13th October, 2022
Okafor Ofiebor/Port Harcourt
The candidate of All Progressives Congress, APC, for Rivers South East Senatorial district in 2023 election Ambassador Oji Ngofa, has vowed that he will go on with his campaign scheduled for Saturday, October 15 without regard for recent executive order of Governor Nyesom Wike.
Wike, had in the Executive Order he signed into law recently stipulated that political parties must obtain permission from appropriate local governments before they can use any open field in public primary schools for campaign.
He said the approval must be obtained two weeks before the scheduled campaign while a non-refundable deposit of N5 million must also be paid by the organisers.
But Ngofa, the former Ambassador to Netherlands who said he will kickstart his campaigns at State owned primary school field in Eleme local government area vowed not to comply with the executive order.
Speaking at the opening of Tonye Cole/Barikor APC Governorship campaign office in Tai Local Government Area of Ogoniland, Oji Ngofa emphasized that Governor Nyesom Wike has no powers to bar politicians from campaigning when the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has given a directive for kick off of campaigns.
Ngofa said, “They have issued an order; they call it Executive Order 21, to the effect that state government can only grant you right to the use of public school fields on the payment of 5m,” he said while noting that the Governor’s backhand tactics to regulate other political parties from competing with the PDP will not work.
The Diplomat, who was a former chairman of Eleme Local Government Area the state insist that the only institution or person that can regulate use of public properties is the Police.
“And the moment the Police Commissioner gives approval, no member of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, person will stop us from using public schools, no body.
“I challenge them, in my(Eleme) Local Government Area, we will meet on Saturday. If PDP have what it takes, they should stop us. It is an open challenge. If you are coming to stop us, come with your caskets.
“If you are coming to stop us when we have police approval, please come with your casket. If you can not come with your casket, then we can give you back to the police to do whatever they like with you.
“Enough of this impunity in this state. This state belongs to all of us, no one individual will claim ownership of this state more than the other”Ambassador Oji Ngofa asserted