The Renewed Hope Family in Rivers State on Tuesday held a solidarity walk around the city of Port Harcourt in support of President Bola Tinubu and Minister of the Federal Capital Territory Minister, Nyesom Wike.
Addressing the crowd of supporters during the walk, ousted All Progressives Congress (APC) Caretaker Committee Chairman in Rivers State, Tony Okocha, who identified himself as the second in command of the Renewed Hope Family in the state, urged Nigerians to be patient with Tinubu as his policies would right the fortunes of the country in due time.
Okocha said: “This is the Tinubu family in Rivers State. The Tinubu family in Rivers State is under the leadership of Nyesom Wike.
“Wike is aware that his family in Rivers State are out here today to show support for the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. We believe that Rome was not built in a day. Much of what Mr. President is doing as we speak is for our progress and they are futuristic.
“Have you seen that in this country the president recognises what education can do for the people? Are you not aware of the student loan? You have student loan. If you are going to the university before four years, you will see all those things manifest.”
He added: “Some have talked about fuel subsidy; gentlemen, even at the point when other candidates were in the field, they said that fuel subsidy will not last one day.
“And the president was bold to say that regime that only benefitted few rich individuals, that regime that siphoned Nigerian funds so much so that Nigeria was borrowing monies to pay salaries, that regime was over and we are seeing the results of it as much more monies now accrues to the system and they are shared between the federal, states and local governments.
“Have we asked our governors, have we asked our local government chairmen what they are doing with the huge amounts of monies that accrue to them? Why is it that Tinubu who has just been on the rostrum for 14 months that is the problem? We know that he is the game changer; we know and trust he knows what to do at the fullness of time.”
Okocha, who also is a member representing Rivers State on the board of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), accused the Rivers State Governor, Siminialayi Fubara of sponsoring the anti-Tinubu protesters in Rivers State, saying that he alone benefitted from the inactivity in the country and in the state.
“We are marching for Mr President. We want to clean the rot that was typical of August 1st to 10th. Rivers State has never been an epicentre for any protest or demonstration. The man who sponsored and held midnight meetings with the youths is the only person who benefitted from the 10 days of inactivity in Nigeria, particularly in Rivers State.
“On the first day of the protest, the governor has the boldness of mind to tell them that he would pass their message to the president, assuming and absorbing himself from the situation. And you also saw when the governor said that he would give them something for pure water and bread.”
Okocha insisted: “When other governors in other states are circumspect when other governors are busy meeting with all manner of people in their states, our governor rode freely to attend the burial of somebody’s mother in Khana and he drove deliberately through the crowd that he mobilised to protest against Tinubu and he tells the world that he’s a supporter of Tinubu. It is a fat lie. He hates President Tinubu.”
One of the commissioners who resigned from the cabinet of Fubara during the peak of the political crisis in the State, Gift Worlu, while also calling for support for Tinubu and Wike, emphasized that the president should be supported for taking such courageous steps to drag Nigeria back on track.
He accused past leaders of not having the courage to make the right decisions for the betterment of the country.
Okocha continued: “Before now, Nigeria was moving in the wrong direction with a lot of speed. What President Bola Tinubu is doing is to redirect Nigeria on the right path. I want to assure you that in a couple of months, Nigeria will gather momentum and on the right part and Nigeria will be that great nation that all of us dreamt of.
“Before him, we never saw this kind of protest in Nigeria. But, the Tinubu that I know is ready to put down his life for his countrymen and that’s why you must support him. I want to tell you that history will judge President Tinubu right. The decisions that he’s making today are the kind of decisions only true leaders make.
“All those who couldn’t make the right decisions before him are the ones who put Nigeria where it is today, we must make this decision and the time is now. So, we must support our president for the right decisions that he’s making.”
On Wike, Worlu said he represents a true Nigerian as his scorecard from his days as local government chairman to being governor and now Minister shows he is a performer.
“Nyesom Wike when he became governor of Rivers State, he never left it the way he met it and the opposition APC recognised him as the best governor.
“In the FCT where he is serving as FCT Minister, he has been voted as the best Minister of Nigeria. You should be proud of him and encourage him. That’s why we are here and I want to tell you as the leader of the Renewed Hope Family in Rivers State, Nyesom Wike puts the people first and he’s responsible. I can tell you that as you continue to support him, all the things that he is already doing for Rivers people, he will do more.”
Credit: The Sun