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Tag: Dickson

  • Poll: Dickson charges panel to identify perpetrators of violence

    The Governor of Bayelsa State, Mr. Seriake Dickson, on Monday formally inaugurated a six-member judicial commission of Inquiry with a charge to unmask the identities of persons behind the violence that swept across the state before and during the inconclusive governorship election.

    Curiously, Dickson also asked the commission to extend its inquiries into all the secret cult-related and extra-judicial killings that occurred in the state from 2007 to 2011.

    The candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Timipre Sylva, the major opponent of Dickson in the election, was the governor of the state during the period.

    The governor inaugurated the commission in the executive chamber of the Banquet Hall, Government House, Yenagoa.

    In attendance were his Deputy, Rear Admiral John Jonah (rtd); the Speaker of the state House of Assembly, Mr. Kombowei Benson; Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state, Chief Serena Dokubo-Spiff and other government officials.

    The Chief Registrar of the Customary Court of Appeal, Mr. David Opokuma, administered oaths of office and allegiance on members of the commission including the Chairperson of the panel and former acting Chief Judge of the state, Justice Margaret Akpomieme.

    The governor described the inauguration as a simple but solemn event, saying it was the first commission of inquiry established by his administration.

     

  • Dickson slams Army for Southern Ijaw poll

    Dickson slams Army for Southern Ijaw poll

    Bayelsa State Governor Seriake Dickson, yesterday, tongue-lashed the Army for linking him with the political tension in Southern Ijaw Local Government Area during the December 6 rescheduled poll in the area.

    The governor, through his campaign outfit, Restoration Campaign Organisation (RCO), said the Army was wrong to have exonerated itself from the violence that erupted in the area.

    The Army, on Saturday, said it participated in the December 5 and 6 governorship election to support the police, secure materials and officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as well as boost the confidence of the residents.

    For the purpose of the election, the Army said it constituted a team code-named: Operation Safe Conduct (OSC), and operated within its constitutional mandate.

    On behalf of OSC’s officers and men, the Commander of 2 Brigade, Brig.-Gen. Stevenson Olabanjo, noted that despite the presence of troops and other security agencies, some armed thugs attempted to disrupt the electoral process.

    Olabanjo paraded arms and ammunition the troops allegedly seized from thugs.

    The Army commander said some suspects arrested for the violence in Southern Ijaw on December 5 had been handed over to the police.

    He noted that Dickson’s presence at Oporoma, the headquarters of Southern Ijaw, during the rescheduled election worsened the charged atmosphere in the area.

    Dickson, who is Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP’s) candidate, visited Oporoma on the day of the rescheduled poll.

    Olabanjo said: “Unfortunately, the sudden appearance of one of the candidates fuelled the charged atmosphere in Oporoma. At this point, the INEC workers in the area made it clear to him (Dickson) that his action was a breach of the Electoral Act.

    “The military officer in charge of the troops deployed in Oporoma also met the candidate and advised him to leave the area because his personal security could not be guaranteed.”

    But a statement by RCO’s Director of Publicity, Mr. Jonathan Obuebite, said the Army could have done better to forestall the violence that led to the cancelation of the election.

    The statement also rejected the position of the Army that it was neutral.

    It accused the security agencies of colluding with others to rig the election.

    Obuebite blamed the Army for the security lapses that caused deaths in the local government, saying the military did not heed the governor’s advice and those of others to postpone the election because of anticipated violence.

    The campaign spokesman condemned the Army for alleged partisanship, adding that some of its officers worked with suspected thugs loyal to the All Progressives Congress (APC) to undermine the election in Southern Ijaw.

    He said: “It is only fit and proper for the Joint Task Force (JTF) to own up to its failures and apologise to Southern Ijaw residents for the despicable and unprofessional conduct of some of its officers, who clearly were more interested in lining their pockets.

    “It failed to give reasons why it withdrew the military security attached to the governor and gave an order for them to be detained, thereby compromising the security of the governor.”

    The statement added: “We expected the JTF to have done much more, knowing well about reports of arms build-up by the APC leading to the election.

    “The JTF should have adopted a proactive approach by deploying superior intelligence to track down movement of arms by APC thugs and arrest same before the commencement of the elections.

    “JTF failed to acknowledge that it erred by not heeding the advice of the governor and others, including women, National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members and INEC ad hoc workers, who protested, calling for the postponement of the election.”

