The governorship race is gathering momentum in Bayelsa State. Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and All Progressives Congress (APC) aspirants are warming up for primaries. Correspondent MIKE ODIEGWU examines the issues that will shape the poll.
THE people of Bayelsa State are warming up for the November 16 governorship election.
While they are hoping that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) will conduct a free, fair and credible poll, eyes are also on the political parties as they prepare for primaries.
The contest is between the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressives Congress (APC). There are some mushroom parties too. Observers believe that a third force can only emerge from acrimonies and unresolved controversies that may arise from the primaries of the two major parties.
PDP in familiar terrain:
Undoubtedly, PDP is in a familiar terrain. Bayelsa has been under the leadership of the umbrella party since 1999. Little wonder most leaders of the party are eager to tell whoever that cares that Bayelsa is PDP and PDP is Bayelsa.
The first major test of PDP’s popularity was in the 2015/2016 governorship election after the emergence of the APC at the centre. Many leaders of the PDP, including a former Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Chief Timi Alaibe, abandoned the party for the APC.
The gale of defection almost made the PDP empty. Dickson, who was seeking a second term, was lonely. In fact, he appeared to be the only prominent figure left in the PDP. But he proved to be the strategist, the tactician and one-man riot squad that neutralised the APC and led PDP to victory. Without the political wisdom deployed in the election by Dickson, PDP would have been history.
Indeed, the November 16 election presents the second major trial to the PDP. Though Dickson is rounding off his second term, he remains the war chest of the PDP in the election, having held the party together with his Restoration Government at its trying times.
Already, the governor has started rolling out some of his strategies for the election. He has been holding critical meetings with various stakeholders. He met with labour leaders to resolve issues affecting workers. He met with his appointees and on two occasions, he held meetings with PDP leaders and members of the party.
He has initiated the local government elections scheduled for August. He said the election would be the forerunner to the governorship poll.
But, who flies the flag of PDP remains a conundrum. Who decides the candidate of the party? Is it Dickson or former President Goodluck Jonathan? Can the duo agree on a candidate and a running mate?
Without mincing words, Jonathan commands respect in the party, especially at the national level. Such reverence, however, does not exist in Bayelsa PDP. Jonathan lacks the influence to lead PDP to victory in the state.
In the recent National and House of assembly elections, the Otuoke-born former President switched off from activities of his party. His body language indicated lack of interest.
While Dickson led candidates of the party to campaigns, Jonathan stayed aloof. He was not found in any PDP campaign, apart from when the presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, visited Bayelsa. He avoided other PDP candidates including the ones that flew the flag of the party in his constituency.
The Ogbia Renaissance (OR), a group within PDP championing political rebirth in the local government area, was at the forefront of highlighting the anti-party activities of the PDP henchmen. Its Chairman, Obhioru Mitanoni, accused Jonathan and his wife, Patience of undermining PDP interests in the council.
Apart from the outcry of the OR, a crucial meeting of PDP members in Jonathan’s camp was held in his Otuoke residence. At the meeting the former President was said to have directed his political associates to vote Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, the Presidential candidate of the PDP, but to vote other candidates of their choice in the National and House of Assembly elections.
The allegation of anti-party was so loud that Jonathan, through his Media aide, Ikechukwu Eze, tried to defend himself. Eze said it was untrue that his boss was engaged in anti-party activities. He said: “It is manifestly dishonest, deceitful and preposterous for anybody to suggest that former President Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan is working against the interest of the party under which he rose to occupy the highest office in the land”.
During the polls, there were discordant tunes among PDP leaders in Ogbia and the East Senatorial District. There was obvious lack of unity and harmony in the PDP.
While the Restoration Team of Dickson worked to give the party victory, others sabotaged the efforts.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared the APC candidate, Degi Wagara, winner of Jonathan’s senatorial district and APC’s Isreal Sunny-Goli winner of Brass-Nembe Federal Constituency. So, Jonathan’s district gave APC two seats in the House of Representatives and the senate.
But for the ruggedness of other loyal PDP members, the party would have lost the Ogbia Federal Constituency to the APC. The loyal restoration team fought for the victory of Fred Obua in the constituency.
Dickson is in firm control of the party.
He won two out of the three senatorial seats. Dickson is in control of three out of the five seats in the House of Representatives. The governor is also engaged in legal fireworks to upturn the victories of APC in the East Senatorial District and Southern Ijaw Federal Constituency.
Besides, Dickson owns the party leadership structure from the state to the ward levels. So, he is believed to have more than 70 per cent of the delegates in his pocket. Therefore, people are looking up to the governor to drive the process that will lead to the emergence of a PDP candidate. Also, his emergence as the Chairman of the PDP Governors’ Forum has made him a stronger voice in the party.
