Tonye Princewill
Prince Tonye Princewill, a Petroleum Engineer and frontline politician in oil rich Rivers State, is one of the 17 governorship aspirants eyeing the governorship ticket of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP in Rivers State.
Princewill may not be new to challenges in his sojourn in politics, but his bid for the PDP ticket for 2015 governorship election may just be one of his toughest ever on account of the equally experienced and formidable aspirants he is up against in the party.
This, Princewill, a 2007 governorship candidate of the defunct Action Congress, sees differently, saying as a David, he will always defeat his Goliath. He spoke on different issues ranging from his relationship with Gov. Rotimi Ameachi, President Jonathan’s performance in office and Nyesome Wike’s entrance into the governorship race.
He spoke to DailyPost’s Ali Abah Adoyi and Timothy Enietan-Matthews in his Abuja home.
EXCERPTS:
Shortly after Gov. Rotimi Ameachi took over from Celestine Omeiha, some members of your then party, Action Congress, AC, accused you of hobnobbing with the governor when you were supposed to be leader of the opposition in the state. What actually happened?
There was so much misinformation going on at that time that was so off the mark. Off course, I have always been close to Ameachi and he was doing a lot of good work at that time which required our support as people with genuine love for the state.
The real reason I was being maligned then was because the party leadership wanted me to go and bring money from the governor, which I could not do. But I ended up arranging a meeting between AC leadership in the state and Amaechi. This helped to calm things down for a while, but then, the agitation resumed.
And so when the opportunity came for me to leave AC and move to PDP, I took it, because of course, I was shouldering a lot of responsibility as the leader of the party from which I was not benefitting. So it sounded like a relief to me leaving the AC.
I will also like you to understand that I don’t take decisions on my own; I always consult before doing anything. Just like I consulted when we decided to support Amaechi in 2011, we consulted people like Atiku and Ita Giwa.
When we decided to leave the AC, we also got involved in consultation, the view of the majority of the party, all the wings of the party; the women’s wing, the youth wing, the LG chairmen, the elders and the state executives all decided that we move to the PDP.
In other words, as at the time APC merger took place, there was no AC or ACN structure in the state?
What I can say is that AC metamorphosed into ACN and when we moved, one of the statements I made was that “if you want to blackmail me because you want to give the party to Dr. Abiye Sekibo, you can go ahead and do so.” So people like Dr Sekibo and others moved into the party and took it over, and of course, they were there until it merged with other parties to become APC. They only left APC when Ameachi defected to APC.
You moved to PDP, and you had a good relationship with Governor Rotimi Ameachi, what stopped you from following the governor to APC since you were in one of the legacy parties before and you were good friends?
I want to believe you are not asking me why I did not join APC when it came up but why I did not follow Ameachi when he joined APC.
Well if you look at the metamorphosis of Amaechi’s move to APC, you will see that he first left from PDP to new PDP and then to APC. I didn’t follow him to the new PDP and reason being that the whole premise of new PDP did not sit well with me.
You have to understand that not only was I friend with Amaechi, but I was also friend with Atiku, but I still had no interest in the new PDP and what they were doing. I also found out that the premise upon which they were doing it was unfounded and shaky. I also took exception to people like Nyako. If you’re talking about new age politics and about progressive politics, what is Nyako doing there?
So in as much as people like Ameachi and Atiku were comfortable doing things with Nyako, I did not see any progressive politics about the new PDP, so I did not buy into it.
Also, I think that the president has been doing a fantastic job. I, unlike many people never expected much from the president; I thought he was not going to do a good job, so my expectation was lower than other people.
For me, the president’s performance surpassed my expectations so when everybody was complaining about him, I was looking to the left and to the right and saying, are these people seeing the same thing that I am seeing? Because I had watched Obasanjo and Yar’adua, so when I look at Jonathan, I asked myself, what is so bad about this guy that was not there before?
So when people like Atiku and Amaechi moved to the new PDP, it did not make sense to me.
You have to also remember that for over two years, I was making peace between Atiku and Jonathan and between Amaechi and the President, so I was at the centre of the peace making effort. I had a fair understanding of what Amaechi’s issues were and what Atiku’s issues were.
As far as I am concerned, it takes two to tangle, so I felt the president was sincere in his moves for peace. I remember saying that if I were Amaechi, there will be no problem between myself and the President. In other words, the duty to maintain peace firmly and squarely rests with Amaechi.
So moving with him to the APC would have been foolhardy because he didn’t bring me to Politics. I was there before him, he met me there. I have followers and supporters, so I am not expected to just jump at the sight of another person’s decision; I have to take my own.
From all indications, you are with Jonathan, not only from what you have said but from mere observation, you are teaming up with him. At the moment that Amaechi is at the other side and attacking the President consistently, will it be safe to say he is now your enemy?