    Obuebite claimed that even on Sunday, the day of the rescheduled poll, there were still cause for security concerns.

    This, he said, prompted the governor, as the chief security officer, to visit Oporoma.

    The campaign spokesman insisted that Dickson acted within his rights and for the genuine concern for the residents’ security.

    He said: “Unfortunately, the JTF lied that the governor’s presence heightened security in the area. That’s so cheeky and it only shows that the military was indeed compromised.

    “The governor went to Oporoma, headquarters of Southern Ijaw Local Government Area out of genuine concern for the security of lives of the citizens. He went there as early as 7am, long before the commencement of election.”

    Obuebite added: “Much as we applaud the effort of the JTF and the police for arresting some suspects and parading same to reporters, they should have gone a step further to reveal the identities of those arrested and the bigwigs in the APC, who sent them.

    “Or better still, they should have allowed reporters to interview the suspects, to ask who sent them. The public deserves to know, to be sure where to appropriately apportion the blame.”

  • Bayelsa poll: Army faults Dickson’s presence in Southern Ijaw

    Bayelsa poll: Army faults Dickson’s presence in Southern Ijaw

    •Explains role in ensuring peace
    •Sylva dismisses commission of inquiry

    The Nigerian Army yesterday broke its silence on the allegations that its personnel took sides in the stalemated governorship election in Bayelsa State, and said that its involvement saved the state from being overrun by thugs.

    The All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate in the election, Chief Timipre Sylva, also yesterday dismissed the Commission of Inquiry set up on Friday by his main rival, Governor Seriake Dickson, to probe the violence that greeted the election, while the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) claimed that fake dollar notes printed by the APC to induce the people to vote for it now floods the state.

    The Commander,  2 Brigade of the army,  Brigadier-General Stevenson Olabanjo  told reporters in Yenagoa  that soldiers were drafted in  to support the police, secure materials and officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and help boost the confidence of the civilian population.

    He said that a task force – Operation Safe Conduct (OSC)- constituted by the army for the election was professional in the discharge of its duties ,which he said made it impossible for thugs sponsored by politicians to overrun the state while the poll lasted.

    He cited Clough Creek where, according to him, soldiers nabbed three youths with suspected stolen Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) and handed them over to the police for investigations.

    He also said that his men met a highly tensed situation in Southern Ijaw Local Government area of the state caused by supporters  of the main parties and the influx of arms into the communities particularly Oporoma,  the headquarters of Southern Ijaw.

    He said sporadic gunshots ensued in Oporoma following attempts by unidentified rival gunmen to hijack sensitive electoral materials.

    The army boss said the troops swiftly responded to the situation and succeeded in arresting five suspects and recovering five AK47 rifles and some ammunition.

    He said the election in Southern Ijaw was shifted to December 6th to ease the tension in the area but added that the sudden appearance of one of the candidates aggravated the charged atmosphere.

    He mentioned no name, but Governor Dickson who is the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) paid a surprise visit to Oporoma on that day.

    He said: “Unfortunately, the sudden appearance of one of the candidates fuelled the already charged atmosphere in Oporoma. At this point, the INEC staff in the area made it clear to him that his action was a breach of the Electoral Act.

    “The military officer in charge of the troops deployed to Oporoma also met the candidate and advised him to leave the area because his personal security could not be guaranteed.”

    Olabanjo said on December 6, the troops intercepted a speedboat conveying nine persons and carrying five AK47 rifles and some ammunition on Olugbobiri River.

    He said the suspects were handed over to the police.

    The Commander said the military is always ready to “act in line with the provisions of the Constitution in providing adequate security for lives and properties during elections.”

    Receiving five of the rifles from the army, the Commissioner of Police, Mr. Nasiru Oki, nine suspects who were handed over to him by the army had been transferred to the Headquarters of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS) in Abuja.

  • Dickson was made commissioner for betraying Alamieyeseigha -Sylva

    Dickson was made commissioner for betraying Alamieyeseigha -Sylva

    A former Governor of Bayelsa State and candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the December 5 governorship election, Chief Timipre Sylva, speaks on wide range of issues including misrepresentations of his personality in this interview with MIKE ODIEGWU.

    The Governor recently described you as a ‘guy man’. He has also said you plunged the state into huge debts. How much debt did you really leave? 

