Press Statement
THAT ABERRANT CALL BY PASTOR(?) TONYE COLE FOR DECLARATION OF STATE OF EMERGENCY IN RIVERS STATE
The Rivers State Government has taken notice of the call by the governorship candidate of All Progressives Congress (APC), Pastor(?) Tonye Cole, for a declaration of state of emergency in Rivers State.
While government is concerned by such a deviant and irresponsible call on President Muhammadu Buhari, it is, however, not totally shocked that a pretender to the governorship seat of the State would engage in such an uninformed call.
Indeed, it is understandable why Tonye Cole would make such a call. All one needs is to recall the Biblical story when the mother whose child had died quickly accepted that King Solomon should cut the surviving child into two halves knowing full well that the baby would die. It takes someone who has nothing to lose to call for the declaration of a state of emergency in Rivers State at this time. Indeed, it can only come from someone who does not like the State and her people.
Again, government is not surprised that the call for a state of emergency is coming from someone standing trial as the prime suspect in a grand state capture scheme planned and executed between him and his friend who was governor of Rivers State. The result of that plot was the underhand and highly dubious transfer of state assets (Omoku Gas Turbine, Afam Gas Turbine, Trans Amadi Gas Turbine, Eleme Gas Turbine, Olympia Hotel, etc.) to a company – Sahara Energy Ltd – partly owned by Tonye Cole for about $308 million out of which only $208,000 was paid into the state coffers while the rest of the proceeds vanished into thin air to this day.
As the campaigns unfold, the Rivers State Government has continued to exercise the highest level of restrain concerning most of the individuals who claim to be contesting the governorship election in the State – from notorious gamblers to ‘bogey-bogey’ people whose motives revolve around carting away whatever is left of the people’s common patrimony. The present Rivers State Government believes in the rule of law and prefers Tonye Cole and other masterminds in the grand heist of over N96 billion to face the due diligence of trial in court or regurgitate the commonwealth of Rivers people they most ignominiously cornered and transferred to themselves.
Government believes that those who have pillaged the people’s resources and cornered same for themselves in the past should be kept away from further having a second field day – a scenario that will spell doom for the people. But that is left for the people to decide with their voters’ card on March 11, 2023.
It is not far fetched that despite the pretences and chartered delusion by the likes of Tonye Cole hoping against hope, finally, reality is beginning to dawn on them that failure is staring them in the face, hence, the panicky call to bring down the entire house through a state of emergency. Surely, it will not work!
It must be clearly stated that the State Government has, so far, kept off the partisan political turf allowing the political parties and politicians to do their thing. That should not be taken to mean lack of political will to protect the sacred duties of government to protect lives, property and its own existence. A call for state of emergency by any politician is a wanton and impudent attack on the existence of the State Government and cannot be ignored.
Constantly pointing at RVSG Executive Orders 21 and 22 is needless. Politicians should search themselves to ascertain whether they are ready for the coming election both in human and material contexts and not look for cheap exit or excuses. Looking around one can attest that our beautiful pieces of infrastructure have been saved defacement by all manner of banners and posters due to those Orders. No two political parties have contested use of one place for campaign at the same time as was the case in the past. The benefits of the Orders are numerous to the law-abiding members of our State except for trouble makers and deviants.
Pastor(?) Tonye Cole should worry a lot on how to legally discard the garland of shame adorning his neck as a prime suspect in the grand heist of the commonwealth of Rivers people. Calling for a state of emergency is not a very intelligent escape route from facing trial and/or losing the 2023 governorship polls. Both outcomes for Tonye Cole appear very obvious. Perhaps the only ones not seeing it are Tonye Cole and his motley decrepit band of blind political neophytes.
Chris Finebone
Hon. Commissioner for Information
& Communications,
Rivers State.
26th January, 2023
