Blessing Ibunge in Port Harcourt
A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State, Eze Chukwuemeka Eze, has slammed the Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, over his recent comments on the 2027 general election in Nigeria.
The minister of FCT had during a thanksgiving service by Senator Barinada Mpigi in Tai Local Government Area of the state mentioned that he could no longer wait for the next general election in 2027, with the optimism that nobody can challenge his group at the polls.
Meanwhile, the APC chieftain has described the comment credited to the immediate-past governor of Rivers State as ridiculous, insisting that Wike should not be talking about 2027 elections and how no one can challenge him at the polls when the Nigerian populace are suffering hardship and starvation.
Eze stressed that the administration under which the FCT minister serves has “thrown the country into the darkest period of economic woes in the annals of its history.”
“It is ridiculous that while many Nigerians are dying in droves because of the hardship facing us as a country, Chief Nyesom Wike, the incumbent minister of FCT, at the Thanksgiving Service in honour of Senator Barinada Mpigi would be talking about 2027 general election and how nobody will be in position to challenge him and his group.”
In a statement made available to journalists yesterday in Port Harcourt, Eze said: “With the confidence the FCT Minister spoke on how he intends to run elections in 2027, it is either the former governor no longer operates from Nigeria or must be operating either from the moon or the sun not to observe the level of protests all over the country or the collapse of our naira or the failure of our economy and the attendant hunger ravaging Nigerians.”
He said with the present state of economy, “Nigeria has become a living hell on earth as food, cement, fuel prices continue to hit the roof.”
The APC chieftain stated further that following the exorbitant cost of rice, garri, beans and other food items, Nigerians now go to bed each night hungry, stressing that the reality should concern any reasonable Nigerian who is part of the government of the day.
He said: “As at the time Wike was making his utterances, a litre of fuel was sold at N720, a bag of rice for N75,000, a basin of Ikwerre Garri, N12,000, and N12,000 for a bag of cement.
“It calls for concern that in situation of economic hardship such that we have fallen into, where 46 professors and others in UniAbuja, FUTMinna, according to ASUU, died due to attendant hardship, valueless opportunists would be talking about elections without being mobbed.”
Eze quoted the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Abuja Zone, expressing deep sorrow last Monday over the loss of several of its members due to economic hardship, inadequate remuneration, and unfavorable working conditions prevailing in the country.
He described Wike’s comment on politics “at this trying times as ridiculous, insensitive, callous, careless, unfortunate, and attempt to incite the angry and hungry Nigerians against Tinubu’s administration.
“Today, Nigerians are eating from the dustbin while in Lagos, Nigerians are being treated like animals while struggling for a hundred naira loaf of bread and two tubers of yam, but to Wike, what matters most is the 2027 general election.”
While urging citizens to continue to pray with the hope that things will get better, Eze called on Nigerians to be wary of political enemies who do not mean well for the country and the people.