    Well, I wonder what (Seriake) Dickson mean by a ‘guy man’ but I think I am a typical Bayelsan. Dickson is just a disgrace to himself. Everybody knows that Governor Dickson is a bushman. I am not exaggerating because that’s who he is. He lacks self confidence, which is why he calls me ‘guy man’.

    You also raised the issue of debt burden. The figures are there.  I inherited debts from (former President Goodluck) Jonathan, who was governor. Now, what we did was servicing those debts. What I did was to take a bond to absorb the debts that I inherited. I took a N50 billion bond because we felt that if we serviced the loans alone in commercial banks it was costing us a lot. So, we took some of that loan and absorbed it in that bond and then we took some of that money from that bond to pay our contractors on the Brass Road and then we paid some money to the contractor on the Melfred Okilo Hospital. The bond was structured in such a way that it is a long term bond, so the tenure was longer so it could be easier for the state government to pay the interest rate and cope with it. So we were able to put all the loans that we inherited into that bond.

    Now, when I left and I hope that the Dickson administration will be sincere, I will never lie to Bayelsans, I have a commercial loan stock of N20billion which I was hoping I will be able to finish paying by May that year and I would have finished paying it if I was there by then. Now, the government of Jonathan owed contractors N111billion and by the time I was leaving the contractor debt rose to N207billion. Let us face it, contracts may have been given by the Jonathan administration and the term of the contract may have been given by the previous government. It is a continuous thing. You keep saying I owed so much; most of that money they were talking about was contractor’s debts. If they are truthful they will tell you. I am sure that if I take over today the contractor debts would have gone up to above N400billion. I would not go out and announce that Dickson owes so much that is for somebody that does not understand economics.

    The loan stock of N20billion that l owed, Dickson could have paid it off in the first three months because when he came in was when fuel subsidy was particularly removed. The first year I got into government I received N89billion from the federation account, the first year Dickson came, he received N191billion. Second year, I received N154billion, Dickson received N216billion. The third year I received N106billion, Dickson received N156billion. So what is he talking about?

    The PDP has continued to accuse you of using the security outfit codenamed Famou-Tangbe to maim and kill innocent citizens during your first tenure. Can you respond to this?

    Look, Famou-Tangbe was formed as a security outfit. He (Dickson) realised that there was the need for a specialized outfit. He himself has formed one and I can tell you and give you names. At least I know one name of somebody that has been killed by his outfit. I have pictures that I can show you; people that were killed, they do a lot of extra-judicial killings. The decision to form the security outfit Famou-Tangbe was taken in a security council meeting because we need to set up a specialized outfit to combat the rising wave of crime, especially coming at the time after militancy and a lot of these young men were out from the creeks and there was a rise in criminality in the city.

    So we decided to set up a security outfit in collaboration with the police. The name was not from me. The name was suggested by my then security adviser, Richard Kpodo. Famou-Tangbe is not my dialect. He thought that name was a better name even though I suggested ‘Instant Reaction Squad’. In the Security Council I was out-voted. They thought we need to have a name in the language spoken around and I also okayed it.

    That outfit was overseen by Pere Rich as my security Adviser but under the police. If any crime was committed by Famutangbe, Pere Rich is working with Governor Dickson and so I challenged him to arrest Pere Rich. As far as governor Dickson is concerned, it is just the name that is the problem. The name was not my suggestion and I am happy that he is now working with governor Dickson and I wish them well.

    Some people are asking what you forgot in Government House

    Anybody that ask that question is ignorant. I left Bayelsa State Government House unwillingly and all Bayelsans know the circumstances under which I left and since then no other opportunity has presented itself for me to re-contest for that office. This is the first opportunity that has presented itself since 2012 and so I don’t know why anybody will ask me if I forgot anything.

    I was disqualified by the power that be from contesting an office I was still occupying at the time. I think that was the most preposterous thing, the most unjust thing that has happen to Bayelsa State. Most well-meaning Bayelsans think this is the time for God’s justice to be done by bringing me back and that’s why you see this overwhelming support. I didn’t forget anything in Government House, the Government House is currently occupied by an usurper who came and use federal might.

    Today, when they now begin to shout about federal might, I wonder. Look at Bayelsa now, look at Yenagoa, do you see any army check point? Now, take your mind back to 2012, at this time, towards the election in 2012, we had over a hundred check points, manned by fierce-looking armed soldiers.

