8th January, 2015
Okafor Ofiebor/Port Harcourt
Ahead of next month’s election, the Kalabari/Ijaw ethnic nationality in Rivers state have decided to endorse Dakuku Peterside, candidate of All Progressive Congress (APC) as their choice candidate in protest against what they called the political hegemony of the Ikwerre.
The stance of Kalabari/Ijaw was contained in a eight- point resolution in communiqué read to a cross section of journalists and Kalabari chiefs and elders in Port Harcourt on Thursday, January 8, by Chief Broadfield Micheal Jack.
“It is sad that the First Lady Dame Patience Jonathan, an acclaimed Rivers daughter, who should share and protect the innermost sensibilities of Rivers people, is at the forefront of institutionalising a political hegemony by openly endorsing a governorship candidate aspirant from Ikwerre.
They went further to lament that President Jonathan, a Rivers man before Bayelsa was created who should understand the innermost political working in Rivers state kept silent and watched the deteriorating political situation in Rivers.
Kalabari-Ijaw said “Mr President as an Ijaw should have taken timely decision to protect the legitimate political rights of Rivers-Ijaw, but rather the president chose to act in the same manner as he did concerning the Kalabari oil fields”.
They declared that “Considering the short period of time to February 2015 governorship election, it is not politically realistic for Kalabari-Ijaw aspirants in PDP to move to a third party. The APC adhered to the principle of senatorial zoning.
Kalabari chiefs and elders expressed regrets that Jonathan kept stoic silence on the open endorsement of Nyesom Wike, as the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, led by his wife, Dame Patience and a cabal are angling to succeed Governor Chibuike Amaechi, with another Ikwerre.
They said their protest is based on the fact that Kalabari/Ijaw sons and daughters declared interest in the 2015, spent hundreds of millions of naira setting up structures, campaign offices and funding campaign tours and purchasing intent and nomination forms, unfortunately all the clamour of Kalabari fell on deaf ears.
According to them, “Kalabari-Ijaw governorship aspirants were simply told to go to hell and dismissed with the wave of the hand in the Peoples Democratic Party ,PDP, the party they called their own.
“As it stands, none of the two major political parties in Rivers State, APC and PDP considered it fit to produce a Kalabari-Ijaw person as governorship flag bearer for 2015 elections.”
According to them,”The candidature of an Ibani-Ijaw person of Dr Dakuku Peterside who is Opobo-Nkoro local Government, inspires hope in all other ethnic nationalities in Rivers”
On why they are not endorsing Prince Tonye Princewill, a Kalabari Prince who jumped ship from PDP and picked Governorship ticket for Labour Party, Chief Broadfield Jack said “Kalabari are not cross-carpeting. We are quietly angry. Wike is totally…totally rejected”.