Well, the truth of the matter is that as far as politics is concerned, Amaechi is perfectly my enemy. He is in APC while I am in PDP and in the battle for elections; the guy on the other side is my adversary. He will remain so until he converts and come back to the PDP.
The PDP is saying it will take back Rivers State from the APC but Ameachi, as the incumbent wants to keep the state within the APC fold; how easy do you think it will be to defeat Amaechi?
We have to understand that Amaechi is leaving; there has been a lot of talk about him, but he is on his way out. He is about to complete his two terms in office so why are people so obsessed about him? While people are busy themselves with the Amaechi obsession, I am busy looking at the post Amaechi Rivers State and what we are going to be confronted with.
If Amaechi wants to bring one of his people to come and take over from him, that will be unfortunate because we will not let it happen. But we are not God; we will only let the people of Rivers state know the truth. And my job is to highlight the truth and bring it to the people’s attention.
When we talk about enmity, it’s about victory and not just victory for PDP but for the people of Rivers State. For me, Rivers State and PDP are synonymous.
Now you just said you don’t know why people are so obsessed with Amaechi, but you will agree with me that having been a Governor for almost 8 years now, he should be a factor in the state. And considering the issue of incumbency, with the way politics is played in Nigeria, the man on the seat most times wins…
Even if that is the case, there are examples of incumbents that have not won; we saw that happen in Ekiti. Even if it never happened before in Nigerian history, it will happen in Rivers State. And my position is that APC will not win Rivers and that PDP will. I have worked with and against PDP long enough and I know that at the end, they will all come round the table and reach an agreement on the way forward; many people will line up behind them.
I want to tell you that the case of Rivers State is going to be different because Amaechi has made several wrong decisions. He has had issues with respect for elders, issues with respect for ethics, issues with the way he conducted the affairs of the Governors Forum and his issues with the presidency.
Amaechi started up very well and we were actually proud we had a governor that was actually making progress, but once he decided to become the Chairman of the Governors Forum, he started having distractions.
Many of the people with him now are with him because they want to collect what they can get. I can tell you that once he is out, PDP will regain the state and probably some other positions like the Senate and House of Representatives and of course the state House of Assembly, many of them will desert him. I have no doubt about that; but like I said, I am not God, but we will work hard for our victory.
You have equally formidable politicians who are aspirants on the same PDP platform; how easy do you think it is going to be for you?
There have been talks about formidable candidates, which is another example of obsession. Just like Ameachi, people are obsessed about Wike. The fact that Wike has picked a form doesn’t necessarily mean he is going to run; he may not even be in the primaries. I guess we will cross that bridge when we get there.
A youth group, Rivers Young Entrepreneurs Forum recently endorsed you and recommended that Chief Nyesom Wike remain as the party leader in the state; what do you think about that?
I have said this long before now that Wike who I see as the leader of the party in the state should play that role. He should just play his role as a leader and leave the rest of us to fight it out. I think that Wike will make a good Director General of my campaign organization. I wouldn’t expect him to be thinking about contesting but of course, he is his own person and he has the right to make his own decisions. But if I am to advise him, I will advise him against it.
He has risen to the position of leader of the party, I would want him to maintain that because I wouldn’t want him to contest the primaries and loose and then he will not have the same kind of courtesy he has now. But I want to say that you have to really look into politics and the history of the candidate involved. In 2007, I contested the primaries against a gentle man, by name- Sergeant Awuse, who at the time was the Bulldozer of the entire Rivers State politics.
There was a report that Chief Nyesom Wike in connivance with the Rivers State PDP Chairman removed the PDP membership register and cards in the state to manipulate the ward congresses; what’s your reaction?
I will be lying if I say I have not heard that too but I cannot confirm that because I am yet to get concrete evidence to that effect. If it is true, then they are toying with crisis because naturally, the registers are expected to be kept at the ward offices. Let us wait and see what they intend to do with it , and if they actually removed them.
You come across like a very gentle person, somebody who does not have the ruggedness to be in the rough terrain of politics, especially the tricky adventure of seeking elective position. How do you hope to cope?
How do I hope to cope? I am not new in politics; this is not the first time I will be running for election. Remember I was the governorship candidate of the Action Congress in 2007 and I did not chicken out of the race because it was tricky and rough, according to you.
I have always told the leaders of my party in the state not to think because of my looks, I can be taken for granted. There are people who react spontaneously to issues but some of us take our time. I am not as weak as I look. Looks are deceptive; it is the strength of character that matters.
I have more than enough inner strength that totally renders my meek looks irrelevant.
If you get your party’s nod to contest in 2015 and eventually win the general election, what will be your priority as governor?
My priority will be Rivers State! Whatever I do, will be with Rivers in mind. Rivers and its people is the focus and number one priority. For me and my team, it is Rivers first. And to add to that, one of my first actions is to sell Ameachi’s jet. Rivers State does not need a private jet. What am I running from that I will not be able to enter commercial flights with fellow Riverians?
Note: This interview was conducted shortly before PDP ward congress
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