    Now, nothing of such is happening and yet they still want to scream because they are scared of their own shadows. I didn’t forget but I think it’s time for me to reclaim what is justly mine. Today, those people who barred me from contesting that election are no longer in office by the grace of God, so the Bayelsa people have the opportunity of choosing their rightful leader and that is why I am presenting myself.

    Your party, the APC dislodged your brother, Goodluck Jonathan from the Presidency. Don’t you think this alone might affect your chances at the poll?

    I don’t think this will have any impact on the election at all. Every Ijaw man should be fair to me and the APC. The former President set the scene for his exit from office by bringing the war to his home. He started the fire and he didn’t start the fire in any other place, he started it from his own home. Look, after I was removed from office, I went to exile I was arrested by all kinds of people, many times. They never even left me alone after removing me from office; they wanted to kill me; they wanted to jail me; they wanted to do everything to me. I was visited by a lots of elders from different parts of the country; elders from the west visited me; elders from the east visited me; elders from the north visited me and the one question on the lips of all those elders who visited me, ‘do you not have elders in Bayelsa State who can intervene between yourself and the President?’ And I have no answer to give them.

    He lost the election, the people of Bayelsa must move on in this country. Nigeria is not meant for us to lead forever, it was an opportunity, we led the country and now, it is  no longer our time so anybody who is still reveling  in that period is still leaving in the history. Please wake up, today is a new day and today there is an APC government at the centre led by President Muhammadu Buhari, the earlier we wake up to that fact, the better for us.

    The incumbent governor has always said that the election is not going to be about him or you but about the people of Ijaw and that PDP is an Ijaw party.

    In a way I will agree with the governor that the election is not about me or about him but it is about Bayelsans and about the Ijaw people. I agree with him about that but when you take it further then you can see the state of mind of the man we are talking about. He has a confused state of mind obviously. I had said in other fora that none of the parties, neither APC nor PDP is an Ijaw party, they are national parties. I was one of those who brought PDP into Bayelsa, he was not even a member of the PDP. He was a member of AD at that time and then later I think he became a member of the ANPP at a time, he was never even a member of the PDP. When I was in PDP, he was not even in PDP, he was just an interloper that joined to get the benefit. Has he worked for that party? Because as far as I know after contributing to the impeachment of Alamieseigha, he came here and as compensation, he was made a commissioner.

    That was how he came to the PDP; he was made a commissioner as a compensation for the role he played in the impeachment of Alamieseigha. Then he became a member of the House of Representatives because of his perceived loyalty to the former President and then a governor because they were the people who told all kind of lies to the former President and set him up against me. So, he became a beneficiary of lies.

    So, I can’t blame him because he doesn’t even really know what the PDP stands for. The APC is also a national party. There is nothing they can do for the Ijaw nation; the person who loves Ijaw people must take Bayelsa to the centre and this is what is going to improve the lots of Bayelsans.

    So, if we are talking of Ijaw patriot, I consider myself one as I think today that well meaning Ijaw people are quite happy with me because they believe that without me, there would have been no link with the centre, there would have been no bridge builder. Now, I have provided that link to the centre. I think that on the contrary, the APC is the patriotic party and I am the patriotic one. And I think that the Ijaw people should embrace the APC because this is our time to really get to the centre. We have to live in this same country whether our president lost the election or not. It is not the Ijaw people that lost the election because Ijaw people did not contest an election, I didn’t see Ijaw people on the ballot.

    Dickson and the PDP have always described you as being violent. How do you react to this?

    You see they always say that the cat wanted the apple and he jumped to catch the apple and couldn’t get the apple, then he consoled himself by saying ‘rotten apple’ and then he walks away. That is his only compensation because he just couldn’t get it.

    Now, let me tell you that even the outgoing governor did everything to join the APC. But you know the APC is not for people like him. The APC is not for bullies, Pharaohs and Emperors and so unfortunately we didn’t accept him and now he is saying rotten apple because he couldn’t get in. Maybe if he had gotten in, he would be saying by now that the APC is the greatest party. The APC cannot be a violent party, look at the streets today, just a few days, he himself instructed people to go out there and tear down my posters. Everywhere you go my posters are on the ground as if tearing posters means winning election.

