In the days leading to March 19, 2016 rerun election in Rivers state, and even after, President Muhammadu Buhari and some chieftains of the All Progressives Congress, in their attempt to pull down the current administration in the state, described Rivers state as the “most deadly state in Nigeria.” It was the party’s tepid response to the horrific politically-motivated killings that trailed the election in that state.
The truth however is that the political history of Rivers state, like that of many states in the country, including some states in the North, is filled with disturbing questions large and small, for which our politicians have done little to stop. It must be said that the incidence of cultism and kidnapping in the oil rich Rivers state predates the present administration of Governor Nyesom Wike. These crimes are symptoms of a wider sickness that previous administrations in the state failed to properly diagnose and find enduring solution. The good news today is, that there is an extraordinary effort by the state government to contain cultism and kidnapping, which in the past have scared potential investors to the state.
If government must make things happen, its most important function must be to prevent certain things from happening. And the protection of lives and property remain key responsibilities that any government must give priority attention. It’s so because, responsibilities abandoned today will likely return as more acute crises tomorrow. If the previous administrations in Rivers state had realised this and did something as Wike’s government is seen to be doing in spite of plots to pull it down, Rivers state would have been much better than it is today.
We need to remind ourselves that before now, Rivers state was a cemetery of sorts for different cult groups, each fighting for supremacy in various communities, leaving trails of dead bodies. But today, things are looking up. A new offensive against cultists and kidnappers have been launched by Wike’s administration. This is bad news for these criminal element, and good news for the residents of Rivers state. The result is showing. Anyone who knows how the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) has come to shock the world must give Wike all the support to tame criminals in the state.
For example, in the last two months, the governor has not allowed the euphoria of his first year anniversary in office to becloud the fact that much work still needs to be done to make the state safe. He is aware that his mandate is not a prize to be won, but a duty to perform. And that duty includes an all-out-battle against cultists and kidnappers who have posed a present danger to the state.
Wike must have learnt from the shortcomings of his predecessor. He’s not giving in to criminal elements to reign supreme as they did in the past. Instead, Wike is winning the war against criminals. In recent weeks, the governor has personally led security chiefs to demolish identified hideouts of cultists located in various parts of the state. The onslaught against these criminals began in Port Harcourt and the governor’s own community of Obio Akpor.
I watched, in company of others last week as the governor supervised the demolition of several property belonging to the criminals. You needed to have seen these lands owned by the criminals to appreciate the extraordinary efforts of the state government. Wike says his government will very soon begin to erect public facilities on these lands. He stood by as bulldozers leveled the ill-acquired structures by the criminals. Also watching were the state Commissioner of Police, Mr. Folurunsho Adebanjo and operatives of other security agencies, including Lt. Col. S.A. Unaogu, who revealed that one of the camps owned by one of the cultists, Munachim Ihunwo in Obio Akpor council area had about 200 miscreants under his command.
Eagle Highland in the state capital is where the cultists had two of their dreaded hideaways which had been destroyed by the government. Wike said a new police station, a military barracks and a health centre would be erected on those spots. It’s heartwarming that the military command in Rivers has assured the state government of its support to rid the state of unwanted elements. But beyond confiscating the property of the criminals, Wike’s administration has gone a step further: Security operatives have been given marching orders to hunt-down cultists who are making life unbearable in Rivers state.
Governor Wike says that he has the political will to make the state a safe place to live, and for governance to function unhindered. He has signed into law an amendment to the state anti-kidnapping Law passed by the state House of Assembly. Under the new Rivers state kidnap (Prohibition) Amendment Law, 2015, Kidnappers are to forfeit proceeds of their crime, whether in the form of assets or otherwise, to the state government.
However, many think this is not far-reaching enough. The state government needs to do the ultimate by following the bold step of the National Assembly and neighbouring Abia and Imo states that have made kidnapping a capital offence. Considering the hundreds of people killed by cultists and kidnappers, as well as houses they have destroyed, and many communities sacked, they need a dose of their own medicine-death. If you have been wondering why cult groups and kidnappers continue to keep people on knife edge in Rivers state, and why Wike’s  new offensive against them, this is one of the most kept secrets. Investigation has revealed that oil companies operating in the state have in recent years reportedly given leaders of some of the cult groups what they called “surveillance contracts” that run into several millions of dollars.  Only recently, two known cult groups – Greenlanders and Icelanders – fought each other to a standstill, causing people in the communities that they have made their safe havens to flee. If Gov. Wike will succeed in his current effort, he must implement fully, the recommendations of Justice Monima Danagogo Judicial Panel set up to look into recent political killings in the state.
Beyond that, Wike must continue in his current efforts to create a conducive environment that will allow peace to reign in Rivers. His government is doing well in tackling unemployment by empowering small and medium enterprises. Happily, the government says it has secured N4bn Agricultural loan for small holder farmers and another N2bn from the Central Bank of Nigeria that will create 35,000 jobs. If well implemented, Rivers state will sooner than later,  be an exemplar of a state that conquered the demons that once held it at gunpoint that other states should copy. That will be Wike’s ultimate legacy.

Related News