Governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike has responded to the scathing criticisms of him by Bayelsa State Governor, Seriake Dickson over the issue of the ownership of the Soku Oil Wells which a Port Harcourt High Court recently ruled that belongs to Rivers State.
The Governor had in a report in a national paper accused Wike of inciting ethnic disharmony in Ijaw land to promote “wicked clandestine ethnic supremacist agenda” in the politics of Rivers.
But Wike in a media parley in Port Harcourt, on Monday, stated that his action on the Soku oil well tussle was only to protect the interest of Rivers State in line with his social contract with the people of the state.
The report quoted a statement signed by Dickson’s Chief Press Secretary, Fidelis Soriwei, as saying: “Dickson said Wike was merely using the disputed oil wells between the two sister states as a subterfuge to create disunity and cover up his deliberate policy to under-develop Ijaw communities in Rivers State while pretending to be their champion”.
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In the report, governor Dickson described his counterpart’s comments on the disputed oil wells as reckless, childish and uncivilised with an evil intent to attack age-long bonds among brothers.
But Wike responded that he was forced to seek redress in court when the preliminary report of the administrative map of Nigeria did not capture the error by the National Boundary Commission NBC that made the boundary between the two states the St. Bartholomeo River instead of St. Barbara.
He said that the court granted the petition of the State adding that the state government’s action was a civilised one under the circumstance. “We got the ruling which implies that the Wells belong to Rivers State. Judgment has been given, the best he can do is to appeal”.
He described Governor Dickson’s outburst as an expression of frustration; “I have a contract with Rivers people to protect their interest, so even though you are my friend, I won’t allow you to take what belongs to the people”.
Wike said; “I’m not ready to start any oil war but I’ll not close my eyes for someone to take what belongs to the state. I don’t take what belongs to the Rivers people to do friendship”.
The Governor added; “I am not causing any disharmony. “Who between us is causing disharmony? Certainly, it’s the Bayelsa state who wants to take what belongs to the people”.
On development, Governor Wike said that comparing the two states and their performance indices that Rivers state under his just over four years was far better than Bayelsa under Dike’s 8 years in Bayelsa.
Wike challenged Dickson: “Let him (Dickson) to the 23 local government areas in Rivers State and see what I’m doing. What has he to show at the 8 local government areas of Bayelsa. Am I the one underdeveloping the state”.
“Who is developing who? You spent N70-billion to build an airport. Now that you are about to leave where is the airport. Let him challenge me to a debate on the projects he has delivered”.
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