The governor has spoken on the qualities expected from the next candidate of the PDP. He said the person must be fearless, courageous and willing to speak out in defence of the state and the Ijaw Nation. He ruled out the chances of those playing establishment politics and scheming their way to grab the ticket. He said the clergy in the state would first organise a prayer event to seek divine intervention in the choice of a candidate. After that, he said he would lead consultations to ensure emergence of a popular candidate at the party primary.
Dickson denied having any rift with Jonathan. He said Jonathan would be involved in the consultations to select PDP’s candidate.
Dickson said: “That event should have shown to most people that there is no problem between us. He is my elder brother and leader and he will continue to receive his respect. Even in this transition. That event shows that we are united when it comes to what we do for our people.
“There is not relationship that had lasted longer than our relationship. There is no issue. But aides and people around make careless statements and they manipulate stories and take advantage of the proximity they have with the former President”.
Dickson said Jonathan would be the first leader he would consult during the process to decide the standard bearer of the PDP.
“I will sit down with former president jonathan. When I am ready, I will visit him and we will compare notes. I have his support. The bottomline remains that I am in charge of governance. There are many people I will sit down and rob minds with”, he said.
So far, aspirants have restricted their activities to the social media through their supporters. No candidate has made a formal declaration. Realising the domineering influence of the governor in the party, most of them are trying to win his heart through different means, including showing up in public functions involving the governor.
Aspirants:
Alaibe’s desire to rule the state is as old as the creation of Bayelsa. He has yet to make it to the ballot, following his inconsistent choices. He was in good terms with Dickson from the beginning, but there is a brewing frosty relationship between the duo, following alleged scheming of Alaibe to get the party’s ticket and sponsored reports indirectly attacking the governor and the state PDP.
Other aspirants are Senator Emmanuel Paulker; a successful entrepreneur, Keniebi Okoko; a former Federal Permanent Secretary, Dr. Godknows Igali and a former Coordinator, Abuja Metropolitan Management Council (AMMC), Reuben Okoya.
Others are a former Militant Leader, Joshua Macaiver; former Deputy Governor Peremobowei Ebebi; former member of the House of Assembly, Stephen Ereboh; Bekes Etifa; a member representing Sagabama-Ekeremor in the House of Representatives, Fred Agbedi, a Nuclear Scientist, Franklin Osaisai among others.
Zonning:
Will zoning play any significant role in deciding the flag bearer of PDP? Recent developments have shown that there will be no zoning formula for the party. The three senatorial districts have taken a shot at the Creek Haven, the seat of power. So, a fresh zoning formula can begin from any of the senatorial district. The party seems to have, however, foreclosed the West Senatorial District from contesting the primary.
Dickson, in the interest of equity, justice and fairness, will not support any aspirant from his senatorial district, comprising his Sagbama Local Government Area and Ekeremor. Therefore, PDP is believed to be shopping for a candidate in central and eastern senatorial districts.
Though there was wide speculation hitherto that the PDP’s candidate might come from Central consisting of Alaibe’s Kolokuma-Opokuma, Southern Ijaw and Yenagoa, the recent decision of the party to zone the Speakers of the House of Assembly to the Central confused many stakeholders in the party. The Alaibe’s camp was the worst hit because the Speaker, Tonye Isenah, hails from Odi in his local government area. The supporters of Alaibe have, however, insisted that Isenah’s emergence as the speaker would not affect their principal’s ambition.
But, others argue that with the latest choice of speaker, Dickson, may decide to go to Jonathan’s Eastern Senatorial District to anoint a candidate.
The governor will not choose from outside his Restoration Team. The governor has promised that PDP’s candidate will emerge from within his government.
But, Dickson recently assured the people that he would not impose a candidate on them. The governor advised aspirants waiting for him to anoint them and impose them on the people to have a rethink. He said any of the aspirants, who felt they had the experience and capacity should go and make their case to Bayelsans.
He said: “I led a party to victory against a vicious opposition. I alone can lead PDP to battle, I have done it repeatedly. You saw the election, there will be no form of manipulation. People talking about manipulation are anticipating that they should be imposed. I’m not going to impose any of them. Any of them who feel they have experience and capacity should go and make their case to the people of Bayelsa State.”
Indeed, people are expecting more intrigues and undercurrents in PDP as the party has scheduled September 3 for a primary poll to elect its standard bearer in Bayelsa.
