ANOTHER PLOT TO FRAME UP SOBOMABO JACKRICH, NDDGG/KUF WITH TRUMPED UP ALLEGATION OF SPONSORSHIP OF CRIMINALITY UNCOVERED.
The Network for the Defense of Democracy and Good Governance - NDDGG has uncovered a fresh plot by some highly placed individuals and politicians in the state to frame up our leader, High Chief Amb Sobomabo Jackrich and other executives of our organization, with trumped up allegations of sponsoring criminality in some parts of the state in order to arrest and prosecute him.
From our findings, part of the plot is that these mischief makers have perfected plans to sponsor miscreants who would impersonate as members of the NDDGG or our sister organization, the Kengema Unity Forum - KUF, and would then go about deliberately carrying out criminal activities, fighting and disrupting public peace in parts of the state especially within the three LGAs of the Kalabari Kingdom, and if apprehended by security agencies, they would rope in the NDDGG, KUF and our leader, Amb Sobomabo Jackrich as sponsors such activities.
The ultimate aim of that orchestrated move as we have gathered is to ensure that our leader and some of our members get arrested, and to have his properties destroyed in order to intimidate and silence us from speaking up against unpopular policies of the Rivers State Government.
This is amongst several other sinister plans we have uncovered in recent past.
It is important to state again for the records as follows:
1. The Network for the Defence of Democracy and Good Governance - NDDGG and its sister organization, the Kengema Unity Forum - KUF are purely sociopolitical pressure groups committed to ensuring good governance in all strata of society and therefore, are not into any cult related activity nor sponsoring any criminal activity.
2. That our leader, High Chief Amb Sobomabo Jackrich is not into any criminal activity nor is sponsoring anyone to perpetuate crime in any part of the state.
3. That our leader, Ambassador Sobomabo Jackrich has not directed nor paid anyone to cause the breach of public peace in any guise in any part of the state.
4. That any individual who claims to be a member of NDDGG or KUF and is caught in the act of criminality of any form, does so on his or her own accord, and not with the backing of the leadership of our organizations, and thus should be made to face the full wrath of the law on individual basis.
5. That the said plot is aimed at silencing the NDDGG, KUF and their leader, Ambassador Sobomabo Jackrich from fighting the course of good governance and speaking up for the downtrodden in the society, as well as constructively criticizing unpopular policies of government in the state and country at large.
6. We therefore call on security agencies in the state to be fully aware of this sinister move to criminalize the NDDGG, KUF and our leader, High Chief Sobomabo Jackrich by some faceless individuals or groups in Rivers State.
As advocates of good governance, we equally cease this medium to state that the construction of Trans-Kalabari road should no longer be used as a political bait to harvest the bulk vote of the Kalabaris by way of influencing public discourse and opinions to continuously enslave the minds and opinion of the people.
The politicization of this very important infrastructure has in recent times reached a rather abusive and appalling dimension under the current administration of Governor Nyesom Wike.
Governor Wike knowing fully well the value of this road to the socioeconomic growth of the Kalabari People, has rather decided to pay continuous lip service to it for the ecstasy of public accolades, but to the ridicule of the people of Kalabari Kindom.
His recent statement at Isiokpo where he said, “I and the Deputy Governor, together with the Chairman of the Rivers State Elders Council have agreed on how the Trans Kalabari road will follow”; was captioned in a deceitful attempt to misinform the general public as “ WIKE TO KALABARI PEOPLE; EXPECT CONSTRUCTION OF TRANS-KALABARI ROAD.
This misrepresentation of Governor Wike's statement and the actual intent to seemingly manipulate opinions in Kalabari with vague and noncommittal statements goes along way to prove his unwillingness to deliver the road to the Kalabari people.
Our leader, High Chief Jackrich have in several occasions pointed out this lack of political will on the side of the Governor to deliver the project even as the Wike led government has cited the road twice in the 2020 and 2021 shadow budgets respectively without any budgetary allocations.
That being the case, we have seen numerous projects such as flyovers, other roads and even extravagant cash giveaways to political allies and to other states without even citing them in the budget, leaving us to wonder why a project that has been captured in two budgets has not been flagged off ever since.
The body language of the Governor clearly shows his lack of commitment to the plight of the people of Kalabari people.
We challenge Governor Wike to quit politicking with the socioeconomic wellbeing of the Kalabaris by actualizing the flag off of the construction of the Trans-Kalabari road project, especially considering the sacrifices of the people from the area who lost their lives in droves in Abonnema, Buguma and Degema just to ensure his second tenure reelection in the 2019 elections.
We must also state without equivocation that this attitude of politicization of critical infrastructures is not limited to just the Kalabari Kingdom, it is also evident in other areas like Okrika where he had promised to complete the Okrika/Port Harcourt link bridge, but has ignored the project.
Several communities in Andoni Local Government Area and majority of other LGAs in the state lack access to basic critical infrastructure like access roads, electricity, healthcare and education.
To this end, it has become necessary to call on all Rivers citizens to unite with a common purpose of ensuring that we enthrone the right leadership in the state. Our criteria of who should be elected as governor in 2023 should no longer be based on political party affiliation, but one who has a track record of performance, credibility and the ability to provide good governance and ensure an even spread of development to all parts of the state.
Signed:
Chief (Hon.) Williams E. Igweh,
Director of Operations, Network for the Defense of Democracy and Good Governance.
Rev. Christian Dekor
Secretary, Network for the Defense of Democracy and Good Governance.
Mrs. Alaliba Douglas
Director of Mobilization, Network for the defense of democracy and good governance; and for: Kengama Unity Forum.
