Tinubu To Voters In Rivers: Your Votes Helped Me In 2023, Seeks Fresh Mandate
By Sunday Etuka
President Bola Tinubu on Saturday told a packed stadium in Rivers State that the votes of its people helped carry him to power in 2023 and appealed for their support again in the January 16 election to build on the gains of his administration.
He spoke at the Adokiye Amiesimaka Stadium in Port Harcourt, at a campaign rally organised by the Rainbow Coalition, which is led by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike. The event drew political leaders and supporters from across and beyond the state.
The President, in a statement on Saturday by his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, commended the turnout and praised the reconciliation between Governor Siminalayi Fubara and Wike, his predecessor. He said Fubara showed maturity, understanding and respect for the elders who stepped in to settle the disagreement.
“During the political crisis caused by a misunderstanding in the family, I intervened on your behalf. I thank Governor Fubara, in particular, for his maturity, understanding, and respect for the wisdom of elders when we intervened. Fubara, you will not regret what you have done as long as all of us are alive,” Tinubu said.
On the economy, he assured Nigerians that his reforms were steering the country toward prosperity. He said the Federal Government was clearing liabilities inherited from past administrations, including unpaid pensions and gratuities, so that more families could benefit from economic recovery.
According to him, outstanding obligations such as pensions and salaries owed in 27 of the 36 states had been settled, giving beneficiaries greater certainty of monthly payments.
“The people who governed before us left unpaid pensions and gratuities running into billions and trillions of Naira. We are clearing that backlog so that every family is included and we can share in the prosperity,” he said.
Tinubu also took aim at former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, questioning how he built a private university while in office and who funded it.
He said a man without moral integrity and ethics has no business holding public office. The President also used the occasion to present his manifesto for the 2027 election.
Vice President Kashim Shettima urged leaders and supporters in Rivers and across the South-South to back the President’s re-election, pointing to the administration’s performance and commitment to the region.
He said the country’s reserves had risen from about $3.9 billion to $60 billion in roughly three years.
He also dismissed Abubakar’s economic recommendations as the product of an “intellectually malnourished” mind and described NDC candidate Peter Obi as struggling with “political irrelevance” and “mediocrity”.
Governor Fubara pledged to deliver three million votes for Tinubu in the 2027 presidential election and assured the President of his full participation in the Rainbow Coalition and his recognition of Wike’s leadership.
He said supporters of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) were working together in harmony under the coalition.
“Thank you, Mr President, for standing by us at a most difficult time. A good gesture deserves reciprocity. As you have stood by us, we will stand by you,” Fubara said.
In his welcome address, Wike described the crowd as proof of Rivers State’s backing for the President. He said no one had been mobilised from outside the state and that its people had already agreed to vote for Tinubu on January 16.
Wike thanked the President for appointing Rivers indigenes into his administration, listing federal projects in the state such as the Bonny to Bodo Road and the Federal University of Environment in Ogoniland. He said Rivers people had never had it so good since 1999, with no fewer than 47 political appointments.
He also alleged that former Rivers State Governor and ADC Vice Presidential Candidate Rotimi Amaechi could not account for $39 million meant for the Karibi Whyte Specialist Hospital project and the state’s fumigation budget.
The 40,000-capacity stadium was filled to capacity, with the crowd spilling into the surrounding areas.
Among those present were the First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu; the wife of the Vice President, Hajia Nana Shettima; Senate President Godswill Akpabio; House of Representatives Speaker Tajudeen Abbas; APC National Chairman Nentawe Yilwatda; and the Director-General of the Presidential Campaign Council, Senator Abdulaziz Yari.
State governors, Senators Magnus Abe, Adams Oshiomhole and Ifeanyi Okowa, other National Assembly members and the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, were also in attendance.
The President arrived in Port Harcourt after official engagements and a political rally in Akwa Ibom State, where he commissioned projects executed by Governor Umo Eno’s administration.
