Governor Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers State has said the pressure from the political crisis in the state has been weathered sufficiently, giving way for his administration to provide focused leadership and governance.
He said this when he hosted members of the House of Representatives Committee on Public Petitions, led by its Chairman, Hon. Mike Etaba, at the government house, Port Harcourt, at the weekend.
The governor said as long as his administration and Rivers people were concerned, there is no more political issue of note.
Recall that the political crisis in Rivers had deepened following the struggle for the control of the state and other political interests between Fubara and the current Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike.
Making reference to a movie he saw a long time ago, Fubara explained how the pressure from the crisis served as an enabler to strengthen his commitment to serve.
He said, “As far as we are concerned, there are no political issues. I saw a movie many years ago, entitled, ‘Devil’s Advocate.’ I believe some of you must have seen that movie too.
“One of the starring characters: Al Pacino said, pressure makes some people retreat or fail, and to others, it makes them to become focused on succeeding. We have chosen to be focused under this pressure.
“That is why we are moving ahead. That is why we are making positive impact on the lives of our people. Governance is about the people. It is not about self.
“Governance is about touching the core needs of those people we are leading, and by the special grace of God, we are doing it.”
“Yesterday, by the special grace of God, we observed the credit line of over 3,066 persons empowered. You can imagine what that will do for the economy of the masses and the state. That is touching the lives of our people. It is not supporting them for selfish reasons. It is not giving contract because I want somebody to fight somebody in my community. No. This is empowering the economy of the masses and the state.
“Our focus is that, no matter what anybody is doing anywhere, we are not going to lose focus. We want to leave here better than we met it. And we want to also leave here without fear of anything.”
Fubara said it is more desirable for a public leader to relish in the accolades from the majority of the people, who by exploring the conducive climate that is provided, could feed themselves and pay the school fees of their children.
