By Philip Ezuma, Port Harcourt
The Peoples Democratic Party Rivers State Chapter has warned the 27 defected lawmakers from the PDP to the All Progressives Congress, APC to stop disturbing the peace of the State.
The party advised them to allow Siminalayi Fubara, Governor of Rivers State, to concentrate on delivering dividends of his mandate to Rivers people.
PDP State Publicity Secretary, Hon. Tambari Sydney Gbara who made the remark, yesterday in Port Harcourt, in reaction to a Press statement by the lawmakers, who defected from PDP to APC, whose legitimacy is subject of litigations, urging them to first address their legal status.
While referring to them as ingrates who took the mandate of PDP to APC without consulting their constituents, Sydney Gbara, said they had continued to make retrogressive/ repressive laws and utterances inimical to the growth and development of the State.
He noted that other State Houses of Assembly are making laws for the growth and development of their states and supporting their respective state governments. The PDP Publicity Secretary urged them to bury their heads in shame, for resorting to acts of destabilization and destruction.
“Those people were the first beneficiaries of the magnanimity and peaceful disposition of Governor Fubara by signing the lopsided peace accord despite a court of competent jurisdiction had recognised Hon Edison Ehie as the Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly, which gave them a life line to still operate, because having defected to APC without any crises in PDP, their seats were vacant constitutionally.
But now that they show how ungrateful they are, the several court cases querying their legality, seeking the interpretation of section 109 1g of the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria as amended, will settle the dust around them in due course, no matter how long they try to run away from it, justice must be served, because they no longer represent their constituencies”, he reminded them.
Their actions are a total embarrassment to Rivers people and a complete show of public shame. The people elected them out of their good will, but they let those constituents down by pursuing selfish agenda that have further plunged the State into crises. The threats of impeachment are empty and cannot stand. It is selfish and their pursuit of personal aggrandizement, which will be resisted by Rivers people.
If they want to know what Rivers people think about them, they should go to the streets to seek the opinion of the masses. You are operating illegally, hence your illegal laws are inconsequential on Rivers people”, he vowed.
PDP Spokesperson regretted that the founding Fathers of the State would be crying for those young people, for allowing themselves to be used as agents of destabilization of the State, the government and its people, warning that posterity would not be kind to them, for choosing the path of destruction rather than peace building.
The PDP Publicity Secretary Sydney Tambari Gbara also responded to allegations by Tony Okocha, that Governor Siminialayi Fubara has not implemented the 8-Point Peace Accord brokered by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
“Although we are not holding brief for the State government, but for the records, as a party let us for the umpteenth time, tell Tony Okocha that Governor Siminialayi Fubara has in his desire to further deepen peace in the State, implemented the Peace Accord faithfully and in such a manner that is allowed by the Nigerian Constitution.
As a law-abiding citizen, the Governor has implemented that Accord very religiously and the aspects not in tandem with the provisions of the law would not be implemented. So your attempt to try to stampede Governor Fubara into taking unconstitutional actions would not work”, he submitted.
