Ex-convict former governor of Bayelsa State, DSP Alamieyeseigha and Chief Edwin Kaigbodo Clark at the even on Saturday
A northern politician, Tanko Yakassai, and prominent Ijaw figure, Edwin Clark, at the weekend expressed divergent views on the likely candidacy of President Goodluck Jonathan in the 2015 presidential election. The argument between the two men took place in Yenagoa, capital of Bayelsa State.
Mr. Yakassai, a member of the Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF), said that every part of the country had the right to aspire to produce the president of the country in the 2015 elections. He spoke as one of the discussants at a colloquium organized in Yenagoa as part of activities to mark the 2013 Isaac Adaka Boro Day celebrations.
Mr. Yakassai described the impressions in many quarters that the Boko Haram insurgency was part of a plot to destabilize the Jonathan Presidency as inaccurate. He remarked that the Boko Haram group’s activities had started in 2001, and became more pronounced in 2009. He lauded the virtues of the late Isaac Adaka Boro, describing him as a man who rendered selfless service to Ijaw people when it mattered most.
Mr. Yakassai urged the present generation to imbibe Boro’s spirit of sacrifice in order to achieve peace and development in Nigeria.
In his remarks, Mr. Edwin Clark, who chaired the event, stated that President Jonathan was entitled to a second term and deserved to be encouraged to complete his transformation agenda.
“The President has a right to re-contest for a second term in 2015 and the Niger Delta region is strongly behind him,” he said. “We appeal to the north to encourage him to complete his second tenure in the interest of equity.” Mr. Clark added: “The emergence of a President of Ijaw extraction is the fulfillment of a dream and today we are no longer excluded from Nigeria. We are now part of it and we shall continue to be united.”
He expressed satisfaction with the honor being bestowed on the late Boro, noting that this was the first time many Ijaw people across the country had gathered in such number to celebrate their hero.
He said that Boro pioneered the struggle of the Ijaw people for equity and social justice, stressing that Ijaws no longer sit on the periphery of the socio- economic and political affairs of Nigeria.
In his contribution, Governor Seriake Dickson of Bayelsa observed that Nigeria is full of contradictions and opportunities, urging all citizens to work towards the corporate existence of the country as an indivisible entity. Mr. Dickson also praised Boro’s sacrifices and urged the Ijaws to imbibe the late Ijaw freedom fighter’s spirit in order to propagate and defend their culture.
The highlight of the occasion was a lecture delivered American civil rights activist, Jesse Jackson, and titled “Oil and Peace: Compatibility for Sustainable Growth in Nigeria’’
Mr. Jackson challenged oil communities to stand up against the environmental pollution perpetrated by oil firms which had polluted the Niger Delta. “The oil majors should be made to operate in a sustainable manner. If oil spills and gas flare are not accepted in United States and elsewhere, why should the same companies be allowing it here?” Mr. Jackson asked. He added: “Oil is a gift from God and it was bestowed for the benefit of the people, and that is the case in everywhere oil is found and Nigeria should not be an exception” he said.
Mr. Yakassai described the impressions in many quarters that the Boko Haram insurgency was part of a plot to destabilize the Jonathan Presidency as inaccurate. He remarked that the Boko Haram group’s activities had started in 2001, and became more pronounced in 2009. He lauded the virtues of the late Isaac Adaka Boro, describing him as a man who rendered selfless service to Ijaw people when it mattered most.
Mr. Yakassai urged the present generation to imbibe Boro’s spirit of sacrifice in order to achieve peace and development in Nigeria.
In his remarks, Mr. Edwin Clark, who chaired the event, stated that President Jonathan was entitled to a second term and deserved to be encouraged to complete his transformation agenda.
“The President has a right to re-contest for a second term in 2015 and the Niger Delta region is strongly behind him,” he said. “We appeal to the north to encourage him to complete his second tenure in the interest of equity.” Mr. Clark added: “The emergence of a President of Ijaw extraction is the fulfillment of a dream and today we are no longer excluded from Nigeria. We are now part of it and we shall continue to be united.”
He expressed satisfaction with the honor being bestowed on the late Boro, noting that this was the first time many Ijaw people across the country had gathered in such number to celebrate their hero.
He said that Boro pioneered the struggle of the Ijaw people for equity and social justice, stressing that Ijaws no longer sit on the periphery of the socio- economic and political affairs of Nigeria.
In his contribution, Governor Seriake Dickson of Bayelsa observed that Nigeria is full of contradictions and opportunities, urging all citizens to work towards the corporate existence of the country as an indivisible entity. Mr. Dickson also praised Boro’s sacrifices and urged the Ijaws to imbibe the late Ijaw freedom fighter’s spirit in order to propagate and defend their culture.
The highlight of the occasion was a lecture delivered American civil rights activist, Jesse Jackson, and titled “Oil and Peace: Compatibility for Sustainable Growth in Nigeria’’
Mr. Jackson challenged oil communities to stand up against the environmental pollution perpetrated by oil firms which had polluted the Niger Delta. “The oil majors should be made to operate in a sustainable manner. If oil spills and gas flare are not accepted in United States and elsewhere, why should the same companies be allowing it here?” Mr. Jackson asked. He added: “Oil is a gift from God and it was bestowed for the benefit of the people, and that is the case in everywhere oil is found and Nigeria should not be an exception” he said.
DSP Alamieyeseigha, an ex-convict and former fugitive governor of Bayelsa, also attended the event where he was given a front-row role. Mr. Alamieyeseigha sat with dignitaries at the event.
The ex-governor, whose pardon by President Jonathan raised political dust, has been assuming some leading roles in Bayelsa government circles in support of Mr. Jonathan’s reelection for 2015.
The ex-governor, whose pardon by President Jonathan raised political dust, has been assuming some leading roles in Bayelsa government circles in support of Mr. Jonathan’s reelection for 2015.
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