A former National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, Uche Secondus, has expressed confidence that River State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, will triumph over his adversaries.
Speaking during the commissioning of the Bori Town Internal Roads project in the state, Secondus commended Fubara’s leadership, describing him as a man of humility, integrity, and sacrifice.
He emphasised that the completion of the Bori Town Internal Roads project t in the Khana Local Government Area on Tuesday was a long-awaited miracle for the people, made possible through Fubara’s Urban Renewal Policy aimed at developing more cities in the state.
This was contained in a statement issued by the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Nelson Chukwudi, on Tuesday.
Secondus urged the residents to maintain the roads and drainage systems, highlighting the importance of supporting the governor’s development initiatives.
Acknowledging Fubara’s resilience, Secondus said, “For my people, this road, we must own it. We must maintain the drainage and the roads so that the Governor can do more,” describing Governor Fubara as a man with few words, a man with humility, a man who respects elders, who are not greedy but always willing to make sacrifices. I can tell you that the test of a leader is when you find yourself in confusion, in frustration, and you come out of it with faith, even greater faith like Governor Siminalayi Fubara; you will know the real leader of the people.
“He is not a man who wants all for himself. We have seen him, and for those of us who are leaders and elders, we can see the change in our state, and even the traditional rulers can confirm. They will no longer be harassed, there will be no longer any toxic situation where Commissioners and Permanent Secretaries will be harassed. Your Excellency, today, I join you and all the rest of our people of Khana Local Government and the entire Ogoni and our dear Senatorial District headquarters to thank God on your behalf for what the Lord is doing for you.
“All I can say is ‘Be strong and be courageous’ because you will overcome your enemies. Those who are shouting in Abuja, how were they made? It is God and some of us and the leaders that are seated here today that made it possible. And I can recall during my Thanksgiving service immediately after I was made National Chairman, he said clearly, that outside God, it was my humble self and other leaders that made it possible. Today, when he speaks, either in Abuja or here in Port Harcourt, he sounds as if he fell from Heaven down. Your Excellency, don’t worry, power comes from God.
“The same way God gave it to him through us, God has given it to you. And from what we have seen, you will excel because one thing that is important in the Ten Commandments is: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself. And you are spreading that part of the Ten Commandments around our State. You love everybody, you respect the leaders, you respect the elders, and all we have is to pray for you.”
Providing the project description, state Commissioner for Works, Elloka Tasie-Amadi, said the Bori Town Internal Roads are 23 in number, 13.985km long and have 10,000 meters of drains.
Tasie-Amadi said, “These roads are situated in different parts of Bori Town. The number of the roads and their locations can explain to you the joy in the hearts of the people. In all the roads, we have basic specifications of 150 millimetres of stone base, 50 millimetres of binder course, and 50 millimetres of wearing course, with every intention that with functional drains and thickness of the materials, the roads will last a very long time.”
On his part, Fabura promised that his administration would build cottage industries and provide social amenities to create good job opportunities and sources of wealth for the people to promote peace and accelerate development in the state.
The governor also expressed deep pity for supposed political leaders who, instead of working to advance their communities and the State, have become self-styled reprobate agents of destruction.
He wondered why such agents find it difficult to understand the danger they cause themselves in the long run dancing to the dictates of the same people who once had financial muscle but never pulled them out of the woods.
Fubara said people sugarcoat bitterness they nurse in their hearts in the guise of love and work to undermine any effort of development, and emphasised that genuine love for the people must be expressed and seen to be selfless, sacrificial and consistent in advancing the common good and not gratifying sectional interest.
Fubara said, “My interest in this Senatorial District is genuine. It is not about what I intend to get, but I cannot be separated from this Senatorial District.
“The success of this Senatorial District is my success. So, I feel sorry and pity for those of you who have decided to be agents of destruction, more especially from this Senatorial District. You ask yourself, if they love you, why didn’t they better your lot before? That is the truth.
“Like I will tell all my supporters, God is our fighter. Don’t bother yourself about what you see today. What you should be worried about is what will happen that you’ve not yet seen. Not this one, if it’s this one, we have already conquered it.”
Fubara expressed delight in celebrating the completion of the construction of the Bori Internal Roads for the great people of Khana, and alluded to its significance, as it serves everyone within the Senatorial District and not just the people of Khana since Bori Town is the political headquarters of the Senatorial District.
The governor said, “We did not make any mistake when we decided that this project must be completed. It is not about who started it; it is about the interest of the Khana people.
“It is about the interest of our Senatorial District. I am happy that I am here to see the inauguration of this project. As the Commissioner said, it is approximately 14km. We covered about 23 streets. This is just the first phase of it. I can assure you here that we are going to embark on the second phase.”
Fubara insisted that achieving the planned development of Khana Local Government Area will require the collective efforts of everybody, which will transform into the success of the Rivers South-East Senatorial District.
The governor pointed to the fact that Bori Town is among the three old districts that were established in the past to drive development but were yet to achieve the status of a thriving urban city and attributed such failure to the inability of successive administrations to muster the needed political will to pursue that development path round the State.
Fubara, however, appealed to Bori people in particular, and the entire Ogoni to be accommodating to strangers who live among them and allow them to explore opportunities that could foster development.
“Our Polytechnic here used to be the best, but today, if not for the effort of the new management, it was going down every day. The truth about it is because of the way we are living with our strangers.
“We must change that attitude. We must be accommodating. It is only when strangers come into your place, that is when development will come. You can’t develop on your own. People must come and live with you, and you have to accommodate them.”
