As the council election holds in Rivers State today, it�s obvious that the battle is between leader of the Niger Delta Volunteer Force, Alhaji Mujahid Dokubo-Asari and the state governor, Rotmi Amaechi.
Dokubo-Asari revealed yesterday plans to checkmate the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), in today�s polls taking place in all 23 local government areas of Rivers State.
Speaking tough in a telephone interview with The Nation yesterday, Alhaji Dokubo who is a chieftain of the Action Congress warned the PDP against attempting to manipulate the electoral process, warning that his party has all it requires to record victory.
According to Alhaji Dokubo-Asari, “We have done our best by mobilising our people for the election. The campaign has just ended and I just left Buguma today (yesterday).
According to Alhaji Dokubo-Asari, “We have done our best by mobilising our people for the election. The campaign has just ended and I just left Buguma today (yesterday).
Reviewing the process leading to the polls, the 43-year-old activist-turned politician counselled the State Independent Electoral Commission (SIEC) Chairman, Prof. Nimi Briggs to be fair to all.
Dokubo-Asari�s wor ds: “A word of advice for Prof. Briggs. We know him to be an honourable and distinguished man. Our advice to him is that if he finds anything that would compromise his integrity, he should honourably resign.”
The Niger Delta Volunteer Force leader who described the PDP as a corrupt party said his party men and agents were fully mobilised for the election.
“We know they do not rig on the field and if they want to try it, we will not allow it. We know they always write election results in their houses� But if we have a level-playing field, we will defeat them hands down.”
It would be recalled that Rivers State could not join the train of PDP states that conducted local polls last December because Governor Rotimi Amaechi was new on the saddle. The abductions and kidnap of children, women and foreign oil workers had made Rivers State unsafe for any sensitive exercise, thus leading to further delay in properly constituting the grassroots governments.
Meanwhile, to ensure peaceful local government elections in Rivers state today, security in the state has been beefed up.
The state Commissioner of Police (CP), Mr Felix Ogbaudu who disclosed this last night when he briefed journalists on the arrangements being put in place to make the local government polls a success stated that about 8,000 policemen had been deployed to various places in the state with about 4,000 civil defence men to complement the efforts of the police.
Mr. Ogbaudu said it would be an offence for anybody to move about with police escort, probably to intimidate voters or members of other parties.
He charged policemen to ensure that they put on their name tags and numbers, adding that re-enforcement is expected from other states.
While warning everybody to play by the rules of the game, he noted that the flash-points in the state are Tai, Gokana, Khana and Abua/Odual local council areas.
He pleaded with youths in the state to eschew violence, noting that his men would not condone unlawful possession of dynamites, fire-arms and other types of offensive weapons.
The Police boss also appealed to those protesting in Akuku Toru LGA to apply restraint as people are not allowed to take laws into their own hands.
The state governor, Rt.Hon Chibuike Amaechi, has advised the people of the state to go to the polling units where “they are registered, to perform their civic obligation in a peaceful, free and fair manner devoid of violence.”
The governor urged the electorates to abide by RSIEC guideline which requested that after voting, they should leave the polling stations since all Political Parties are expected to have their agents at every polling unit across the state.
He also assured of adequate security during the elections, warning that any attempt to cause violence in any part of the state would be met with unpleasant consequences as security men have been placed on alert.
Meanwhile, the Chairman of the Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC), Prof Nimi Briggs, has announced restriction of movement between the hours of 8.00am and 6.00pm today.
Briggs, who stated this yesterday in his office in Port Harcourt in a chat with newsmen, said the State Government has approved the restriction of movement.
The RSIEC boss also used the opportunity to speak on the readiness of his commission to conduct today�s election, noting that “the purpose of this restriction is to enable the electorate cast their votes with ease, so that we don�t have the hustle and bustle of traffic associated with daily activities.”