Wike’s 100 Days : Living the 'Talk na Do' Philosophy, By Simeon Nwakaudu

Without doubt, Rivers State
Governor, Nyesom Ezenwo
Wike is the most outstanding governor of the first one
hundred days of this era.


The
facts speak for themselves.
His predecessor, the embattled
APC National Sponsor, Mr
Rotimi Amaechi messed Rivers State up so terribly
that he bragged at a public
function few days to the
expiration of his ill-fated
administration that Wike
would fail to deliver.









 Hear Amaechi celebrating the
trap he set for Governor Wike
during a thanksgiving service
held by the Greater Together
Campaign Organisation (GTCO),
the campaign outfit of the Rivers All Progressives
Congress (APC) governorship
candidate, Dr. Dakuku
Peterside.



 : " I think Nyesom
Wike is coming, we are
waiting. He will look for money for salary; there is
none.


 But when he pays out
salary, we will see if any of
them can do what we did in
this state: whether they can
build the schools, the roads, even to get a loan''.
It was under this precarious
situation planned and
executed against the Rivers
people that Governor Nyesom
Ezenwo Wike took up the reins of leadership. It was a
very gloomy period.




The
courts were closed, the State
Assembly crippled, the state
bureaucracy in coma, the
roads were death traps and insecurity was at the worst
imaginable level. Civil servants
were owed for two months,
pensioners owed for six
months and the entire Port
Harcourt City was a huge dump site because Amaechi
owed refuse clearing service
providers several months of
unpaid fees running into
billions.





Worse still, the former Governor did not hand over
any documents, refusing to
set up a transition committee
to interface with the then
incoming administration.
Instead, Rotimi Amaechi turned a drummer boy at the
Eagle Square, Abuja on May
29.




As an apostle of the "Talk na
Do" political philosophy,
Governor Wike refused to be cowed by the political booby
traps set for him.



He was
overwhelmingly elected
because they people believed
in his capacity to surmount
the obstacles of treachery and wanton theft of state
resources as exemplified by
the immediate past Amaechi
administration.



All through the campaign trail, the song
was the same in all languages -
"Wike na talk na do."




The governor himself
amplified it at every spot-
both at the riverine and upland communities. "My
word is my bond. What I say
I will do, I will do".




With 100days of his
exemplary administration,
the people have realised that they were right to have
chosen the "talk na do",
political philosophy over the
politics of treachery and
corruption.

On his very first day in office, Governor Wike revived the
Judiciary, initiated operation
zero potholes and kick-started
the process of rebuilding the
state civil service.

On June 1,
he swore in the State Acting Chief Judge and the State
Acting President of the
Customary Court of Appeal. It
was also on June 1 that he
proclaimed the State House of
Assembly at the Assembly Complex. Governor Wike has
instituted constitutional
separation of powers in the
state with all arms of
government functioning
optimally. Indeed, former Governor Amaechi had to use
the State High Court recently,
even though he shut it down
for one year.


The Rivers State
House of Assembly is now
one of the most active in the country, passing critical bills
and doing legislative business
at its complex.


Today, Rivers State is now a
huge construction site. The
economy had been kick- started and the State is
working again.
Two construction giants,
Julius Berger and CCECC are
handling the reconstruction
and rehabilitation of Port Harcourt roads which spans
two local government areas
with a great percentage of the
state's population and
economic infrastructure.


The success recorded so far is mind
boggling. This is because,
Amaechi had hinged his non
performance on the constant
rains in Port Harcourt. Now,
Wike has redefined project execution in Rivers State.
Even under the rains, the
roads are springing to life.
Areas such as Diobu, Borokiri,
Iwofe road, GRA, Akpajo,
Eliopranwo, Tombia extension, Eagle Island and
other key communities in the
state capital.








Several other construction
companies are working on
roads in different parts of the state to open up the state to
the rest of the country.

Governor Wike initiated
critical intervention into the
reconstruction of the Eleme
Junction to Onne Junction of the East West road leading to
the Onne sea port.

The once
deplorable road is now
motorable and work is still
ongoing.

He has done same for
the Industry/NPA road to the Port in Port Harcourt City.
These interventions to
rehabilitate two key Federal
roads are in line with his
promise to make the ports
functional for the economic revival of Rivers State.


The
Abonnema -Obonoma link
road in Akuku-Toru LGA has
been completed while work
on Andoni-Opobo Unity road
and well as the Trans-Kalabari road is billed to commence
shortly.

Through the Greater Port
Harcourt Development
Authority, he has started the
construction of a facility to move auto-mechanics and
spare parts dealers out of the
city centre to further beautify
Port Harcourt.


Within his first 100days,
Governor Wike strengthened the security architecture of
the state. He intervened in the
equipping of the police and
other security agencies,
supplying 64 security vans
with high class communication gadgets to
track down criminals.


Beyond the donation of the
vehicles, Governor Wike
initiated a compensation
scheme where families of security agents who die in
active service fighting
criminals will receive
N5million while residents who
supply credible information
that will lead to the arrest of kidnappers, armed robbers
and cultists will get N1million.


The governor sent the state
anti-kidnapping bill to the State Assembly, which has
been been passed and assented
to by him.
In the housing sector,
Governor Wike has completed
the Iriebe Housing Estate of 50 units of two and three
bedroom flats.

He will
replicate this model across the
state.
For the first time in many
years, Rivers State hosted an international football match.


It hosted the U23 match
Olympic Qualifier Match
between Nigeria and Congo. It
has been given the hosting
rights of three Super Eagles matches beginning with the
match against Tanzania.

 He has
cleared the backlog of salaries
of Sharks and Dolphin Football
Clubs players.
Within this period, he has commenced the process of
rehabilitating prominent
schools across the state. To
begin with, he has completed
the hitherto abandoned state
of the art Law Faculty Building at the Rivers State
University of Science and

Technology.
The health sector is to receive
a revival pill. The governor
has established the framework for the equipping
of major general and Zonal
hospitals in the state.

Regarding economic
development, Governor Wike
took the most ambitious step.

He started the process to end
multiple taxation by
involving all stakeholders
across the state.



He has in the first 100days
opened functional lines of engagement with the
diplomatic community, local
and international business
concerns. He has renewed
partnerships with Shell, NLNG,
NPA, Indorama, INTELS, NNPC, just to name a few.

The
governor has already
attracted a Visa Centre of the
South African Government
and is working out
international programmes with the British, the Irish, the
Chinese and the US.


Rivers State in 100 Days has
become a hub of development
and collaboration. Institutions,
companies and entrepreneurs are now coming to the state
to benefit from expanding
business opportunities.

The
multiplier effect would be
increased jobs, economic
growth and social stability.

Governor Wike has in line
with his promise to the people
effectively has commenced
the creation of a New Rivers
State. He has given them back
their voice and ensured that their resources work for
them.


Even his few opponents who
are presently on self exile at
Abuja have commended him
on his programmed revival of decayed infrastructure across
the state.
Wike is a political
phenomenon. His 'Talk na Do '
brand of politics is hinged on
the people and the vision to improve their living standard.


It is anchored on protecting
them from external resource
predators and ensuring that
their God-given resources are
judiciously deployed for all round development. It is
about giving Rivers State a
pride of place in the comity of
states.

So far, so great.




Simeon Nwakaudu,
Special Assistant (Media )to the Rivers State Governor.