The Ijaw House in Yenagoa the Bayelsa State capital, yesterday was venue of a meeting of elders from the Ijaw ethnic extraction, who deliberated on the administration of President Goodluck Jonathan and how best to support his second term ambition.
The elders, who took turns to condemn what they referred to as consistent attacks on the person of Mr. Jonathan, resolved, after their four-hour long meeting to meet with the Arewa Consultative Forum, Ohanaeze Ndigbo and the Oodua Peoples Congress (OPC) to solicit their support for the president’s re-election in 2015.
Contributors at the meeting which was held under the aegis of the Ijaw National Congress (INC) held that reaching out to other ethnic groups would give their geopolitical zone a second chance.
They were of the opinion that consulting with other ethnic groups would help Jonathan secure a second term in office.
One of the elders, Chief Francis Doukpola said “the Ijaw Nation is not going to war with any region over 2015.We will get the second term for the president by not fighting, but by dialogue and diplomacy.”
The meeting which was convened by Bayelsa State Commissioner for Culture and Ijaw National Affairs, Dr. Felix Tuodolor, decried the tirades launched against their son (Jonathan) and the present negative mood of some important sections of the country which they said could work against the president in 2015.
Tuodolor said the Ijaw Nation had yet to achieve its collective aspirations despite its strategic importance to the country.
He said: “Sadly too, the insurgency, ideologically depraved Boko Haram does not help matters at the center as the lack of peace and security of lives and property not only distort the social order but practically impedes meaningful development.
“This anomaly is itself a travesty of justice. It is an ideology of the anomie; to make the country ungovernable, a detestable ideology of calling the dog a bad name in order to hang it.
“That is why we must not allow our son to stand alone in the rain so that his reign of power may not go down on the wrong side of history.
“And very importantly, we must press home for him to serve our country beyond one term so that he will consolidate on the gains of his rule which far exceeds that of any administration.
“Other regions or nations should control theirs as it is the tenets of true federalism. Also, INC should lead the process of building solid bridges between the Ijaws and other ethnic nationalities in the Niger Delta first and then the rest of the Nigeria”.
