The
All Progressives Congress (APC) said that President Goodluck Jonathan
had declared war on the people of Rivers State with the omission of the
state from capital projects that would be executed in the country in the
2014 fiscal year.The
party described the development as condemnable and wondered why
Jonathan would stoop so low to give the Rivers State a zero allocation
in the 2014 budget of the Federal Ministry of Works, due to his
political disagreement with Governor Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi.
In
a statement issued in Port Harcourt yesterday and signed by senior
special assistant on media to the interim chairman of APC in the state,
Eze Chukwuemeka Eze, it lauded the member representing
Andoni/Opobo/Nkoro federal constituency in the House of Representatives,
Hon. Dakuku Peterside, for staging a walk-out during the budget defence
of the Federal Ministry of Works, in protest over the development.
The
statement reads in part, “We have learnt with shock and disbelief, of
the zero allocation to Rivers State in the 2014 budget of the Federal
Ministry of Works. What this means is that Rivers State will not receive
any federal government project this year.
“No
one is deceived by the claim of the minister of works, Architect Mike
Onolememen, while defending the ministry’s budget on Tuesday before the
House of Representatives Committee on Works, that neither the federal
government nor his ministry was at war with Rivers State. If that is the
case, then what could have warranted the omission of Rivers State from
the list of states that will enjoy federal government presence in terms
of capital project execution this year? If this is not war, then what is
it?
“This is very sad
and condemnable. It is simply unbelievable that President Jonathan could
stoop so low as to direct the Ministry of Works to bypass Rivers State
just because he has some differences with Governor Chibuike Rotimi
Amaechi.
“A breakdown
of details of on-going highway and bridge projects in Rivers State shows
that no single allocation was given to such projects as construction of
Eleme Junction Flyover and dualisation of the access roads to Onne Port
in Rivers State; access roads to Eleme Port Harcourt Refinery;
construction of Bodo-Bonny Road with a bridge across the Opobo Channel
and the rehabilitation of the Abalamabie (Allison Hart) bridge. It will
be recalled that Rivers State government awarded and completed Eleme
Junction Flyover project in the year 2009.
“If
we may ask, what joy does President Jonathan derive in continuing this
ill-advised war against Rivers State and her people? Under the watch of
President Jonathan, Rivers State has lost much revenue as our oil wells
were transferred to neighbouring states. They have taken away the oil
wells in Soku and given them to his home state, Bayelsa. They have taken
the ones between Oyigbo and Etche and given them to Abia. So, our
resources continue to dwindle. We used to make between N19billion and
N20billion; now we are doing N13billion.”