Massive fraud awaits 2019 elections, Wike warns
Rivers State Governor, Chief Nyesom Wike, has warned Nigerians to be prepared for large-scale electoral fraud in the 2019 general elections if the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), continues with the way it has been conducting elections in the recent past.
Addressing the National Executive Council of the Ijaw National Congress (INC), at the Government House, Port Harcourt Thursday, November 3 2016, Governor Wike accused INEC of manipulating the electoral process in Rivers State, adding that it was acting in favour of some politicians who he alleged sponsored the ruling party.
He said: “If INEC goes on with this type of electoral fraud, then Nigeria is in trouble in 2019. What type of country are we living in when there is open electoral stealing?
“They want to allocate seats to a man who took our money to sponsor their party. They said they don’t want to embarrass him for giving them our money.”
The governor berated INEC for attempting to smuggle in a concocted result of Tai Local Government Area, which was one of the eight local government areas where elections were suspended by INEC on March 19, 2016.
“It is shocking and embarrassing  that several months after INEC  suspended elections in eight local government areas, it has come up to  concoct fake results for Tai Local Government Area,”
he said.
The governor noted that the state will never succumb to the intimidation and blackmail of political authorities  who plan to use INEC  to  impose legislators  on the state.
“I don’t believe in violence, but nobody should trample with our rights,” he said.
On the amnesty programme of his administration, Governor Wike said that, though, the repentant cultists and kidnappers would not be offered cash, they would be rehabilitated and reintegrated into the society.
He added that the development programme of his administration would be felt in all the 23 local government areas of the state.
In his remarks, President of the INC, Alatubo Charles Piriye Harry, commended Governor Wike for his developmental strides, assuring him of the support of Ijaws in the discharge of the people’s mandate.
He lauded the governor for the reconstruction of the Bonny Jetty which he said would serve the marine transport needs of several Ijaw communities.
In a related development, Governor Wike commended the Nigerian Senate for rising to the occasion in defence of democracy as it concerns the rerun elections in the state .
The governor declared that it was important that Rivers State got her full representation at the Senate, the House of Representatives and the Rivers State House of Assembly.
He made the observations at the Government House when he granted audience to a delegation of the Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission. He said: “It is important that the Senate has taken the right action that will ensure that Rivers State gets her representatives to speak for the state when issues of National importance are discussed in the Senate and the House of Representatives”
He stated  that there was no reason  why INEC could not  conduct  the rerun elections since  the state was still generating the highest oil revenue and pipeline were not beings  vandalised.
Commenting on the presentation by the delegation of the Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission, Governor Wike faulted the claim that the non-oil sector was now generating 50 per cent of the nation’s revenue since recession.
He noted that the country still relied on oil revenue, but pointed out that it was necessary to diversify the country’s revenue generation mechanism.
