Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, has declared that no person would succeed in becoming the next governor of the State if his or her intention is to make the State a personal estate while accusing an aspirant under the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Tonye Cole of mismanaging $50m from the coffers of the State.
Governor Wike made the declaration while speaking at the thanksgiving service yesterday, to celebrate the legal victory secured at the Supreme Court of Nigeria in the oil well dispute between Rivers and Imo States, that held at Paul’s Anglican Cathedral in Port Harcourt.
The Rivers State governor said the All Progressives Congress (APC) aspirant, Tonye Cole, will have to first answer to what had happened to the $50 million his Sahara Energy Company received through the Access Bank from the Rivers State government when Chibuike Amaechi was governor.
The governor insisted that he was not against anybody aspiring to be governor of the state, but in the case of Cole, he must first give account for the money he received from the Amaechi’s administration.
‘He (Cole) must account for the $50 million they took from our account. Whoever knows him should tell him. $50 million was taken from Rivers State Access Bank account and taken to Sahara Energy account. And I asked them what is the job you people did for Rivers State? Can I see the contract paper, did you people loan us money?’
Read Also: 2023: Wike Promises To Eliminate Banditry In Katsina, Others
Governor Wike stated that it should not be a situation where the former governor will bring his business partner to become governor the State when they have both sold and bought assets of the State including gas turbines.
He said: ‘You think you can sell this State. The former governor think that he can bring his business partner, after you have sold all our gas turbines, Olympia Hotel, collected our $50 million cash.
“People think we will sit here and you will sell our state. Nobody can sell this state. Nobody can make this state his personal estate. A governor must be somebody who wants to develop this state, not somebody who wants to put the state in his pocket.’
Meanwhile, Governor Wike has described as a waste of time the 48 hours ultimatum issued by the Ijaw National Congress (INC) over the arrest of Farah Dagogo.
The lawmaker is presently standing trial on two-count charge of conspiracy to felony and cultism.
Governor Wike stated that the right thing for them to do would have been to come to government to find out the crux of the issues.
He expressed the regret how criminals who raped women, kidnapped people and done several crimes were allowed to live above the law with the lifestyle that they are lords who cannot suffer any consequences of their actions.
