Ahead of the 2023 general election, Governor Nyesom Wike has declared that he is fully in charge of Rivers State politics.

The governor stated that he will ensure any presidential candidate that will win the state must do something for its benefits.

Wike spoke while inaugurating Orochiri-Worukwo (Waterlines junction) Flyover that was performed by Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos in Port Harcourt on Monday.

Wike averred that if any candidate underrate the state, Rivers will pay in kind at the appropriate time.

He said: “I am fully in charge. I am not that kind of governor people will go to Abuja and hold meetings against. I am fully in charge here.

“If you say Rivers State does not matter, Rivers State will tell you that you don’t also matter at the appropriate time. If you don’t like us, we will not like you. If you like us, we will like you.

“Nobody will use our votes for nothing. Our votes will matter and Rivers State must benefit from anybody that we are going to support.

“Politics now is no longer just vote for somebody; it is about what you will do for the people of Rivers State.”

The governor argued that the dynamics of contemporary politics has made it unpopular to just gift votes away without the assurance of derivable benefit for the people.

According to Wike, it will be for any conspirators to upset the voting pattern of Rivers State and support for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

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He reiterated that those who looted the treasury of the state will not be supported to become governor of Rivers State.

“My guest from Lagos State, let nobody tell you story that anybody will come here to win as governor of Rivers State. It will not happen.

“Those who looted the treasury of the state will not come here to be governor of Rivers State and I have challenged them.

The former PDP presidential aspirant said he has been paying salary and pension regularly in the state.

“First of all, let me state, if there is one state that pays salary regularly, it is Rivers State. Let me also state, every month we pay pensioners. Let me also state since we have been paying gratuity, have you been hearing anybody talking on radio?” he queried.

He explained the invitation of the Lagos State governor is not the first time persons of other political parties were invited to inaugurate projects in Rivers State.

He pointed to the overall benefits such invitations have on governance because it served as peer review for them.

On his part, Sanwo-Olu, who inaugurated the Flyover, commended Governor Wike for his strong commitment to the delivery of physical infrastructure in Rivers State.

“I would like to specially commend my brother, Governor Wike, for his strong commitment to the delivery of physical infrastructure in Rivers State, a commitment that has been recognized by all and sundry, and which has earned him the appellation of “Mr. Projects” within and outside Rivers State,” he said.

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Sanwo-Olu said though himself and Wike belong to different political persuasions, the invitation extended to him sends a very strong message that politicians and political leaders, can come together across political and ideological divides, for the good of the people.

His words: “There is also a strong message being made today about expanding our capacity to play politics without bitterness. This symbolic gesture by my friend and brother is one that should become standard practice across Nigeria.

“There is also a lot that we can learn from one another, and experience that we can translate from one part of the country to the other.

“Ultimately, we are all in governance to touch the lives of the people for good; to deliver to them the dividends of democracy. There is no doubt that Governor Wike has spent his last seven years focused on this, just as we have similarly been doing in Lagos.”

The project has an overall length of 840 meters and overall cross sectional width of 17.6 meters, 7.3 meters on each lane. It has one meter walkway on both sides, and 2 meters of media. There is a total of asphaltic pavement area of 29,000 square meters.

The Star