Opinion: President Jonathan and other South-south people

by Donald Ehrihri

Unfortunately, the permutation for President Goodluck Jonathan’s re-election in 2015 has been characterized with fragmentation, balkanization and sabotage by his people in the South-South.

The proverb which says that the devil you know is better than the Angel you do not know is instructive in this discourse we are about to embark upon in the South-South geo-political region of the country, the home base of President Goodluck Jonathan. It is the argument in this paper that the South-South leaders President Goodluck should dread are not only those who have publicly declared themselves the President’s enemies but those who have subtly made themselves the President’s enemies by sabotaging, truncating and thwarting the Federal Government projects in the South-South region, because it is such projects that will effectively market the President in the region and beyond.

The argument is simple. As Mr. President is of South-South extraction, it is the turn of the geo-political zone to have democracy dividends and development projects in abundance. If therefore Mr. President has approved development projects to be executed in the zone and another son from the zone who perceives himself to be powerful is frustrating the successful execution of the projects, that person or group of persons are not only the enemies of the region but arch enemies of Mr. President.

Deceptively, this class of people is very close to Mr. President who use such privileged position to wreck havoc on the credibility of this administration outside Aso Rock. Expectedly, considering the diverse, complex and heterogonous nature of this country, every President should amass maximum home support from his geopolitical zone and in turn reciprocate such gesture by ensuring the zone tops in the presence of Federal Government projects. This is the rationale for mad rush by every zone to have its man on the top.

Unfortunately, the permutation for President Goodluck Jonathan’s re-election in 2015 has been characterized with fragmentation, balkanization and sabotage by his people in the South-South.

Strangely, the South-South zone’s prodigal son and Judas Iscariot Governor Rotimi Amaechi of Rivers State, openly admitted that he was opposed to President Jonathan because the latter’s administration had not impacted much on the infrastructural development of the zone. In as much as there is no justification for Gov. Amaechi trying to short change and undermine the zone with the rumour of his vice-presidential ambition, the issue of development projects in the zone must be tackled effectively with a view to deterring so called powerful sons and daughters of South-South extraction from sabotaging the Federal Government projects in the zone.

The Amnesty Programme for the Niger Delta Militants was introduced by late President Umar Yar’adua from the North which is expected to blossom and flourish during Jonathan’s administration. President Jonathan had consolidated this amnesty policy by granting strong funding for the sustenance of the programme. However, the controversial outburst by a vocal Niger Delta Youth Leader Asari Dokubo that they were better under Yar-adua amnesty programme is an issue of serious concern. This is because the managers of the Amnesty programme are from Niger Delta who have received maximum support from their brother at the top. It will be a great disservice to their people, the Nation and humanity to betray such trust by mismanaging the programme. At the end, their brother and the zone will be the loosers. A stitch in time saves nine.

The controversial East-West road is a sore grape in this administration. Governor Rotimi Amaechi has hinged his unwarranted betrayal and rebellion against his people on the poor execution of the rehabilitation of this very crucial road network. Surprisingly, the managers of this road network are South-South people. Whom do they think they are deceiving? The people who have been entrusted with the rehabilitation of this road network are those who even have “direct visas to Mr. President’s bedroom”. They are so dear to Mr. President heart and yet they are causing big credibility problem to Mr. President for their poor and dismal performance in the rehabilitation of the road. They are not only sabotaging Mr. President’s administration and his re-election bid but they are sabotaging the national economy and as such should be treated as economic saboteurs.

The most worrisome in the list of economic sabotage against the South-South region and the national economy is the stiff opposition to the dredging and management of Calabar Port Channel by a prominent South-South leader who occupies a strategic position in the government and who has the ears of Mr. President. For a very long time now, maritime stakeholders have expressed concern over the low commercial activities at the Calabar port because ocean going vessels rarely berth at the port due to the low depth of the waters. For a long time, the dredging and management of the Calabar port channel has been mired in controversy. Out of his patriotic zeal and passion for his people and the national economy, the President took the bull by the horn by approving contract for the dredging of the Calabar port and management of its channel.

This is a wonderful gesture that should be supported by all patriots and supporters of Mr. President to launder his image as a performing leader. Yet, this prominent South-South leader out of his selfish interests had used his official position granted to him by Mr. President to disobey Presidential directive, frustrate and sabotage this laudable project for the good of South-South people and the Nation because the company he fronted failed to get the contract. If Mr. President is seeking for enemies of his administration, he should tick this South-South leader who is frustrating and sabotaging the Calabar port project as number one.

Was it not long ago that the materials meant for the rehabilitation of the eastern corridor rail line from Portharcourt – Maiduguri were stolen at the Portharcourt-Enugu axis of the rehabilitated rail line? Who is fooling who here? Is it not our brother Jonathan that should take the entire blame? One thing central in all these sabotage is that Mr. President had granted necessary approvals and funding for these projects and their thwarting, frustrating, sabotaging and truncating is from this own people he trust. Mr. President should therefore shine his eyes and give riot act together with time ultimatum to these project managers to execute these projects successfully or face the wrath of the law. He should equally stick to his gun and make sure that approvals he has granted for the execution of certain projects be carried out without any compromise. He should shun ill-advice from pretenders and hypocrites around him who are serious liabilities and nuisance to him. Patriotic South-South leaders should equally rise up against saboteurs and sabotage of projects meant for the well being of the region and the country in general.

Mr. President should realize that the manifestation of the successful execution of these projects is a credit to him and a tool for his re-election campaign. It is equally a strategic instrument to silence his enemies who are hell-bent in undermining his administration and re-election bid. The ball is in our President’s Court.

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Read this article in the Leadership Newspapers

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