By Sunday Ani

The National Association of Nigeria Students in Australia (NANSA) has conferred on the Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, the best Governor between 2019 and 2023.

Chairman of the award committee, Comrade Femi Idowu, noted that the award was in recognition of all the extraordinary successes that Wike has recorded since 2019 when he became the Rivers State Governor till date.

Idowu said the students’ body settled for Wike after rigorous debates and analyses of the elected leaders in the country, their policies, protection of human rights, justice and roles in development of their various states and constituencies. He maintained that Wike’s infrastructural turnaround in Rivers State was unrivaled in the country, just as his open governance, as well as doggedness on justice and equity was unparalleled.

Related News

Responding to the report of the committee, the President General, NANSA, Comrade Clement T. Onah, thanked the committee for a job well done. He expressed satisfaction with the criteria used by the committee to get to the position of picking Wike, whom he said was a source of great pride to him to have as a governor in his home country.

Comrade Onah, who is also a well known activist in Australia and one of the finest Nigeria students, recalled how an Australian friend who was working with one of the oil companies in Port Harcourt told him of the beautiful projects by the governor of Rivers State. In his words: “That day seems to be the proudest moment in my life in Australia. It was unexpected of him because of his criticisms of African leaders. Since he works with one of the oil companies and travels across Africa, he knows the terrain very well. Just a few minutes into our lunch, Tailor started telling me of his trip to Port Harcourt. I was like, which one again do you want to talk about? Surprisingly, he started telling me about the sudden change in infrastructure and basic amenities in Rivers State, how the governor built many good roads and beautiful flyovers, how there is no kidnapping or fear of being kidnapped in the state and all that. And I said to myself, yes this is what we want, the type of story I love to hear and I must tell you that at that very moment, I felt on top of the world,” he said.

Also speaking, the Secretary General, Miss Halima Yusuf, noted that the choice of Governor Wike for this year’s Excellence Leadership Award was most satisfying, and a round peg in a round hole. Halima, who also served as the secretary of the award committee said the committee spent a lot of time looking into the activities of all the elected officials in the country, and even sent some teams back home for proper verification of facts at their disposal and here we are. “The award goes to the highest achiever; a man who has made us proud and earned us some respect here and he is the River State Governor, His Excellency, Ezenwo Nyesom Wike,” she added.