APC:
The APC is not joking with the poll. To the national leadership of the party, the stakes are high. The next election presents the APC an opportunity to make an inroad into the Southsouth and end the ugly narrative that the APC is unpopular in the geo-political zone.
But the leadership of APC headed by Jothan Amos has not shown the character and attitude of a party ready for an epic battle.
Since his emergence as the party chairman, Amos has been running a quiet APC with skeletal activities. The chairman has been elusive.
Observers believe that the life of Bayelsa APC has been running on tripod of activities provided in the camps of Heineken Lokpobiri, Timipre Sylva and Preye Aganaba. The three chieftains of the party are the only ones, whose ambitions to fly the flag of APC are in the public domain. While Aganaba’s ambition has not threatened the fabric of unity in the APC, Lokpobiri’s aspiration has pitted him against former Governor Sylva and his loyalists.
Lokpobiri, an immediate past Minister of State for Agriculture and Rural Development has remained adamant on his ambition. He recently appointed a former two-time member of the House of Representatives, Warman Ogoriba, the Director-General of his campaign to drive the process of making him the APC flag bearer. Lokpobiri seems prepared for the contest as he has already secured accommodation in highbrow area of Yenagoa for his campaign office.
Lokpobiri’s entrance into the race has given an indication that the APC is not rigid about zoning. The former senator hails from Ekeremor in Bayelsa West, a senatorial district of the incumbent governor.
Warman said those criticising the aspiration of Lokpobiri because he hails from Ekeremor misplaced the argument. He argued that there was no time Bayelsa stakeholders sat down to adopt a rotational method for governor.
Besides, the director-general said the senatorial districts had already got its fair share of the governorship position, adding that it could be the turn of any local government area that had yet to occupy the office irrespective of its senatorial district.
He said: “Many people talk about zoning and I laugh most times because I have been around the political scene for a while, precisely from 1989, 1999 till today and I can tell you with all amount of seriousness that there is no day that Bayelsa politicians sat somewhere and agreed that we were going to zone.
“Late Chief Diepreye Alamieyeiseigha won in 1999 on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). So, the governorship started from the central. Alamieyeiseigha left and Dr. Goodluck Jonathan came in from East and he handed over to another man from the East, Chief Timinipre Sylvia.
“Timipre Sylvia was removed and then Dickson came from the West. If you look at it all the three senatorial districts have taken their turn. It is not written anywhere that once they take their turn it must come back to central again or east again.
“Anybody can contest and mind you when these things were going on at every point in time, other people from other senatorial districts were also contesting, so nobody sat somewhere and say look this zoning is sacrosanct.
“My take is that, let the best person win and I believe that my candidate, Senator Heneiken Lokpobiri has what it takes to give Bayelsa development, growth and every other thing that Bayelsa deserves”.
Warman said Lokpobiri would contest and win the APC primary due to his popularity. “We are sure he is going to win. We are very sure because APC wants to win in Bayelsa state and he has the popularity; he has the intellectual capacity and the goodwill to win the votes of APC members”, he said.
Aganaba, has, however, remained the most vocal aspirant. He has been presenting himself as the most credible alternative to Sylva and Lokpobiri.
Recently, Bayelsa women under the auspices of Grassroots Leadership Forum (GLF) held a prayer session for the emergence of Aganaba as the candidate of the APC. The women said after analysing the political environment, they found out that Aganaba, who is a founding member of the APC, had the passion and capacity to change the narrative of Bayelsa for good.
The leader of the group, Mrs. Victoria E. James, said though GLF is a non-governmental organisation, its members embarked on non-stop prayer session, following their desire to have a better Bayelsa. She explained that the ambition of Prince Preye Aganaba, who hails from Odi in Kolokuma-Opokuma Local Government Area, was not ordinary but was borne out of his selfless interest to develop the people and the state.
She described the GLF as an organisation with over 3000 members across the eight local government area of the state. Also, another leader of the group, Mrs. Elizabeth Amakiri, said Aganaba proved to be a leader with a heart of gold following his track records of achievements and uprightness.
She listed many federal projects attracted by Aganaba to Bayelsa and his philanthropic gestures to the needy in the society, saying the prince won the heart of majority of Bayelsans.
She said: “I am from Kalama in Kolokuma/Opukuma LGA and I remember as a child how i used to trek through a bush path for over an hour just to get to my secondary school in Sampou because there are no schools in Kalama community.
“But, today through Prince Preye Aganaba, work is in progress on the Sampou-Kalama road, courtesy of the NDDC.I have it on good authority that the road was attracted by Engr. Aganaba.
