…They spoke the truth, say King Dodo II, Sara-Igbe, Ikimi, Hon Nwuke
…Former Senate chief whip, Owie, Ambakederimo criticize OBJ
By Emma Amaize, South-South Regional Editor, Sam Oyadongha, Jimitota Onoyume, Egufe Yafugborhi, Ozioruva Aliu, Emma Una, Dan Abia, Chioma Onuegbu, Davies Iheamnacho, Ochuko Akuopha & Ugochukwu Alaribe
The traditional ruler of Bilabiri Kingdom in Bayelsa State, King Dodo II; an elder statesman, Chief Anabs Sara-Igbe; a former member of the House of Representatives, Hon. Ogbonna Nwuke; and some South-South leaders have endorsed the claim of ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo and others that democracy is no longer working in Nigeria.
However, former Chief Whip of the Senate, Senator Roland Owie; elder statesman, Joseph Ambakederimo; and Zik Gbemre, Niger-Delta activist criticized ex-President Obasanjo for his fault-finding.
The chairman of the Centre for the Vulnerable and the Underprivileged, CENTREP, Oghenejabor Ikimi; former president of the Ijaw Youth Congress, IYC, Eric Omare; and a host of others said Obasanjo, Obi, and Kukah were right.
King Dodo II told Vanguard on the phone: “There is no democracy in Nigeria anymore. Autocracy is in play. For example, the Constitution of Nigeria, 1999, as amended, does not recognize an administrator, but imagine what is happening in Rivers State.
“I hope Nigerians witnessed what played out during the 2023 elections. Politics is completely dying in Nigeria, which means there will be no meaningful election in Nigeria anymore.”
Former Rep Ogbonna Nwuke threw his weight behind Obasanjo and others, saying all the indicators of democracy in the country seem to have collapsed because the right people were not elected into positions of authority to consolidate democracy for good governance.
Nwuke, a former Commissioner for Information and Communications in Rivers State, said Obasanjo was not far from the truth when he said that democracy was not working in Nigeria, adding: “It is only in the country that an elected governor could be removed through the back door.”
“How do you explain a situation where an elected governor is suspended by somebody who called himself a Democrat? How can a president remove a governor, the deputy, and go on to sack the House of Assembly in a democracy?
