Be fair to opposition states, Uduaghan, C’River Gov-Elect tell Buhari

THE President-Elect, Major-General Muhammadu Buhari (rtd) has been enjoined to give equal treatment to all states irrespective of political affiliation. The call was made on separate occasions by Delta State Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan and Cross River State Governor-Elect Professor Ben Ayade.

Speaking yesterday, Dr. Uduaghan said Buhari’s incoming govenrment should not to make the mistake of ignoring the South South region. 


His words: “ South South states must not be ignored in the politics of Nigeria.

They must get what they deserve in terms of programmes and appointments because that is where the money come from. We wish Buhari well and thank President Goodluck Jonathan for all the good he did for the country.”

He also dismissed allegation by the All Peoples Congress (APC) candidate, Otega Emerhor, that the April 11 governorship election was a “massive fraud”.

The governor said the election was free and fair in Delta state and  urged all the aggrieved  parties to go to court. 


He said the statistics given by the APC candidate to butress his argument of fraud shows that he is not informed about the results of the election.

Uduaghan urged losers in the election to join hands with the governor- elect, Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa, of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and  move the state forward. He noted that Okowa has pledged to carry everyone in the state along. 


Uduaghan pointed out that in a few weeks he would hand over  power to Okowa.

He disclosed that the handover committee is headed by Commissioner for Special duties, Chief Tony Obuh. 


 On numerous projects he has commissioned and those earmarked for commissioning, Dr. Uduaghan said: “My commissioning of projects is also my own way of saying thank you to Deltans, there are more projects to be commissioned but above all, we are leaving behind a peaceful state.”

He also said that that the loses suffered by the PDP in the elections would not wwaken the party, affirming that it would rise stronger. 


According to him, the dwindling fortunes of the PDP in the states was due to the problems it suffered at the national level which the party has  agreed to address.

He added: “ I assure you that in the next four years APC will have a serious national challenge.” Ayade, speaking in a maiden media briefing, pointed out that the crusade of change by Buhari’s party “will show in a way and manner he manages the parties in the states that are not APC (All Progressives Congress) and how much maturity he has shown in relationship between the two parties or equal partners.”

He added: “It is expected that in a change environment, when Cross River State comes crying and Yobe State comes crying you are supposed to listen to Cross River first. In the true sense of the word change, charity no longer begins at home but ends at home.

You have to start somewhere to show if you are really a selfless leader. It should not be you first. “The parties and elections are over. We are running a united country; it is not a PDP or APC government.

The centre must do everything it can to encourage all the states to exhaust their potential, otherwise we will have a situation where everything goes one side. I trust that he will have the maturity, composure, poise and the understanding to do it. “That brings me to a very critical issue, that at this point in time, politics is over, what we are going into is governance.

APC or PDP is over; we must keep away from party lines and realize that parties are simply containers.  If you are seeking office through the power of the peoples’ votes and God has given you the office, you must therefore, go there and work for the people.  It is not about APC and not about PDP.

When people talk about opposition party, I don’t understand.  I am not in an opposition party, I am simply in PDP and PDP is gone, I am now the governor of Cross River State.  I need the federal to succeed.

“I must therefore, tie up to the federal structure.  To do so is to present to them my models and I do believe that the way and manner the President-elect will handle things will show to the whole world that he is a man of history. The way and manner he deals with the opposition party will be a critical issue.

“If I have a challenge that I need to dredge my Calabar River for vessels to come in, and if it is four meters and I need twelve meters and I seek approval because it’s been difficult for the Federal Government to do that dredging and I have that approval waiting for too long, it will send a signal.  I do believe that with somebody that has a military background, he will act fast.

He will be on top of issues. While we celebrate the fact that Nigeria has come out of politics, united and strong, I believe we should take this election and politics as a watershed in Nigeria’s history.”