Clark: Ganduje, Damagum Supporting Wike to Frustrate Fubara  

Sunday Aborisade in Abuja

Foremost Niger Delta leader and elder statesman, Chief Edwin Clark, has accused the national chairmen of both the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr. Abdullah Ganduje, and opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Ambassador Ilya Damagum, of collaborating with the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) minister, Nyesom Wike, to derail democracy in Rivers State.

Clark urged the national leadership and members of both parties to rein in their chairmen and prevent them from becoming available tools in the hands of Wike to frustrate Governor Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers State.

The national leader of the Pan-Niger Delta Democratic Forum (PANDEF) spoke yesterday in an open letter to Ganduje, Damagum. He accused the two chairmen of being accomplices in the Rivers political crisis by yielding their parties to Wike to launch missiles on the state’s political space.

He said the support given to Wike by both party chairmen had made him courageous enough to intimidate and anger the Rivers State governor and government, which was an act to overthrow the governor.

Clark stated in the letter to Ganduje, Damagum, “I know both of you are fully aware and involved in the political crisis in Rivers State, which is caused by Wike, who is controlling the two parties in Rivers State, particularly the PDP.

“I strongly advise both of you to withdraw from the madness of politics of Rivers State to avoid the dangerous crisis facing Rivers State, one of the most important states producing the resources used to sustain the economy of this country.

“I hope you do not forget that the International Oil Companies (IOCs) and the deep seaport of Onne are very well established in Rivers State.

“Wike, who is a self-imposed leader of the party, PDP, and the champion of madness in Rivers politics, is also controlling the ruling party APC by appointing a caretaker committee under the former Chief of Staff to Governor Rotimi Amaechi, Chief Tony Okocha, while he is not the legitimate chairman of APC in Rivers State.

“The legitimate chairman Emeka Beke was suspended and was replaced with Chief Tony Okocha, because of his close relationship with the leader of APC in the state, in person of Rt Hon Rotimi Chibuike Amaechi. Chief Tonye Cole, the APC gubernatorial candidate in Rivers State, also belongs to the elected executives.

“Nyesom Wike, in order to impress the presidency and APC in Abuja, decided to create the Chief Tony Okocha led caretaker committee with which he now deals with the APC in Rivers State with the approval of the national chairman of APC.

“One may be tempted to ask the National Chairman of APC why he chose to deal with a caretaker committee of APC, which the Minister of FCT, Nyesom Wike, had earlier presented the committee to him in the APC secretariat in Abuja before constituting it as a caretaker committee. But curiously, you now deal with a caretaker committee instead of the elected chairman.

“How can the federal government and the two main political parties allow an individual to disrupt and cause confusion, harassment of the democratically elected governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara, on the guise that he alone and not the people of Rivers State made Fubara Governor.”