Bernard Mikko, former member of the House of Representatives and aspirant for the governorhsip ticket of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers state said he is in the race to unify all factions of the party in the state for its victory at the 2023 general election.
Mikko also said his vision for Rivers state is to harness her resources for urgent and balanced development as well as economic growth, and not the acquisition of power for self aggrandisement and brigandage.
The former lawmaker made his intentions known while briefing journalists after obtaining his expression of interest and nomination forms at the APC National Secretary, Abuja on Wednesday.
He dismissed having allegiance to either the Rotimi Amaechi, minister of transportation or Magnus Abel, former senator factions of the party, saying no consensus agreement has been reached on APC candidate for Rivers governorhsip election.
“Party means a group of people with different interests and ideologies. It is only small parties that don’t have divisions. The major opposition party in the country, you can see the divisions. My own as a unifier is to bring all the parties together so that we can win this election.
“APC in Rivers state has been in the limbo for almost eight years now. No House of Representatives, no Senate, nothing not even a local councilor. And you can see is the problem between some of these parties that has led to this. Why I am coming into the race is to unify all the factions in the state and make things work for our APC to win election,” Mikko said.
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He added that it was the turn of his south-eastern senatorial district, made up of Ogoni people to produce the next governor of the state, only the Ikwerrres of the east and western zones have enjoyed the slot.
“You know that after Odilli in 1999-2007; you have Celestine Omehia who was Ikwerreman who govern the state for six months, you have another Ikwerreman Rotimi Amaechi, then after him you have Nyesom Wike who is also from Ikwerre.
“All these people are from the East senatorial district, Odilli was from the west senatorial district. So, this time it is ideally for somebody from the south-east senatorial district which I come from which is the Ogoni axis,” Mikko said.
On his blueprint for Rivers state, the governorhsip hopeful said: “I will work with you to provide clean, safe and portable water for all; instead of champagne for a few.
“Our development plan will entail a modest program for security of both life and property, occasioned by the anxieties and schisms created by political campaigns of nonexistence geographical dichotomies, ethnic profiling and racial epithets within an otherwise peaceful and united Rivers people.
“We will embark on a rapid centrifugal mass transportation system that will encircle and create a ring road around the entire state; our educational systems will be rejigged to produce graduates with relevant technical and entrepreneurial skills that will create jobs and address our social problems and not turn out ineffectual graduates that will merely explain the societal problems rather than dominating and solving them.
“Our judicial reform will be inclined to social justice with the consideration of non-custodian sentences to decongest and improve prison conditions and reduce costs.”
