From TONY JOHN, Port Harcourt

Rivers State governor, Nyesom Wike, said the All Progressives Congress (APC) controlled Federal Government has dragged Nigeria 50 years backwards due to its abysmal performance.

The governor maintained that the APC has mismanaged the opportunity Nigerians gave them to make a difference and so, deserves to be voted out in 2023.

He stated these when the Vice President of Rotary Club of Port Harcourt, Obiageli Ejezie, led other leaders of the association to the Government House, Port Harcourt, to confer on him the “2019/2020 Good Governance Award” for his outstanding achievements in project execution in Rivers.

Governor Wike told the delegation that in 2015, APC convinced Nigerians that they were going to offer better governance than former President Goodluck Jonathan. But having taken over the realm of political leadership, the APC has continued to drive the country on the path of retrogression.

He said: There can’t be good governance without security and this is based on rule of law. All of us are living witnesses in 2015 when it was alleged that the government of former President Goodluck Jonathan could not perform.  So Nigeria needed a change. What has happened to the change? They have taken Nigeria back by 50 years”.

Governor Wike wondered how long the APC federal government would allow the needless killings and abduction of innocent Nigerians to continue.

He said it was no longer acceptable for Nigerians to wake up daily to such ugly news of killings because they expect the government to guarantee security.

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Wike stated: “Now, you wake up every morning, students are being kidnapped in so and so state university, people have been killed in so and so state. So, it has become a norm.

“Just wake up in the morning and the first thing you will see on the front page of dailies is 10 people have been kidnapped in Niger State; 20 have been killed in Zamfara State, 5 have been killed in Imo and this happens virtually every day.  So, where are we heading to?”

The Rivers State governor said his administration is doing everything possible to secure life and property of all residents in the state.

“But thank God that in our state, we are doing everything we can to protect lives and property. For us, we believe that everybody has a role to play in this country.

“This is because when Nigeria is bad, Rivers State will be bad since we are all component units of the country.  But as a government, we will continue to partner with voluntary organisations like Rotary Club to improve the wellbeing of our people.”

Speaking further, Governor Wike accused the federal government of instigating security crises in Rivers State.

He cited the situation where APC governors led by Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai, visited the presidency to demand withdrawal of a Commissioner of Police from Rivers State.