The battle for who becomes the next governor of the oil-rich Bayelsa State has taken a new dimension with the conclusion of political parties’ primaries over the weekend.
Bayelsa, Imo and Kogi will hold out-season governorship election on November 11.
Already, political gladiators in Bayelsa State are lobbying for their respective party candidates to succeed during the poll.
The incumbent governor, Senator Douye Diri, has already secured the ticket of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), while a former governor and the immediate past Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva, also clinched the ticket of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
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Others who have emerged as governorship candidates of their respective political parties include Udengs Eradiri (Labour Party), Waibodei Subiri, All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA).
For the PDP governorship primary, it was the first time in the state that the party produced a candidate unopposed, as nobody contested the ticket with Governor Diri.
The governor was given a right of first refusal by party members in the state in order to form a united front ahead of the November 11 election.
He recently said his administration deserved a second term based on its performance in the last three years plus.
Diri said his administration had made appreciable progress in virtually every sector of the state’s economy, such as infrastructure, education, health, agriculture, sports, skills acquisition and human capacity development.
He said, “Those who are power-hungry will always come from the viewpoint of attack. Like I said, there are some who have eyes but cannot see.
“If you come to Bayelsa today you will notice and experience peace and security, which had eluded the state.
“Bayelsa State is the goose that lays the golden egg. Let us operate a proper federalism and see whether our internally generated revenue will be low.
“In terms of employment, government has decided to encourage our people to be self-employed and look in the direction of the private sector. We set aside N100million monthly to support small businesses in the 105 wards of the state.
“We have also encouraged our youths to engage in sports to develop and use their potentials. We have equally made good progress in security.
“Let me assure you that our party is far more united than what we had previously. The PDP won convincingly in the just concluded elections. It shows that we are on ground.”
APC: Battle shifts to Abuja as Sylva clinches ticket
As the immediate past Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva emerged as the governorship candidate of the APC after defeating five other contestants, including the 2019 governorship candidate of the party, Chief David Lyon, other aspirants have since rejected the outcome of the primary.
He scaled through a tough contest that had six aspirants scrambling for the party’s ticket, but scheming has shifted to Abuja to persuade the National Working Committee of the party to void the exercise over alleged irregularities.
Sylva, who is the leader of the party in the state, controls over 80 per cent of its structure; hence he had an upper-hand during the primary election.
Already, Festus Daumiebi Sunday and Chief David Lyon, who contested the primary, have rejected the outcome, urging the national leadership of the party to void Sylva’s victory.
Daumiebi Sunday, in a statement he personally signed after the primary, said party members were denied the opportunity to take part in the direct primary as officials sent from the party to conduct the election in different wards did not turn up.
He stated, “The APC in Bayelsa State and the National Executive Committee have been notified that I, Festus Daumiebi Sunday, a governorship aspirant of the party reject in its entirety, what was announced as the result of the primary election.
“Let it be known that on Friday, April 14, 2023, some card-carrying members of the All Progressives Congress turned out at various wards to cast their votes in what was promised to be a free, fair and credible primary election. They waited all day, but sadly, there was no election in the wards across the state as officials of the party who were sent to conduct the election failed to turn up, neither were their electoral materials seen in the said wards.
“In selected places where they tried to pass off a simulation of an election, the process was undermined, marred by irregularities and heavily compromised. Party officials failed to abide by the guidelines and agreed processes. Upon reaching the party secretariat on Saturday, April 15, I was shocked to observe that ‘heavy numbers have been concocted for their preferred aspirant and a return was made in the open as programmed.
“Nevertheless, let me express my profound appreciation to all those who worked tirelessly for the new Bayelsa project. Though you were deprived of the opportunity to vote, do not despair. I urge you to remain calm and law-abiding as we shall explore all legal means to challenge the outcome.”
Political analysts who spoke to Daily Trust Saturday concerning the forthcoming governorship election in Bayelsa said if the APC was serious about taking over power in the state, it must put its house in order and bring all stakeholders together to work during the poll as was done during the 2019 election.
It was also a smooth ride for both Labour Party and APGA candidates as their primaries were rift-free. And they are confident of giving the PDP and APC a good competition.
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