Following the entrance of Timi Alaibe into the race for the governorship ticket of All Progressives Congress (APC), Tony Akowe in Abuja reports on the chances of the former Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) to win the forthcoming Bayelsa election
The entering into the governorship race in Bayelsa State by the former Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) has set the stage for an epic battle for the APC governorship ticket in the state. Until his entrance to the race, there had been wild rumour that the race for the APC ticket will be between former governor Timiprieye Silva and other aspirants. But as at the time of the report on Friday, Silva was yet to pick the nomination form, even though his supporters have been putting pressure on him to do so. But the big question is whether Alaibe, who just came into the APC is the right candidate for the party or whether he will get the nod of the party to fly its flag in the December 5 governorship election?
However, the chances of Alaibe became brighter when some leaders of thought and political big wigs in the state stormed the APC national secretariat to pick the nomination form for him to contest the election. They insisted that he was the best man for the job. Their spokesman and former lawmaker from the state, Senator John Brambaifa, said they have searched the state and found none other suitable for the job of leading the state out of the wood. Brambaifa accused Governor Henry Seriake Dickson of failing the people of the state, adding that he has nothing to show for the huge allocation collected by the state from the federation account.
The former lawmaker said Dickson was no match for Alaibe, saying “we have decided to buy the form for him and present him to our people as the most favoured candidate because he will be the best to take the mantle of leadership in Bayelsa.” He said the group decided to come together and purchase the form for the former NDDC boss after reviewing his achievements and coming to the conclusion that he was the best man for the job, pointing out that there is no doubt that Bayelsa needs a person of his quality at this point in time. He expressed confidence that the APC governorship primary in the state will be rancor-free; saying the party already has a record of transparency in the organisation and conduct of its primaries as exemplified by its presidential primary and the recently concluded governorship primary in Kogi State.
Alaibe, who said he has accepted the challenge by the call of the elders of the state to contest the election, said he was bringing into the race a great wealth of experience unmatched by any of the aspirants, including the current governor of the state. He argued that Bayelsans were tired of having accidental leaders who came to power without adequately preparing for governance. He said past leaders in the state have nothing to offer the state, but to line their pockets with money from the state. He lamented the lack of development in the state which he said is one of the major oil producing states in the country, pointing out that only leaders who are not prepared to deliver democracy dividends to the people use the difficult terrain as an excuse for their failure.
The former NDDC boss, who supported the present governor to defeat former governor Silva four years ago, said his support, four years ago, was never for Dickson, but for the party, saying “I am a party man and that is what I have always been. I even have course to step down for people by following party directives those days; so I am a party man but in spite of how we try to support them, the leopard and his skin refused to change; you cannot give what you do not have.”
Alaibe refused to concede to the fact that the difficult terrain in Bayelsa State might contribute to the slow spate of development in the state, saying the terrain does not stop the clearing of refuse and the drainage system in Yenogoa, the state capital. While saying he was coming with a lot of experience on the development of the Niger-Delta, he argued that the difficult terrain did not stop him from constructing roads and building schools in Bayelsa while in the NDDC, saying “there is no terrain challenge that cannot be resolved.”It is like talking about Netherlands, city of water, and you can see infrastructures development. If you know what to do, let us not use the excuse of terrain, that is deceit; that is not the problem.
“How does the excuse of terrain make you not to resolve the drainage problem in Yenagoa town? How does the excuse of terrain make you not to clear the refuse? It is leadership we are talking about, leadership with vision, leadership that gives direction, leadership that know critical issue of infrastructural development and empowerment, leadership that connect with the people, that is what is absent and that is what we want to fix”.
While exuding confidence about his chances in the race, he said “You were here when the elders and leaders of Bayelsa State came to purchase the form, asking me to contest for the governorship of the state. In answer to that call and following my acceptance, I have come here to submit the expression of interest and nomination form. We, as Bayelsan people, are tired of accidental leadership. We are tired of visionlessness and you know that I come with a lot of experience, goodwill, integrity and reputation. As one of the major oil producing states in this country, Bayelsa has not been able to see structured development in terms of infrastructural development and even in terms of environmental development as consequence of oil production. There are also social political issues and value orientation. We want to ensure that Bayelsa becomes that ultimate destination that our people want to get to. It looks simple and all former leadership has been challenged with it and it is still not resolved. So, the credible people you see here are angling for that change and the people at the grassroots are calling for that change and want to see change in their lives. The welfare of our people is critical, our educational system has collapsed and we want to make that change happen”.
Senator Brambaifa also exuded confidence over the chances of Alaibe who joined the party recently when he said “the APC guidelines do not stop anybody who is a member of the party from contesting an election. Even if you joined yesterday, you have the same right to contest the election as somebody who joined two years ago. Don’t forget that Alaibe has a track record of achievements when he was in NDDC. At that time, he managed nine states. I don’t think one state will be a problem for him. So, we are confident that he stands the best chance to pick the APC ticket and win the election scheduled for December 5”.
The non entrance into the race of former Governor Silva as at Friday afternoon is already swinging the pendulum in favour of Alaibe who had to step down from the race for Governor Dickson four years ago and even campaigned for him to become governor. As Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Alaibe had to preside over nine oil producing states, building roads, schools, hospitals among others and managing the resources of the Commission.
Many have argued that his rein in the helm of affairs of the commission has been about the best years of the NDDC. But what are the chances of Alaibe and the APC in a state where the former President, Goodluck Jonathan and his wife, Patience holds sway? Some of Alaibe’s supporters dismiss the influence of former President Jonathan in the electoral process in the state. Jonathan, they said, has no influence over what goes on in the state and does not have the capacity to influence the votes against the APC. It remains to be seen how APC will fare in the race against PDP in the state.
