By Tordue Salem
ABUJA — Prince Tonye Princewill, a Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, chieftain in Rivers State, has described governorship aspirants vying with Governor Chibuike Amaechi of Rivers State for his seat in 2011, as jokers.

“If passion and zeal to develop the state is a parameter to decide who governs, then Amaechi should go and rest as, by the much he had done for the state, he has no rival at the moment in Rivers State as both Dr. Abiye  Sekibo and other pretenders that have indicated interest to run the state are all jokers as they have nothing to offer to the state,” he said.

Mr. Princewill, in a statement signed by the Media Consultant to Princewill Political Associates, Chief Eze Chukwuemeka Eze, advised the governor to go to sleep over his ambition to continue as governor in Rivers State as, according to him, his achievements have already spoken for him.

“To us, the campaign team may not have much to do, considering that the governor has been adopted as the consensus candidate for the state by different segments of stakeholders, including non-indigenes, the Traditional Council of Chiefs, ex-militants, traders, the Rivers State House of Assembly, the Local Government Executive Council Chairmen, the handicapped society in Rivers State, students and of course the Princewill Political Associates,” he said.

According to him, “if within the space of three years, Rt. Hon. Rotimi Chubuike Amaechi redefined governance in Nigeria and demonstrated visible leadership to our people, he need not campaign any more.”

He said Governor Amaechi deserved a second term, being a governor resolved to build a total new city, comparable with any modern city in Europe, initiate the construction of a monorail, the first of its kind in Africa, save on a monthly basis for the future of our state the sum of N1 billion without tampering with it, the first of a such a move by any government in Nigeria and offer scholarship and free education to children from primary to secondary levels.

He also made allusions to the governor’s construction and equipping of 24 model secondary schools, distributed and sited in all the LGAs of the state, construction of 260 functional health centres, construction of 350 model primary schools and offer of university scholarship to indigenes in Canada, India, Ireland, Singapore and UK.

Also identified was Amaechi’s engagement in the construction of 800km of roads across the state, construction of 10 major and 20 minor bridges.