    All the cases of violence have been perpetrated by the PDP. APC members have been violated in most wards, injured sometimes and we have to go out in our campaigns with extra security because of security threats.

    I fought militancy. On the contrary the outgoing governor is the violent one who perpetrates violence, supports it and, sponsors it.

    Every lawful tactics to remove him out of office will be used by the APC and of course Bayelsans cannot possibly take another four years of Dickson’s ineptitude. So he continues to blame the APC for everything.

    But the PDP said when you were a governor you underperformed and left a lot of abandoned projects including the airport project?

    That to me is the continuation of his frustration and paranoid. I came into government, there were a lot of projects, ongoing projects, and I did not call them abandoned projects. Every government starts a project and if they don’t finish such project, the incoming government finishes the project. Banquet hall was such a project, it was started by Alameisiegha. I furnished it.

    The treasury building was one of such projects, I finished it. The Judiciary building, the library I finished them. I can’t finish counting them; I could have said they were abandoned projects because a lot of those projects were not even touched by the Jonathan administration. They were started by Alameisiegha but were abandoned by the Jonathan administration but I came and I took off from the very beginning and completed all those projects. The way I left office nobody would have taught I would have completed all those projects because I left in the middle of my tenure. My tenure was truncated, I wasn’t given time to finish the projects. When Dickson leaves now, he will leave a lot of projects also uncompleted does it mean I will consider them abandoned projects because he did not complete them? He has abandoned his own projects now, which are the real meaning of abandoned projects. All the hospitals he has been building in Oporoma, in all places have been abandoned. He has abandoned the Isaac Boro road; he is the one that is abandoning his own projects.

     

     

  • Sylva dismisses Dickson’s commission of inquiry

    Sylva dismisses Dickson’s commission of inquiry

    Governorship candidate of the APC, Chief Timipre Sylva, described the decision of the governor to set up the  judicial commission of inquiry on Friday as unfortunate, unacceptable and diversionary.

    Dickson mandated the commission to investigate the violence, mayhem and grave breach of the peace that occurred in parts of the state on or about December the 3rd to 6th.

    But Sylva in a statement in Yenagoa by his Media Adviser, Mr. Doifie Buokoribo, said,  “It is only an inept, directionless, and nervous governor, like Dickson, that would set up a commission of inquiry into violence that marred an election that is still on-going, and one in which he is involved in as a key actor.

    “What manner of justice does anyone in his right senses expect from such a commission of inquiry? The inquiry is bizarre and already biased from the onset.”

    He said that  Justice Margaret Akpomiemie, chairman of the commission, is still nursing a grudge against him (Sylva) for not making  her Chief Judge of Bayelsa State during his tenure as governor.

    Sylva said: “Justice Akpomiemie’s decision to accept this hatchet job offered by outgoing governor Dickson is clearly a revenge mission against Sylva. She is on a clear mission of vendetta.

    “Besides, the inquiry is diversionary because Dickson and his party, Peoples Democratic Party, are principal actors in the violence orchestrated against APC leaders and supporters in an attempt to intimidate the people in areas where APC was obviously poised to win, and hand him an illusory victory.

    “All Bayelsans and, indeed, Nigerians are living witnesses to the unbridled desperation displayed by Dickson and PDP during the December 5 governorship election, which he knows he cannot win. Such desperation had driven the governor and his party to the extent of importing militants from neighbouring states to attack Sylva’s campaign Director-General and Minister of State for Agriculture and Rural Development, Senator Heineken Lokpobiri; Sylva, and other APC leaders and supporters across the state.”

     

  • Dickson’s mob mentality

    The inconclusive governorship election in Bayelsa State must have come as a surprise to many Nigerians for a diversity of reasons. First is the strong showing of the candidate of All Progressives Congress, Chief Timipre Sylva. Second is the level of violence that was unleashed on citizens during the election and not discounting the attack on APC chieftains across the state and third is the alarm and mob sentiments that Governor Seriake Dickson has been throwing all over the place, despite evidence that it was the APC whose chieftains and potential voters were on the receiving end of the thuggery.

