You Are Responsible For PDP Defeat In Bayelsa, Wike Blames Dickson

Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike said that governor Serieke
Dickson should be held responsible for the defeat of Peoples
Democratic Party, PDP in Bayelsa state governorship election.

Governor Wike made the claim while reacting to the allegation
made by Dickson that he (Wike) was responsible for PDP’s defeat in
the state in a press briefing in Port Harcourt on Monday.

He said that the actions of governor Dickson preparatory to the
election added to the defeat of the party.

Wike accused the governor of intimidating some of the candidates
that wanted to contest for Senate and House of Representatives by
asking them to withdraw from the race.

He also accused the governor of sponsoring somebody from his
senatorial district for the deputy governorship position in the
state, saying that all added to the defeat of the party’s
candidate.

Wike claimed that he single handedly provided transport and
logistics support to all the PDP governors that visited Bayelsa
before and during the governorship election, alleging that the
governor did not boarder to take care of his visitors.

“I challenge Dickson to ask the PDP governorship candidate in
Bayelsa, Duoye Diri what contribution I made for governorship
election. I provided vehicles that took PDP governors to Bayelsa
during the election.

“You forced two senators to withdraw from the election. You took
the deputy governor candidate from your senatorial district, what
do you expect the people to do. Do you think they will be happy
with you. He worked for the downfall of the party,” he said.

The governor berated his Bayelsa State counterpart for his
comments on the contentious Soku oil wells, which a Federal High
Court recently ruled in favour of Rivers.

“It is unfortunate. As a governor, there is a level you should
not descend to.

I will protect the interest of Rivers State. It is unfortunate.
I read all his comments. I understand the level of frustration and
you should not lay your frustration on us”, he said.

Buhari’s Government, Not Sheikh Zakzaky Deserves
Criminal Trial- Shiite Group

We vehemently and in the most unequivocal terms condemn the
recent purported statement attributed to the Minister of
Information, Mr. Lai Muhammed, that the leader of the Islamic
Movement in Nigeria, Sheikh Ibraheem Zakzaky, is being held in
detention for what he termed crimes and not religion. Indeed, if
anyone deserves to be held and tried for crimes, it would be the
top officials of the Buhari government, who killed over a thousand
unarmed citizens extrajudicially and buried in mass graves, and
have used all the might of governance to hide the truth and
obstruct the course of justice.

The Nigerian government’s legendary disregard of the rule of law
and the further acts of continuing persecution of members of the
Islamic Movement, especially the impunity being constantly
exhibited is well known to the International community. It is a
subject of preliminary investigation by the International Criminal
Court (ICC) at The Hague. Furthermore, many local and international
Human Rights organizations like Amnesty International, Human Rights
Watch and the Islamic Human Rights Commission have all investigated
and documented the atrocities meted on members of the Islamic
Movement and its leadership, purely based on their religious
beliefs. That the ongoing persecution of the Islamic Movement has
drawn the attention of the world, especially very lately, the
United States government is a reality that no forms of lies by Mr.
Lai can obliterate.

The world is not deceived by the false charges levied against
the Sheikh, even when the about a hundred persons he was alleged to
have aided and abetted were all discharged and acquitted by
competent courts of law. That these charges were brought against
him only after more than two years of incommunicado detention and
also more than a year and half after a Federal High Court had
ordered his unconditional release is enough to show the government
has been looking for an alibi to further keep him in perpetual
detention.

Not so long ago, the same Minister of Information had told
Nigerians that the leader of the Movement was being detained for
his own protection, not that he committed any crime. In an effort
to justify the contemptuous detention, the Minister Lai had told
Nigerians that the Sheikh was being still detained because no one
wants to be his neighbor. Mr. Lai had once told a television
feature program that the courts don’t have the full picture, and so
will not abide by the ruling of the Court with regards to Sheikh
Zakzaky. This same Mr. Lai had also atrociously lied about how much
the government spends to feed Sheikh Zakzaky.

These constant changes in position as to the reason for the
illegal detention of Sheikh Zakzaky betray a government pursuing
some ulterior religious motives, which even Honorable Gabriel
Kolawole, then of the Federal High Court acknowledged while
delivering his judgment when he said: “Invidious unobtrusive acts
of intolerance by majority Muslims who follow the Sunni school of
thought against the minority Muslims who follow the Shiah school of
thought is an important factor escalating the current crisis
leading to the continued detention of the leader of the Islamic
Movement in Nigeria and the continued incessant persecution of its
members.” This is now also the official position of the US
government and no amount of lies, blackmail or intimidation can
change this.

We, the members of the Islamic Movement and our leader, Sheikh
Zakzaky, are entitled to freedom of religion, association and
expression like every Nigerian citizen, all of which the Buhari
regime is denying us and perpetually persecuting us because of our
faith and beliefs. Sheikh Ibraheem Zakzaky is, undoubtedly, a
prisoner of faith.

We therefore call on the general public not to relent in their
efforts at denouncing the tyrannical trends of the Buhari regime.
The government must be called to order to respect the rule of law
and release Sheikh Zakzaky immediately and unconditionally.

SIGNED BY
IBRAHIM MUSA
PRESIDENT MEDIA FORUM
ISLAMIC MOVEMENT IN NIGERIA