THE gathering of the people of the South-South geo-political zone at the Presidential Hotel in Port Harcourt at the behest of their governors cannot by any standard be described as an effort in futility.

The objective of the meeting was to chart a political direction for the zone and to announce their unflinching support for President Goodluck Jonathan‘s candidature in the 2011 poll.

Surprisingly, the rally, which was supposed to be for the people of the South-South, irrespective of their political affiliation, turned out to be an affair of the Peoples Democratic Party. All the PDP governors from the region were present on the occasion except for the Edo State Governor, Mr. Adams Oshiomhole, who incidentally is of the Action Congress.

Given that the invitation was not extended to him, Oshimhole‘s non-appearance was understandable. Indeed, the invitation, which was made public, only invited the five PDP governors, elder statesmen and other stakeholders from the zone.

Apart from elders like former Minister of Information, Chief Edwin Clark, his Foreign Affairs counterpart, Chief Matthew Mbu, and a few others, one could easily conclude that the meeting was at the instance of the PDP and it was, in fact, well attended by card-carrying members of the party. Nevertheless, this observation did not eclipse the reason for the meeting.

Before this time, not a few were of the belief that the governors in the zone were not comfortable with the ascension of Jonathan to the position of the President and the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces. The reason and perhaps the political calculation, some analysts had argued then, was that the governors‘ second term aspiration would be in jeopardy if the then Vice-President Jonathan was sworn in as president.

When eventually Jonathan emerged the country‘s president, the governors were reported to have made a detour and sought his face and forgiveness. Even when the people of the zone pushed for Jonathan‘s candidature for the 2011 presidential election, the governors could still not believe that the tide was against them. By the time they realised that a wind of change was blowing, the people of the zone were already canvassing and encouraging Jonathan to run for the presidency in the 2011 poll.

But the meeting in Port Harcourt, which was attended by governors, Rotimi Amaechi, (Rivers), Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan, (Delta), Chief Godswill Akpabio, (Akwa Ibom), Timipre Sylva (Bayelsa) and Senator Liyel Imoke, (Cross River) created an ample opportunity for them to show that they were fully in support of Jonathan’s government and willing to continue to assist him especially if he declares his intention to vie in the next year‘s poll.

They spoke glowingly of Jonathan‘s personality and the need for the North to support his alleged 2011 presidential bid. For instance, in the thinking of Imoke who is the Chairman of the South-South Governors‘ Forum, it would be easier to discuss current trends in politics, including the political future of the zone.

He said, ”We as your governors, being your servants will listen to your comments on the various issues affecting the zone. What we intend to do is to discuss issues in terms of the way forward for the South-South zone and the country.”

In his remarks, Akpabio called on the leaders of the zone not to be afraid of reaching out to other parts of the country and persuade them to support Jonathan for the 2011 presidential election. According to him, he has spoken with some of the leaders in the north on the need to back Jonathan for the presidency in 2011.

Toeing Akpabio and Imoke‘s line of argument, Sylva said Jonathan had proved himself worthy of the position of the president, adding that God had already approved him to lead the country beyond 2011.

To him, ”My assumption is that after this meeting, I can go home and sleep, believing that we have unanimously agreed to support the presidency of Jonathan. I will soon go out there to canvass support from other zones with what I have seen here today.”

But Uduaghan went a step ahead of his colleagues and challenged them for greater action. Inasmuch as he is concerned, the zone should begin to deliberate on the next line of action.

Assessing the various comments, analysts believe that it would not be difficult for any doubting Thomas to have a change of mind that the governors‘ support for the Jonathan presidency has no limitation.

If many were convinced of the governors‘ sincerity in mobilising the South-South and other zones for Jonathan, a Niger Delta activist and the spokesperson of the Ijaw Republican Assembly, Ms. Annkio Briggs, however, was not moved by their efforts.

According to her, by the governors‘ action and particularly the outcome of the meeting, there is more to it than meets the eye. In her opinion, it was wrong for the governors to have created the impression that they were mobilising the people of the zone to support Jonathan for the 2011 presidential election.

The people of the zone, she said, had already mobilised themselves for Jonathan to contest and win the forthcoming presidential election, remarking that the governors resisted Jonathan‘s emergence as President and wondered why they were convening a meeting in support of him.

Describing the meeting as the gathering of PDP members, Briggs who is also the spokesperson of a pro-democracy group, New Dimension, observed that many of the delegates were card-carrying members of the party. She urged the governors not to make the task of ensuring that Jonathan wins the 2011 presidential election a PDP affair, even as she warned that the South-South issue was neither a PDP affair nor a regional issue.

Even as Briggs engaged the governors, as it were, Clark, expressed sadness that people from other zones had always taken advantage of the disunity among the South-South people to deprive them of their rights. He, therefore, called on the people of the zone to unite and speak in one voice.

Indeed, the mild drama that ensued towards the end of the summit easily pointed to the fact that the unity was yet to come. A delegate, Mr N.O. Nyenke, had interrupted the Chairman of the Communiqué Drafting Committee, Prof Julius Iheovbere, and drew his attention to the fact that no person from Edo State was a signatory to the communiqué.

Nyenke said members of the CDC deliberately refused to allow any person from the state to endorse the communiqué.

Nyenke, who seemed miffed over the development, suggested that the former governor of Edo State, Prof Oserheimen Osunbor, be allowed to append his signature as the representative of the people of the state at the summit.

Reacting to Nyenke‘s observation, Iheovbere explained that Oshiomhole‘s signature was not on the communiqué because the event was a PDP affair. Not satisfied with Iheovbere‘s response to Nyeke‘s observation, Imoke immediately came to the rescue and said the resolutions were not restricted to the governors. Imoke described the content of the communiqué as the collective decision of the people of the zone, irrespective of their political party affiliations.

His intervention was, however, enough to douse the tension that was brewing over the observation of the lack of Oshiomhole‘s signature on the communiqué. Nevertheless, many commentators hope that this lapse will not degenerate into a crack in the lofty plans for Jonathan‘s presidency by the people of the zone.