    The results so far released by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) shows that the APC performed very well across the state and even in places considered as PDP strongholds such as Ogbia and Yenagoa. In fact, it was clear to watchers of the election that the early results filtering out of polling stations showed the PDP leading in several polling units in Yenagoa and elsewhere only for the final tally to reflect something else. Still, the difference in declared votes between both candidates is narrow and the decider could be the results of the Southern Ijaw Local Government Area, which has about a quarter of the state’s voting population and where the APC has many of its key stalwarts, including Sylva’s running mate, Elder Wilberforce Igiri; former Secretary to the State Government, Alabo Gideon Ekeuwei; the state party chairman, Chief Tiwei Orunimighe among others. It was an area the PDP knew would tip the scale of the election and virtually everything was done to mar the exercise in APC strongholds. Some 120,000 votes are at stake here but it was the premeditated manner the thugs executed the rigging plan that says a lot of their motive.

    Before elections were due on the morning of December 5, thugs intent on murder had stormed the Ekeremor home of the Minister of State for Agriculture and Rural Development, Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, and shot severally into his house. Sylva was also targeted at Odioma in Brass Local Government Area by armed thugs but vigilant security men repelled the attack.

    One interesting fact is that it is only APC members that were targeted and suffered these attacks, an indication that the alarm raised by Sylva days to the election that the PDP was stockpiling arms and ammunition for violence was credible. Perhaps the party knew that without such intimidation it stood no chance against APC and Sylva, who has a strong grassroots network and is well respected as a former governor of the state. The protest by youths and women in Yenagoa against the results released so far and the cancellation of the Southern Ijaw elections speaks to this reality.

    Dickson’s mob mentality has become so warped that he equates his victory with that of the Ijaw nation. In several places the governor has tried to pitch the election as a choice between the PDP as the Ijaw party and the APC as an invading force, rather than a referendum on his performance in office, which has been woeful to say the least. In desperation, during the campaigns, he tried to reach out to the people of the state, promising that he would deliver on the earlier promises he made and which have remain unfulfilled as his term in office draws to a close.

    The Ijaw people are a fearless and upright people and with the reports of massive looting that are unfolding daily under the watch of President Goodluck Jonathan cannot be a legacy to the Ijaw spirit of uprightness. It is indicative of the level of pillage that the Bayelsa State economy has been undergoing under Dickson and we must reject a situation where the resources of the state will be used to feed the greed of these visionless elite of the PDP. This is the crux of the current governorship election, where Dickson is determined to pull all stops to distort the voice of the Bayelsa people and the Ijaw nation. He must not be allowed.

    It is important that the security forces do not succumb to the intimidation of blackmail that Dickson and the PDP have been employing, especially in the coastal states of Bayelsa, Delta, Ondo and Rivers. The engagement of criminals, thugs and ex-militants, masquerading as community leaders, to rig and inflate results has been a regular feature of the PDP and this should be checked through intensive policing, for the integrity of the electoral process and the results.

    The PDP tactics have been to portray Bayelsa as its bastion and create a siege mentality that the APC is out to ‘capture’ the state. The truth is that Bayelsa people are disappointed that despite the massive support to the PDP during the Jonathan presidency, nothing was done to address critical issues of road infrastructure, pollution and environmental problems that are of concern to people of the state.

    The results so far released should tell Dickson that his mob mentality and blackmail would not work and Bayelsans are the wiser that neither he nor the PDP represent their interests.

    • By Mabota Alata

    Director of Research and Strategy, Amaebi Foundation, Yenagoa.

     

  • Guber poll: Dickson sets up commission of enquiry

    The Governor of Bayelsa State, Mr.  Seriake Dickson, on Friday established a six-member Commission of Enquiry to investigate the mayhem, violence and breach of peace that occurred in the state before and during last Saturday’s governorship election in the state.

    Dickson in a statement signed by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Daniel Iworiso-Markson,  said he was acting on Section 2 (1) of the Commission of Inquiry Law, Cap 8 Laws of Bayelsa State of Nigeria 2006 and in exercise of all other enabling powers.

    He named the Chairperson of the commission as Justice Margaret Akpomieme and Mr.  Abraham Ekiamene as its Secretary.

    Other members of the commission which will be inaugurated on Saturday are – Brigadier-Gen. Bob Ake (rtd), Dr. Victoria Abad, Mrs. Martha Akpana and Tamadu Abasi.

    He asked the commission to determine the number and identities of the persons that were injured or killed, if any, during the violence, mayhem and breach of the peace that occurred in parts of Bayelsa State on or about the 3rd to 6th December, 2015.

