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Rivers 2019 Guber: Not The Right Way To Treat DLB


The All Progressives Congress APC on Sunday conducted its Governorship primaries across the country and as usual, Rivers state was one of the states that was the cynosure of all eyes. The fact that the former governor of the state Rt. Hon. Rotimi Amaechi had against the wishes of the people decided to impose his ally on the state APC and the quarrel he has with Sen. Magnus Abe as well as the decision of Chief Dumo Lulu Briggs to go ahead and contest the election made it all the more an interesting one for all political watchers.
But as the contest turned out, it was more of a huge disappointment for all because instead of allowing the contest to go on, the former governor decided to upturn the whole arrangement making the process undemocratic and showing Nigerians that the party in the state was really not ready for participatory democracy.
How can one explain the fact that overnight the list of known delegates was changed in order to ensure that the favoured candidate of the Minister of transportation emerges the candidate of the party even when majority of party members clearly did not want him and had shown their preference for Dumo Lulu Briggs?
Chief Dumo Lulu Briggs who has done so much and sacrificed so much for the party was wrongly treated by Rotimi Amaechi who ensured that he loses the primary election and also ensured that he did not get what he deserved despite the fact that Rivers people love and expected he will be the one to remove the incumbent governor of the state with the ticket of the party.
Sensing that the party was moving towards an unwanted tendency which will be unjust for the candidates especially Chief Briggs, the Abonnema born highly rated politician with structures that cut across the length and breadth of the state held a press briefing alongside his campaign team where he urged the party hierarchy to postpone the primaries owing to the new delegates list that was discovered. Why the party decided not to heed his call remains as surprising as the decision to field a candidate that is so unpopular in the state.
Many people have insisted that the leader of the party in the state is working against the interest of the party by fielding weak candidates since 2015. Some of us did not accept this fact but events that have played out especially the recent one where the riverine interest which the former governor claims to be fighting for was weakened by the snubbing of a more popular riverine candidate for a weaker one clearly shows that the Transport minister clearly is not fighting the cause of the riverine people. He is merely grandstanding on that and secretly mocking them and this is one thing the people must resist.
It is important that people speak the truth not just for today but for the sake of posterity which will judge us all. This is why I commend Chief Briggs for standing on the path of truth and fighting it out despite the betrayal he suffered in the hands of the former governor whom he has diligently shown utmost respect and loyalty for. If this is the way to pay back loyalty then I am of the opinion that this betrayal will be counterproductive for the party.
To this end, I join other party faithful to call for the cancellation of the primaries and fixing of another primary that will be transparent, free and fair for all. If the National Working Committee of the party can do it in other states of the federation, they can also do it in Rivers APC.

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