Following his recent resignation from the Labour Party, prominent Rivers politician, Prince Tonye Princewill, has endorsed the All Progressives Congress (APC) and moved to guide his followers to the federal-ruling party.

In a statement which he issued in Port Harcourt on Thursday, the Prince of Niger Delta politics, as he is fondly called, lined up behind immediate past Governor Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi in the raging battle between him and his successor, Nyesom Wike.

The statement reads: “After observing both sides for two years, the Prince has thrown caution to the wind and opted to join forces with the Minister, Rt Hon Rotimi Amaechi. In a detailed statement issued online earlier today, the Prince said the decision was relatively easy to make and he had since advised all his supporters, Princewill Political Associate (PPA) members, disgruntled PDP sympathisers and the dissatisfied youths of the state to go and register immediately with the APC and work hard under the new and improved direction of the party as full members.

“PDP in Rivers State is for the old school, analog, well seasoned politicians who have been in charge in one form or the other since 1999. The top is too heavy. Like an umbrella. Nothing comes down and since there is no vacancy at the top, there is no chance for young fresh faces to grow. I don’t belong there and neither do you.”

While Princewill commended Wike for trying his best and ‘doing good’ in some areas, he regretted that the Governor’s best was “clearly not good enough”, stating that if projects executed could feed the poor and reduce the horrendous rate of unemployment, it would have been better. The Prince said that his tour of the state revealed that many of those who were angry with Amaechi in 2015 had cut their noses to spite their faces. “If I can reconcile with Amaechi, so can you,” he stated.

“Wike,” according to Princewill, “is doing what he can. You do not expect a mango tree to produce orange. What we need in Rivers state is Mr. Jobs. That means we need security, knowledge of local business needs, the elimination of multiple taxation and a serious attempt at making affordable capital available to the local businesses. Then we urgently need a government that doesn’t throw a party over the laying of a foundation stone. No government gets it right from day one, but the Rivers state government has shown that is not ready to listen. APC has shown me that they are.”

Princewill also announced the establishment of a 10-man transition committee headed by his deputy governorship candidate, Barr. Ken Saronwiyo, to ensure a smooth transition of his supporters into APC.

He urged his people to learn from the mistakes of others and to shelve personal ambition in the interest of the party and the state.

News Express reports that Prince recently announced that he would no longer seek the position of Governor of Rivers State but would be instead dedicating his time and energy to ensuring youth involvement in politics, doing so from outside of the Labour Party where he felt he could make more impact.

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