    The committee will among others: Determine the extent of damage to property, if any, during the said incidents.

    “Identify the perpetrators of the said violence, mayhem and breach of the peace and recommend appropriate action.

    “Determine the role played by the security agencies in the said incidents, if any.

     

  • Dickson applauds INEC’s action

    Dickson applauds INEC’s action

    Governor Seriake Dickson also applauded the cancellation of the Southern Ijaw election and commended Bayelsans for their resilience.

    He told reporters at the Government House in Yenagoa that had the electoral umpire heeded his advice, it would have saved the nation the avoidable waste of public funds.

    He said the decision to hold the election on Sunday by INEC was ill advised, taking into consideration the security situation and peculiar nature of the area.

    The governor expressed regret over the killings and abduction of INEC ad hoc staff and corps members in the area, assuring the people of government’s commitment to ensuring that they are re-united with their families in no distant time.

    “I want to use this opportunity to commend INEC at last for taking the right decision. Let me say that it is regrettable that if INEC and the relevant authorities had taken my advice, as Chief Security Officer of the State, the incident would have been avoided.”

    “They didn’t listen to the honest advice that I gave to them, otherwise, the decision to hold that election on Sunday was ill advised. Regrettably, a lot of people have suffered inconvenience, and a lot of public resources have been expended.

    “As we speak, we are in the process of working with community leaders and other partners to identify and retrieve youth corps members who were put in danger for no fault of theirs.

    “I like to use this opportunity to also commend them, these young wonderful Nigerians who came here to serve their fatherland. I want to assure them and all stakeholders who will participate in the rescheduled election and other activities that Bayelsa will continue to be home to them. The government of Bayelsa appreciate their sacrifice and will continue to partner with them to make our nation a better place”

     

  • Dickson, Sylva in tight race as results trickle in

    Dickson, Sylva in tight race as results trickle in

    •PDP chairman loses in own ward
    • Dickson defeated in front of Govt House

    Governor Seriake Dickson of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Chief Timipre Sylva of the All Progressives Congress (APC) appear to be running neck and neck in yesterday’s governorship election in Bayelsa State as results of the poll began trickling in last night.

    Collation of the results went far into the night and a clearer picture is expected to emerge today.

    Early results showed that the PDP performed badly in some of the areas it considered its strongholds including the neighbourhood of Government House, Yenagoa.

    At the Peace Park polling unit 10 close to the seat of power Sylva polled 58 votes to Dickson’s 27.

    The   PDP also lost to the APC in the wards of several of its notable leaders including the Chairman of the party in the state Chief Serena Dokubo (Brass LG),and the Deputy Majority leader in the State House of Assembly, Hon. Tonye Isenah (Kolokuma/Opokuma LGA).

    Results from Ekeremor, Brass, Kolokuma/Opokuma, Nembe and Yenagoa Local Government Areas showed that Sylva had pulled ahead of Dickson, although the governor was on top in Sagbama Local Government area.

    Results from Ogbia LGA showed a close race.

    There was no election in Wards 4 and 5 in Ogbia council area following of security threat by supporters of the two major contending parties.

    Some of the unofficial results obtained last night:

     

    YENAGOA

    Ward 5, unit 20: APC 63, PDP 100

    Ward 2 unit 1: APC 19, PDP 14

    Ward 2 unit 2: APC 27, PDP 23

    Ward 4 unit 8: APC 250,

    PDP 144

    Ward 7 unit 12: APC 81,

    PDP 41

    Ward 4 unit 10: APC 250,

    PDP 154

    Ward 5 unit 2: APC 135

    PDP 136

    Ward 4 unit 11: APC 115,

    PDP 98

    Ward 4 unit 12 APC 343,

    PDP 78

    Ward 5 unit 3: APC 81,

    PDP 136

    Ward 1 Unit, APC 109, PDP 45

     

    KOLOKUMA/OPOKUMA

    Ward 3 unit 3 APC 50 PDP 34

    Ward 10 unit 10 APC 102 PDP 58

    Ward 10 unit 8 APC 85 PDP 65

    Ward 10 unit 6 APC 58 PDP 41

    Ward 3 unit 2 APC 13 PDP 12

     

