Road to 2023: Ijaw youths demand immediate release of Dagogo – Daily Sun

From Femi Folaranmi, Yenagoa

Ijaw Youths from the nine states of the Niger Delta region under the aegis of the Ijaw Youth Council Worldwide(IYC) have called for the immediate release of the member of the Federal House of Representatives, Hon Farah Dagogo who was arrested on Thursday on the orders of Rivers Governor, Nyesom Wike over allegation of violence against at the secretariat of the PDP in the state.

IYC noted that despite their call on Wike to rescind his arrest order against Dagogo, he still went ahead to arrest and arraigned him in court.Accordingly the group said the charges should be dropped his trial as it is politically motivated.

IYC in a statement issued by its spokesman, Ebilade Erekefe said Wike and the PDP should know that Dagogo is an Ijaw son and his persecution is a persecution of all Ijaws in the Niger Delta.The decision of the ijaws to tow the line of peace is all in a bid not to distrupt the peace in the region and also in recognition of the development efforts of Wike administration in Rivers.We may not be a partisan body, the arrest and arraignment of Hon. Fara Dagogo is in bad taste to the Ijaws. While it may seem Wike is deliberately ignoring the calls by the youths of the region, we call on the Court not to allow itself to be used in an effort to get political revenge over the choice to support any Presidential aspirants within the PDP.

It explained that despite calls by Rivers Stakeholders for Wike to give a level playing ground to all those who are vying to become the governor of Rivers state in the next gubernatorial election, the arrest order issued against Hon. Dagogo will be viewed as showing there is no level playing ground and selective witch hunt in the processes leading to the selection of Governorship candidate for PDP in the state.

The statement reads in part: Governor Wike should realize that his becoming governor today is as a result of sacrifices of Ijaw youths in Abonema who resisted injustice, intimidation and oppression by the federal government during his second term elections when others where afraid to confront the federal might, and wonder why others will suffer similar fate simply because he perceived them as his political opponents.

This is totally unacceptable and we are calling on the security agencies in Rivers state to carry out their duties professionally as any attempt to intimidate Farah Dogogo and any other Ijaw son by the Rivers state government at a time the Ijaw nation is clamoring for a Riverine governor will be seen as an affront.

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Road to 2023: Ijaw youths demand immediate release of Dagogo - Daily Sun