risen to 50,000 and by last Friday it had peaked at 100,000.

Wike, who has barely eight months left in office, is making the appointments in the wake of his running battle with the presidential candidate of the main opposition party, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar.

The Rivers state governor, who also ran for the PDP’s presidential ticket but lost to Atiku in May, this year, has outlined conditions under which he can work with Atiku. Wike along with his four fellow Governors from the South had insisted that the PDP National Chairman, Senator Iyorchia Ayu, must vacate office for peace to reign in the party as presidential campaign gathers momentum.

While Wike and his colleagues are yet to resolve the issue with the PDP leadership, the Rivers governor came up with another controversy in form of bogus appointment of political aides in all the wards and local gocernment areas of the state.

Initially, he appointed 28,000 Special Assistants for political units in the State in addition to 319 Ward Liaison Officers and 40 Local Government Area Liaison Officers appointed early last week.

By last Friday, Wike hinted of plan to increase the number of his special assistants to 100,000 saying the appointment was part of his government’s move to alleviate poverty and empower the youth.

The question to ask is why did Wike wait till less than a year to the end of his eight-year tenure to empower the youth and alleviate poverty in tge state?

From the look of things, the Rivers govermor appears to be working ahead of the general elections scheduled for the first quarter of 2023. To him, nothing should left to chances so he has come up with advanced vote buying techniques.

Or what will you call the employment of thousands of youth as ward and local government liaison officers? Basically, Wike wants to position the new employees at the grassroots to be his eyes who will from time to time report about political happenings across the state to him.

The new appointments by Rivers governor is not without financial implication as the new political aides will be paid salaries which will definitely have a telling effect on the scarce resources of the state.

Rivers people especially politicians also condemned the move by Wike to appoint thousands of political aides.

To the Governorship Candidate of Zenith Labour Party (ZLP) in Rivers State, Hon Leyii Kwanee, the number of appointees is not only outrageous but uncalled for.

Kwanee in a statement said: “With the continued escalation of the figures, we do not know what the final numbers would be with the increase on a six hourly basis!

“We submit that a Government has the power to make appointments. However, were same is made without disclosing the identities of the so- called Governor’s Special Assistants, Special Advisers and Liaison Officers at the Wards and Local Government Areas levels, they would raise eyebrows and call for concern among the citizens of the State.

“This is particularly so where the corresponding job description for these mass of appointments remains unknown to Rivers people and other major stakeholders in the State. Moreover, where this is coming from a Government with the poorest records in history in human capacity development through employment of Rivers people in the State’s civil service.

“Preliminary investigations reveal that this act of the out-going Governor of Rivers State, is a support strategy to the newly approved Executive Order 21 – an Order that now serves as a tool to monopolize the physical political space and exclude opposition parties from participation in the traditional medium where political parties attract votes through campaigns designed to sell their programmes and policies to the Voters. To us as a political party that has submitted her candidates by law to the decision of the Rivers electorate at the next general elections in 2023, these appointments also constitute an advanced vote-buying technique.

“It is quite unfortunate that the Governor cares less about the implications of his political actions on Rivers people. It is even more unfortunate that he does not worry about the consequences of his attempts to convert the State to a personal fiefdom and further deplete her scarce financial resources. No serious or sensitive Government would indulge in this politicization of appointments at this time in a State that is experiencing consistent increase her already notorious high unemployment rates. The non-payment of pension and gratuity to retirees, insecurity and deplorable road conditions in many parts of the State outside the Capital serving as death traps should be of greater concern by any Governor who owes the legitimacy of his office to the people.

“We understand that these acts are borne out of fear, desperation and unwillingness of the PDP to compete with other political parties at the 2023 general elections, haven identified that it is, as a party, totally disconnected from the voters and well-meaning stakeholders in the State. But proceeding in the manner Wike has done without consideration of its consequences is most deplorable and an uncharitable demonstration of leadership to the generality of Rivers people.

“Wike has by these recent acts that are capable of introducing unhealthy competition and violence among political parties in the State shown leadership that is everything but statesmanship. In the circumstance, we hereby call on the INEC which is empowered by law to regulate the activities of political parties, including detecting and prosecuting overspending in campaign financing, to immediately call the PDP and her Government in the State to order”.

Also reacting, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state, Chief Eze Chukwuemeka Eze, has expressed worries that  Wike has appointed thousands of faceless Advisers and Liaison Officers.

Eze described the initiative as ill-intended and wondered when Governor Wike started taking advice from anywhere as to warrant the appointment of such humongous number of advisers.

He said the Governor believes that 100,000 appointees will translate into 100,000 votes for his candidate but little does he know that Rivers people are wiser and have resolved to reclaim the state from his firm grip, noting that it is sheer wickedness to leave the people in a squalor for almost eight years, only to wake up at the end of the tenure to give appointments that is bound to terminate within a short while.

“It is laughable that the Governor has begun now to buy votes with public fund. His efforts will yield no result because even his so called appointees will stand against him and his candidate on the day of election.”