Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, no amount of conspiracy to allegedly manipulate the electoral process in 2013 will succeed.
Wike made the remarks during the funeral service in honour of the late Dr Ferry Gberegbe, the Khana Local Government Area PDP governorship election agent, allegedly murdered by FSARS’ personnel at Bori collation centre during the 2019 general election.
Speaking during the solemn ceremony on Saturday, January 25, 20120, Wike said those purportedly plotting against the state will never win the 2023 election, because of the murder of Dr. Gberegbe.
His words, “I heard someone say two days ago, somebody in China told somebody in Port Harcourt that what happened in Imo State, that is what they will do in 2023.
“They said they will write results and the court will accept the results. I said Rivers State is a different state. If you write results, you face the consequences. I am not worried because these people are always boasting.
“In 2015, they said nobody would be governor; somebody became governor. In 2019, we will see what will happen and you will not even see electoral material, but today, we are governor.
”Now, to give their people hope, they are talking of 2023. As a result of this young man, they will not see the Government House in 2023.”
He called on Nigerians to insist on defending their votes despite the devices of security forces working with anti-democratic agents to manipulate elections.
The governor said Nigerians must not allow anti-democratic forces to hijack the democratic process under any guise.
He said, “He (Gberegbe) did not die because of sickness; he did not die because he was doing something illegal. He died in defence of our votes. The only crime he committed was to defend our votes.
”It is only in this part of the country that you defend your votes and they say that you have committed an offence. Our friend and brother is gone, but he paid the price for democracy to survive in Nigeria.
”He paid for democracy to survive in Rivers State. As for those of us who have that spirit, he has laid the foundation for the defence of democracy,” he stated.