    BRASS

    Ward 2 unit 6 APC 118 PDP 8

    Ward 1 unit 3 APC 160 PDP 15

    Ward 2 unit 15 APC 220

    PDP 15

    Ward 1 unit 15 APC 375 PDP 18

    Ward 1 unit 10 APC 138 PDP 20

    Ward I unit 12 APC 123 PDP 8

    Ward 4 Unit 3 APC 285 PDP 2

    Ward 3 unit 2 APC 298 PDP 12

    Ward 3 unit 3 APC 210 PDP 3

    Ward 2 unit 8 254 PDP 4

     

    NEMBE

    Ward 3 unit 8 APC 49 PDP 102

    Ward 5 unit 2 APC 13 PDP 2

    Ward 2 unit 9 APC 24 PDP 22

    Ward 3 unit 6 APC 21 PDP 65

    Ward 5 unit 1 APC 89 PDP 6

    Ward 5 unit 7 APC 80 PDP 26

    Ward 5 unit 8 APC 49 PDP 13

    Ward 5 unit 9 APC 57 PDP 12

    Ward 8 unit 25 APC 17 PDP 16

    WARD 8 UNIT 20 APC 19

    PDP 39

     

    EKEREMOR

    Ward 8 unit 31 APC 140

    PDP 41

    Ward 8 unit 32 APC 84 PDP 37

    Ward 12 unit 10 APC 70

    PDP 109

     

    OGBIA

    Ward 11 unit 6 APC 25 PDP 60

    Ward 11 unit 1 APC 23 PDP 89

    Ward 11 unit 11 APC 10 PDP 5

    Ward 8 unit 8 APC 101 PDP 99

    Ward 8 unit 9 APC 50 PDP 55

    Ward 10 unit 1 APC 28 PDP 20

    Ward 10 unit 2 APC 57 PDP 33

    Ward 10 unit 3 APC 29 PDP 15

    Ward 10 unit 4 APC 43 PDP 32

    Ward 10 unit 5 APC 38 PDP 22

    Ward 10 unit 6 APC 40 PDP 19

    Ward 10 unit 7 APC 5 PDP 50

    Ward 10 unit 8 APC 40 PDP 29

    Ward 10 unit 9 APC 28 PDP 16

    Ward 10 unit 10 APC 30 PDP 10

    Ward 6 unit 3 APC 82 PDP 59

    Ward 8 unit 18 APC 102

    PDP 47

    Ward 8 unit 11 APC 70 PDP 45

    Ward 8 unit 7 APC 98 PDP 71

    Ward 8 unit 16 APC 33 PDP 30

  • Dickson, Lokpobiri disagree over attacks, violence

    Dickson, Lokpobiri disagree over attacks, violence

    The Bayelsa State Governor, Henry Seriake Dickson, and the Minister of State for Agriculture, Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, who is also the Director-General of Sylva/Igiri Campaign Organisation, have disagreed over attacks and violence associated with today’s governorship election.

    It was gathered that few hours before the commencement of accreditation of voters for today’s election, the country home of Lokpobiri came under heavy attacks by gunmen.

    According to eyewitnesses, thugs hired by Dickson and his Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) stormed Lokpobiri’s residence in Ekeremor, the headquarters of riverine Ekeremor Local Government Area of Bayelsa state in the early hours of this morning.

    It was further revealed that the thugs overpowered security men deployed in Ekeremor and made their way into the minister’s compound, causing mayhem, with the Senator (Lokpobiri) and others inside the house.

    The security personnel attached to the minster made attempts to restore normalcy, but the attacks intensified, as the PDP thugs, led by Tolu Amatolo, intensified the attacks and took over the entire Ekeremor community.

    The Director, Media and Publicity of Sylva-Igiri Campaign Organisation, Chief Nathan Egba, insisted that Dickson imported the thugs who carried out the attacks in Ekeremor and other parts of Bayelsa state from neighbouring Delta and Rivers States.

    In his reaction, Dickson’s Chief Press Secretary, Daniel Iworiso-Markson, quoted his boss as accusing Lokpobiri of sponsoring thugs, who he said were adorned in police and army uniforms and unleashing mayhem on PDP supporters and disrupting the electoral process.

    Iworiso-Markson stated that the Bayelsa governor spoke to reporters after his accreditation at Ward 2 of his Toru Orua hometown in Sagbama LGA, while decrying the failure of the card readers.