There has been wild jubilation on the streets in Port Harcourt following the ruling of a judge in Abuja declining to give an order restraining the Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike from contesting Saturday’s gubernatorial election.
Residents led by supporters of the governor moved out to the streets after report of the judgment began to make the round.
Many PDP chieftains were seen singing and dancing as the governor seemed to have cleared what could have been an insurmountable hurdle on his way to re-election.
PDP chairman in the state, Felix Obuah, was among the first to express joy over the victory in Abuja.
Obuah, in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Jerry Needam, said the judiciary has once more risen above sentiments to save the nation’s nascent democracy.
He described the judgment as heartwarming, inspiring and divine, stressing that God has in his infinite mercy, rendered the counsel of the wicked to be foolish.
The State PDP Chairman who described Governor Wike as an all-round winner, expressed confidence that Wike’s winning streak would culminate in a resounding victory against his opponents in Saturday’s polls.
Fears were rife that Rivers State would go up in flames had the Abuja court stopped Wike from contesting the election as there would not have been time enough for the governor to seek a stay of the judgment.
Danger signals were everywhere in parts of Rivers State where businesses including multinational firms began to take precautions earlier in the day.
The fear was that armed youths would shut down the state to stop any elections without Wike.
One Elvis Chinda had accused Wike of attaching a forged birth certificate to his Form CF001 submitted to INEC on November 2, 2018, for clearance to participate in the 2019 general election.
Ignatius Chukwu
