Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, on Friday renewed the call for the restructuring of Nigeria as well as joint efforts to achieve unity among the various groups in the country instead of agitating for secession.
Several Nigerians including former President Olusegun Obasanjo and the General of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Pastor Enoch Adeboye, had in September called for the restructuring of the country in order to prevent its “total break up.”
The governor spoke during a courtesy visit of a delegation of the All Nigeria Anglican Communion led by its Primate, Rev. Henry Ndukuba to the Government House, Port Harcourt advised those agitating for secession to rather strive for the restructuring of Nigeria in order to foster the much-desired unity in the country.
He stressed that the people of Rivers State have for decades lived peacefully with Nigerians from other parts of the country.
The governor, however, expressed regret that criminals under the aegis of the proscribed Indigenous Peoples of Biafra (IPOB) had misconstrued the peaceful disposition of Rivers to carry out illegal activities like hoisting of their flags in communities in the state.
According to Wike, Rivers State was peaceful during the #EndSARS protests until IPOB members unleashed unprovoked attacks and killed six soldiers, four policemen, and destroyed all police stations and court buildings in Oyigbo.
He said: “We need the unity of this country. What everybody is talking about is the restructuring of this country. If we are practising federalism, let it be federalism. We can’t be talking about federalism but we are practising a unitary system of government.”