“The most endearing part of the Sampou-Kalama road project is the fact that it was during Aganaba’s one year mandatory youth service in Sampou decades ago, that he vowed to make the Sampou-Kalama road motorable due to the hardship faced by Kalama Community in accessing basic health and education facilities which only exist in Sampou and years down the line,he kept his promise.
“This is the kind of visionary leader Bayelsa state needs.A man who can make a promise and keep it. A man who places premium on the development of his people and state above anything else. This is the reason we are on a marathon prayer session until God grants our wish of making Prince Aganaba, the next governor of Bayelsa state”.
Even Sylva has also had its fair share of endorsements. Recently, stakeholders under the aegis of Sylva Sure Deal (SSD) called on the former governor to vie for the ticket of the party. The Chairman of SSD, Dallas Ebibi and the group’s Secretary, George Izibenadu, said Sylva as the Leader of APC in Bayelsa had remained faithful to the party.
Describing Sylva as a worthy shepherd, the group said Sylva had public appeal across party lines following his detribalised leadership style. The statement said it would be unfair for any APC member to doubt the capacity of Sylva flying the flag of the party, insisting that a competitive guber contest required a candidate with public exposure and general acceptance.
The group said it recognised and respected the rights of others to vie for the party’s ticket, but it would be delusional for APC members to think that any candidate of the party would win the forthcoming election.
The statement said: “The charitable Bayelsans are witness bearers to the public felicity that was inspired by the development-oriented governance of Chief Sylva. This is the reason public opinion has called on him to contest the 2019 guber poll for Bayelsans to experience a glorious rebirth.
“Sylva’s achievements are visible and tangible for all. The trajectory of his past to his present shows he is fated to better the lots of Bayelsa State if given another chance to govern. We are appealing and calling on all faithful and patriotic party leaders and members to unite with Chief Timipre Sylva towards attaining victory in the general elections and not to be used as objects of coercion in an attempt to pander to the dictates of external intruders”.
The SSD noted that its call on Sylva to contest the APC primary was predicated on his achievements during his tenure as the governor of Bayelsa. It mentioned some of the projects as the Nigerian Law School, Yenagoa Campus, 52 internal roads, Diete Koki Memorial Hospital, new commissioner’s quarters, new House of Assembly Quarter, Ekeki Housing Estate, Annual Payment of Bursary and Award of Foreign Scholarships.
Pundits believe that for APC to have foot soldiers ahead of the election, the party must address the issues of rewards and benefits. Many party members are unhappy that despite their loyalty, they have yet to benefit from the party.
A founding member of the party, Melford Esinte, recently wrote to the party’s leader Sylva, decrying the condition of loyal APC members in the state. Esinte in the piece reminded Sylva, who was a former governor of the state of his promise during the last electioneering that the era of “monkey work, bamboo chop, had gone.
He lamented that since the formation of the party in the state interlopers and defectors, who contributed nothing to the party had been hijacking the benefits of loyal party members.
He said: “As an expression of displeasure and disapproval, so we believed, and in a bid to stamping a stop to a situation where some laboured for others to reap,you publicly declared amidst teeming party faithful the phrase, ‘No more monkey work, Bamboo chop’.
“This was repeatedly echoed and reechoed in our various political converges and was overwhelmingly greeted and applauded by teeming party faithful, who felt shortchanged and shut out, despite their selfless sacrifices, labour and loyalty.
“Almost eight years and counting, ‘monkey still work,Bamboo still chop’ placing teeming party faithful on the path to believe that in the circle we have found ourselves, loyalty and labour are not rewarded.
“Rather, night crawlers in the guise of defectors are celebrated in the glare of the media and empowered to live like lords, spiting those who have been there from inception and foundation. As a good learner and student of politics and development,I have been taught that great leaders are men of their words. Their words serve as their bond.
“Politics is not religion where you expect your reward from heaven, while others are living large before your very eyes, despite being neophytes in the circle. 2011 to 2019 of walking the wilderness of hardship under a vindictive PDP led government is not a joke,it has been hell all the way.
“One of the primary preoccupation of great leaders is the welfare of their followers,without a vested followership,no leader is truly a leader. There comes a time we tell ourselves the truth and point out the facts to speak for themselves.
“We traverse the rugged and stormy paths of another governorship election,we most respectfully hope and pray this serve as a reminder and a thought provoker, to your epic declaration. May God guide you aright to right the wrong in the foregoing”.
But, one thing is certain. Unless otherwise decided by the court, the APC will be going into the election stronger than it was in the last election. The party currently controls two seats in the House of Reoresentatives, one seat at the Senate and three at the state House of Assembly.
