The Rivers State Chapter of the All Progressives Congress, APC, has hailed the timely intervention by President Muhammadu Buhari in bailing out states of the Federation and Abuja following a lingering financial stress occasioned by drop in oil earnings and mismanagement by the previous government of former President Goodluck Jonathan.
The APC in a statement signed by its publicity secretary, Chris Finebone said, “We believe that in attempting to clear away this major putrefied leftover of the last Federal administration, President Buhari has shown how a responsible and focussed government can move to tackle and overcome an intractable challenge”.
The party wondered why the previous government, rather than take timely steps to checkmate a downward spiralling of the national income, chose to worsen it by initiating, condoning and elevating corruption to the level of a national pastime.
Continuing, the press release said, “Despite repeated warnings by the likes of Rt. Hon. Chibuike Amaechi about the grave and parlous nature of the nation’s finances especially the challenge of paying salaries by state and local governments, the Jonathan administration continued on its perilous path of perfidious silence and sometimes, borrowing through bonds and other instruments to pay salaries of federal civil servants. Former President Jonathan made no attempt to bail out local and state governments. Indeed, it could not bail out itself from the financial morass it was soaked in”.
“Despite the vain glory Governor Wike is already according himself over payment of salaries, the APC would like to implore Rivers people to remain thankful to President Muhammadu Buhari for creating a veritable economic atmosphere that would ensure that not only workers wages and salaries are paid as and when due but funds are available for real development to take place in Rivers State” APC appealed.
The APC called on Governor Nyesom Wike to restrain his unrelenting appetite for collecting loans from Nigerian banks in exchange for the future of Rivers present and future generations now that the APC-led Federal Government has done in less than 40 days what the PDP government of former President Goodluck Jonathan could not do in many years.
“We are convinced that Governor Nyesom Wike’s frivolous reasons for scouting for loans must come to an end. However, we believe that he is likely to conjure up new reasons as his bag of tricks against Rivers people is likely not empty yet. But the APC will continue to speak and stand with the people of Rivers State to ensure that no individual or group enslaves and imprisons the collective future of our people with the same historical vehemence with which our progenitors and leaders confronted slavery and impunity in the distant and recent past” the statement concluded.
