Rivers State governor, Nyesom Ezenwo Wike, has lauded the Supreme Court judgement, which suspended plan by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to ban on old naira notes from February 10, 2023.
Wike gave the commendation on Wednesday while speaking during the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) campaign rally at Abua, headquarters of Abua/Odual local government area of the State.
The governor said: “Let me on behalf of the government and people of Rivers State commend the Supreme Court of Nigeria for what they have done today to save the masses from suffering and to save our democracy.
“Today the Supreme Court has stopped the Central Bank of Nigeria from embarking on something majority of Nigerians know is anti-people.
“Like I have said before, our democracy can only survive with the support of INEC, security agencies, and the judiciary. With what happened today, the Supreme Court has futher shown that the hope of the common man lies in the judiciary.
“Let me commend Kaduna State, Zamfara State, and Kogi State that took it upon themselves to challenge the Federal Government at the Supreme Court. Rivers State will join them in that suit to challenge what the CBN is doing against the masses.”
Also, speaking during the rally, PDP governorship candidate in the State, Siminalayi Fubara, said he will sustain the current peace in Abua/Odual Local Government Area, and bring more infrastructural development to the area when he comes on board as governor of the State.
Fubara said: “When the Council Chairman was speaking, he said something very important. He said some years ago some people used to claim that they own the votes in Abua/Odual local government area, but the story has changed today.
“He said if it is only one vote, that vote belongs to PDP, if it is 10 votes or one million votes, they all belong to PDP. The only reason for that is because we have brought peace to Abua/Odual people.
“It is only when there is crisis that these people can claim they have the votes, if election is peaceful, they cannot win any reasonable vote.
“Now that we have peace, PDP will win the day. We have to make sure that we sustain that peace. We will work with your political and traditional leaders to provide adequate security in this LGA because no meaningful development can come without peace.
“Presently, the administration of Governor Nyesom Wike is embarking on two major projects in this LGA, one is in Abua and the other is sited in Odual. There will be more development in Abua/Odual when these projects are completed.
“We are assuring you that we are going to give you more road networks in Abua/Odual LGA. The growth of every society depends on its physical infrastructure, and that’s what we are bringing to you.
“We have several other things that we will do for you. We will consult with your leaders to know the critical areas you want us to come in, and we will come in and address it, but for now what we need from you is your support, if you support us, we will continue to support you with better development.”
