Dikibo: S/South Govs Disagree over Successor
From Donald Andoor and Efem Nkanga in Uyo
The meeting of South-South governors and members of the National Assembly ended in a deadlock yesterday in Uyo, Akwa Ibom following the refusal of participating governors to accept the candidate of Rivers State Governor, Dr. Peter Odili, for the vacant position of the National Vice Chairman of the Peoples Democracy Party (PDP) for the South-south geo-political zone.
Sources within the meeting told THISDAY that all governors and members of the National Assembly from constituent states except Odili insisted that the post which was first occupied by the late Dr. Marshall Harry and later by Chief A.K. Dikibo, all indigenes of Rivers State should now be thrown open for contest from eligible candidates from all the constituent states of the region namely: Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Cross River, Delta, Edo, Rivers State.
The source claimed that all efforts by Odili to appeal to his colleagues to accept his candidate simply referred to as Chief Ake proved unsuccessful, and since the election of the candidate was the first item on the agenda the meeting came to an abrupt end two and a half hours after its commencement.
Earlier, at the opening session of the meeting which was graced by the acting National Chairman of the PDP, Chief Tony Anenih, Governors James Ibori, Chief Lucky Igbinedion, Chief D.S.P Alamieyeseigha, Dr. Peter Odili, the host governor, Obong Victor Attah regretted that for a very long time the political leaders of the South-south have not come together to discuss and proffer solutions to the problems of the region.
In a soul-searching manner, he queried: "with the situation today, can we pretend that the forum continues to be vibrant; that we have a collective political interest to articulate and promote; that the atmosphere of brotherly love and conviviality continues to permeate our meetings; that any meetings that we might have had, had been able to examine and make resolutions regarding issues of peculiar interest to the zone; can we honestly say that we have continued to speak with a common voice, a voice so strong that it cannot be ignored except at the peril of the one that tries to ignore it?"
Continuing he said, "nobody can deny the need for the zone to once again act in concert to establish itself" and stressed that the "commonality of our destiny must not be looked upon with regrettable inescapability but should rather be embraced as necessary and vital."
He raised the quest of true fiscal federalism, local government creation, privatisation and other reforms and excess crude which has been acknowledged have to be resolved nationally "but nonetheless necessary for us to discuss them and arrive at a South-south position."
He once again raised the issue of 13 per cent derivation and resource control and said there still appears some misunderstanding and apprehension adding "we owe ourselves a duty to fully explain the meaning of resource control to this country and to convince every one to adopt the philosophy as the panacea for peace and the engine for rapid development."
In his vote of thanks, Senator Udoma Udo Udoma commended President Olusegun Obasanjo for signing into law the act abolishing the onshore/offshore dichotomy.
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