Fresh after returning from the national convention of the APC in Abuja, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, APC, the “prince of the Niger Delta” as he is fondly called, had a brief chat with newsmen where he intimated them on the next steps for his party in the state.
Prince Tonye T.J.T. Princewill highlighted the emergence of Adams Oshiomole as a catalyst for the erosion of PDP in the South South, commencing with Rivers state.
According to him, “What we have now is a solid team headed at different tiers by warriors of change, from the national through to the state, local governments and wards. I don’t underestimate the task before us but I can categorically confirm that Wike will be history come 2019. Take it to the bank.”
He confirmed that the team put in place in Rivers state under the Chairmanship of Hon Ojukaye Flag Amachree had all it takes to ensure APC wins the next election but warned that the missing piece in the jigsaw was still the choice of candidates the party will field in 2019.
“Starting with the position of Governor, we will decide who the cap best fits in the next few weeks so we can begin to sell him and them to our members aggressively. It has to be a team who can build on the 2007 blueprint Amaechi put in place. Amaechi left free schooling and free medical in Rivers state and grew our economy with the ushering in of peace. What has this Wike now done? Intellectual capacity mixed with boldness and humility is key. Plus he must be Riverine. Power must rotate. It’s that simple.” the Prince explained.
He denied that the Honourable Minister Rotimi Amaechi will impose a candidate because his style was now collegiate, citing the recently held Congresses leading to the convention as an example. There he claimed Amaechi delegated his powers to people who knew their people whereas in the past, he delegated to only a few, now he has delegated to many more and they were all critical to any decision.
“Wike is history. Even he knows it. Those who are afraid of him have no business leading us and thankfully no longer do. 2019 will be decided in 2019, there and then on the day of the election. If he likes he can go to court. We won’t.”
On the subject of the recent killings in the country, the Prince while praying for the souls of the departed reminded Nigerians, especially the media, to stop immediately, the fanning of embers of hate. Every sad incident cannot be Buharis fault, he said citing the herdsmen issue to the putting food on our plates as examples. “If you hate Buhari, an election is coming up. Feel free to be driven by personal hate if your thinking is that narrow. Why preach that hate, blind to all the many achievements he has made? I and my kind will preach love, not hate. You cannot truly love your country and its people yet you promote its division by stoking ethnicity. Don’t you get it? Don’t you have children? Are you not aware that the fallout will consume us all? Continue. God is watching you.”
It will be recalled that Prince Tonye T.J.T. Princewill was the candidate for AC in the 2007 elections for Governor but has since declined to contest in 2019 because in his opinion, personal ambition should always be secondary to the group ambition of his people.
