Rivers State governor-elect, Chief Nyesom Wike, on Tuesday declared that he would not fight the in-coming government led by president-elect, Muhammadu Buhari.
He said he would rather co-operate with the federal government to attract benefits to the state, insisting that the mandate given to him by the people of the state was not for him to fight Buhari, but to work for the greater good of the state.
This came as he stated that the local government elections held in 22 out of the 23 local government areas of the state last Saturday was illegal as there was a court order stopping the exercise.
Wike spoke in Port Harcourt during a pre-inauguration lecture titled: ‘Democracy and good governance: Towards a New Rivers State’ as part of programmes for his inauguration as governor of the state.
According to him, “I will not fight Buhari. I will cooperate with his administration to attract benefits to the state.
“The people of the state did not overwhelmingly elect me to fight the administration, but to work for the greater good of our people. In cooperating with Buhari for development reasons, I will always bear in mind the fact that I am a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).”
The governor-elect added that all his actions in office would be geared towards the development of the state and her people.
He assured the people that he would not personalise governance as the journey to revive the state would involve all stakeholders, adding that he would run a listening administration centred on the needs of the people.
He also stated that he would on Monday re-open the courts which had been shut for about a year and the state House of Assembly complex also shut for close to two years.
On the local government elections, Wike reiterated that the exercise was illegal as it was carried out against a court order.
He stated that all those who shared in the N4.5 billion allegedly used by the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC) to conduct the election would be made to account for the money.
Wike said there was massive corruption in the state. “Rivers State stinks with unbridled corruption,” the governor-elect said, adding that he would do everything necessary to check the trend.
While maintaining that he would probe the outgoing administration, he assured the people that his administration would be transparent, accountable and God-fearing.
Former state Governor, Dr.Peter Odili, in his remarks, said he was confident that Wike would perform well and return happiness to the people of the state.
The Guest Speaker and Pro-chancellor of University of Uyo, Professor Kimse Okoko, urged the in-coming administration in the state to work for the greater good of the Rivers people, urging Wike and his team to strengthen all democratic institutions in the state.
The public lecture was attended by former governors of the state, traditional rulers, the academia, captains of industry, youths and women groups – This day
