Elections: MOSOP president gets ultimatum to call steering committee

                                                           Saro Legborsi Pyagbara
The  deputy president of MOSOP, Dr. Fortune Chujppr, has written to the president of MOSOP, Legborsi Saro Pyagbara to convene a Steering Committee meeting of the organisation on or before October 25, 2018. In a letter dated October 18, 2018, the MOSOP deputy president noted some anomalies with the administration of Mr. Pyagbara, citing a recent attack on the publicity secratary of MOSOP, Fegole Nsuke and the failure of Pygabara to call a steering committee to set up the electoral committee that will conduct elections as the tenure of the Pyagbara-led executive come to an end on December 31, 2018.

The letter read in full:

Mr. President, you may recognize that the current leadership of MOSOP has less than 76 days to the expiration of its tenure on December 31, 2018, yet there are issues of importance that are hitherto unattended to and these have given me serious concern hence I thought it wise to write you. My resort to writing stems from my inability to access you.

In line with article 5 sub 3 (c) of the MOSOP constitution on tenure of office, which states that: Members of either the Central or Executive Committee shall hold office for three years in the first instance but may be re-elected for another term. You will recall that the first tenure of our leadership started 1st January, 2013 and terminated on 31st December, 2015 while the second term commenced on January 1, 2016 and would terminate on December 31, 2018.

You are aware that the annual Ogoni Martyrs’ Remembrance Day comes up on November 10, 2018, which is some 24 days away yet nothing visibly is being done about it. Implementation of the Ogoni clean-up exercise is another sore point. Majority of MOSOP members/Ogoni citizens especially the rural dwellers are in the dark regarding how the project is being implemented.

Conversely nothing is being said about conducting MOSOP elections this 2018 and we are in October, the only free month to political campaigns preparatory to the 2019 general elections, which would have serious implications for the organization. Instead, there are allegations of tenure elongation occasioning internal and external protests; and more worrisomely, are confirmed reports of unleashed violence on perceived pro-election MOSOP members who were meeting recently at the Peace and Freedom Centre, Bori. In fact the Publicity Secretary of MOSOP, Mr. Fegalo Nsuke was particularly assaulted. The Financial Secretary of MOSOP, Chief Theophilous Dike has been reportedly albeit allegedly fingered to have funded the hoodlums who carried out the wicked and lawless act for the masterminds.

In the light of the foregoing, I would urge an urgent sitting of the Steering Committee between now and Thursday, 25 October, 2018. The meeting shall amongst others, set up an Ogoni Martyrs’ Remembrance committee to plan and organize this year’s event as well as an electoral committee to commence the process of conducting MOSOP general elections this October.

This would be a practical step to demonstrating commitment against tenure elongation and kill the widespread allegations against our leadership informed by the disturbing silence regarding the said polls and occasioned various interpretations. This tenure extension accusation, which we have offered no convincing response remains disappointing and scandalous; increased our unpopularity and capable of causing crisis in the organization.

Besides, the resort to calling clandestine meetings and making mouth-watering promises to influence support for the elongation bid, as it is being alleged, not only smacked of crass desperation and very unMOSOP but also immoral and worsening our case. It is now strongly believed and widely too, that there are some suspicious financial transactions which the leadership wants to protect that is influencing the tenure extension insistence. I do not think this is good for us.

If we have yesterday criticized those that elongated or attempted to extend their stay in power beyond constitutional stipulation, coming now to do same rubbishes what MOSOP stands for and this would be unacceptable.

The only right thing to do is to ensure conduct of elections now. Those of us offering this advice may be labelled as enemies but that is immaterial to me because the truth has to be told no matter how bitter. However, I will urge you to read between the lines any advice against conducting MOSOP elections this year as the main intent, which of course would be masked, would be to destroy you and MOSOP; and may it not happen.

I am awaiting your timely response.