Gov. Fubara

By Daniel Abia, Port Harcourt

The Reconciliation Committee of the Rainbow Coalition in Rivers State has assured members of the political group that none of them would be victimised or discriminated against because of past political disagreements.

The committee gave the assurance on Sunday when its members met with Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, at Government House, Port Harcourt, for the second time in about two weeks.

The committee said that under the emerging atmosphere of peace and reconciliation, all members would be treated equally and with respect as members of the original political family.

Chairman of the committee, Senator Magnus Abe, said the meeting was aimed at further deliberations on the modalities for the ongoing peace and reconciliation process among estranged political leaders in the state.

The committee was constituted by the leader of the group and Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike.

Briefing journalists after the meeting, Abe said the committee had held several meetings to develop modalities for bringing its members together.

He said the explanation was necessary to keep the people of Rivers State informed about the new political direction in the state.

“I’m sure that Rivers people will be very curious to understand exactly what we have been talking about. So, I know that this will be very good news for all Rivers people who are interested in the unity, progress and prosperity of Rivers State.

“We are all in agreement and we have made very good progress,” Abe said.

He added that the coming together of the political actors represented a significant shift in the political atmosphere of the state.

“Our coming together signals a significant shift in the political atmosphere of the state and we believe that all well-meaning Rivers people will be very happy to see that finally, the peace that all Rivers people crave for is here,” he said.

The Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress (APC), South-South zone, Dr Samuel Nwanosike, who was part of the delegation, commended Governor Fubara for receiving the committee and providing an opportunity for members to engage with him.

Nwanosike described the latest meeting as a significant step towards restoring unity within the political family.

“I’m so excited. The last meeting went well. Today’s meeting went extraordinarily well and it shows clearly to the people of Rivers State that the family is back; sincerely back and soon, they will see the working of the Rainbow Coalition.

“We will give the people of Rivers State the dividends of democracy they’ve been expecting from all angles,” he said.

Another stakeholder, Chief Ambrose Nwuzi, said members of the group who supported Governor Fubara had agreed to embrace reconciliation, stressing that peace was preferable to prolonged political disagreements.

He described the disagreements of the past as normal occurrences in any human society.

“Our leader has spoken and our overall leader has equally spoken and accepted that there is need for all of us to reconcile. I can tell you that we have reconciled.

“All that we are waiting for is for the Honourable Minister of the Federal Capital Territory to put the seal on the reconciliation process which has been going on for the past few weeks,” Nwuzi said.

Other members of the delegation included the APC governorship candidate in Rivers State, Hon. Kingsley Ogundu Chinda, and Mr Tamosisi Gogo Jaja, among others.