A socio-political, Delta Force of the Niger Delta (DFND), has given support to the aspiration of the Rivers State governor, Dr Peter Odili, saying he is the preferred aspirant to contest the Presidency on behalf of the South South in 2007.
Rising from a meeting in Bomadi, Delta State, the group appealed to other geo-political zones in the country to help work for the emergence of a South South President in 2007 in promotion of ��the stabilising principles of equity and justice.”
The group said in a communiqu� signed by its Commander, Ebi Fireman, and Public Relations Officer, Joe Bekede, that it was only somebody from the region that can best address the problems of the region, insisting that people outside the region with the best of intentions like Obasanjo had proved that they lack the political will to turn the region�s development fortunes around because they do not feel the problems and “cannot be more Catholic than the Pope”.
Odili, the group said, was a detribalised Nigerian and had demonstrated “how well our resources can be managed by deploying same, not only to infrastructural development but to virtually all sectors in Rivers State.
“That our total support and declaration for Dr Peter Odili derives from the fact that the man has not only performed in Rivers State as governor, he had long worked out a Niger Delta Development Plan (NDDP) as an indication of his good intentions for the region when he becomes President. We have no doubt in our minds that the document holds the promise of developing a National Development Plan that will ensure equity and national stability,” the communiqu� noted.
The group said it could continue to believe in the unity of Nigeria only if the principles of equity and justice are appreciated by all Nigerians, adding that the Niger Delta region, which is currently the cash cow of the nation, cannot continue to play second fiddle.