The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Dickson

  • Bayelsa election can’t be rigged, says Dickson

    Bayelsa election can’t be rigged, says Dickson

    Bayelsa State Governor Seriake Dickson has said nobody can rig the December 5 governorship election in the state.

    In a statement yesterday in Yenagoa, the state capital, by his Chief Press Secretary Daniel Iworiso-Markson, the governor said the election would be decided by the will of the people based on the antecedents of the contenders.

    He said: “Let me assure you all Bayelsans that the fear of rigging in this election, reasonable as it sounds, will not be possible. Nobody can rig this election, because the whole world will be in Bayelsa to monitor the process.

    “Your votes will count. When you vote on Election Day, wait and be a monitor yourself. There will be adequate security and all key federal institutions that will be saddled with the task of conducting the election, such as the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and law enforcement agencies, will be fully on ground to ensure there are no hitches or give room for manipulation in favour of a particular candidate.”

    He urged Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) members, who defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC), to return to their initial party and join him in his re-election.

    Dickson said his appeal was borne out of his feelings that the defectors were being humiliated and betrayed by APC’s leadership in the state.

    According to him, the defectors had become onlookers in their quest for political participation and relevance.

    Dickson noted that the opposition did not represent any viable alternative to peace, unity and development of the state.

    The governor alleged that the APC leadership had a repressive and retrogressive past, which would not serve any better purpose in the current dispensation.

    He added that the December 5 poll was not about him but for the greater good of the state.

    Dickson urged PDP defectors to jettison their grievances and cooperate with him to uphold the interest of the state and the Ijaw above personal interests.

    According to him, none of them can afford to allow the state slide into the dark days of the past.

    Dickson said: “We may have had our differences, but in the light of current realities, it is only desirable that all our former members return to the PDP and join hands with me for the greater development of Bayelsa State.

    “Certainly, we cannot afford a return to the dark days of our past and allow the state to slide into anarchy, killings, maiming, kidnappings, cultism and state-sponsored terrorism directed at political opponents.

    “The harrowing experiences of many Bayelsans, who fled into exile in neighbouring states and far-flung places, under the APC candidate when he held sway as governor for five years, remain vivid and should not be allowed to be repeated. This is why we have to reason together and make amends.”

     

  • APC not a threat in Bayelsa, says Dickson

    APC not a threat in Bayelsa, says Dickson

    Bayelsa State Governor Seriake Dickson has described the All Progressives Congress (APC) as a weak platform in Bayelsa State, adding that it is not a threat to the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

    Dickson, who spoke with reporters in Lagos, urged the APC leaders to concentrate on building the party, instead of preparing for the governorship election. He said if the poll is free and fair, the APC will not make a headway.

    The governor warned against rigging, stressing that it will lead to tension and chaos in the entire Niger Delta.

    Dickson condemned the recent controversial governorship primary of the APC which ended in fiasco in Yenagoa, the state capital. He said its outcome has revealed the identity of those behind militancy, cultism and thuggery in the state.

    Stressing that neither Chief Timi Sylva nor Mr. Timi Alaibe can win power forthe APC in Bayelsa State, the governor said the two are scheming to ride to the State House by the grace of federal power.

    He added: “APC governorship aspirants are gathering an army of militants and cultist, which the President is unaware of. They know they cannot win in a free and fair election. It is dangerous tobring back militants and criminals.”

    Dickson said three factors will shape the governorship election, namely performance, connection with the masses and influence of the two main parties.

    He said: “The two aspirants want to get to the State House by leaning on the power of incumbency at the centre. What will Sylva or Alaibe tell Bayelsans that they have done for the state? They have over-bloated ambition and ego. The two Timis do not stay in Bayelsa. They want to create problem and run to Abuja or Lagos.

    “I am grounded in Bayelsa. The support for us is overwhelming. I have the PDP and I have God. The major players are supporting my second term bid. Sylva, who could not fly as a senatorial candidate in the last election, wants to be governor again. He knows that he cannot win.”

    Dickson urged the stakeholders to choose between genuine patriots and fake patriots on poll day.

    He said the leaders of Bayelsa endorsed him for a second term because he has lived up to expectation.

    The governor also condemned the gale of defection from the PDP, describing the defectors as opportunists.

    He said many of them decided to join the APC, following the victory of the party in the presidential election.

    The governor said their defection was motivated by the desire for federal appointments and other forms of leverages, which chieftains of the ruling party may enjoy.

    Dickson noted the attacks on his administration by opponents, saying that they are in bad faith.

    He said: “Despite the campaign of calumny against me, the opposition has not accused me of corruption.”

    The governor explained that corruption became a thing of the past in Bayelsa State, following the introduction of transparency measures.

    He added: “Today, good governance is on course in Bayelsa. Every month, we tell the state what comes into the coffers of the state and how it is going to be spent. The account is laid before the people. The people have input. They are also able to monitor the process.

    “We are happy that we are not having industrial disputes. salaries are paid regularly. We are also trying to pay back the debt owed by the previous administration of Sylva. The people are with us. They will not desert us during the election. Bayelsa will remain the stronghold of the PDP.”

  • Dickson lauds Awujale

    Dickson lauds Awujale

    Bayelsa State Governor Seriake Dickson has lauded the Awujale of Ijebuland, Oba Sikiru Kayode Adetona, for preserving and propagating the Ijebu culture and tradition.

    The governor, a special guest at the Ojude Oba festival, praised the monarch and the people for using their culture as a rallying point and a unifying factor.

    Dickson thanked the Awujale for the invitation, noting that the honour would strengthen the bond of unity between the people of Bayelsa and Ogun states as well as the Ijaw and the Yoruba.

    Identifying himself with his great maternal root, Dickson said he would identify with the people and continue to play his roles as a bridge builder and source of unity.

  • PDP delegates affirm Dickson’s candidacy

    PDP delegates affirm Dickson’s candidacy

    Bayelsa State Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) delegates yesterday affirmed the sole candidacy of Governor Seriake Dickson for the December 5 governorship election.

    The governor was officially confirmed the party’s candidate at a primary supervised by Ekiti State Governor Ayo Fayose and PDP’s Southsouth National Vice-Chairman Cairo Ojuogho.

    Dickson sealed his victory at the Samson Siasia Sports Complex with 447 votes from 452 accredited delegates.

    The primary was peaceful and devoid of rancour.

    The delegates were orderly.

    Former President Goodluck Jonathan and former Governor Diepreye Alamieyeseigha were among PDP dignitaries at the event.

    Fayose said it was wrong for President Muhammadu Buhari to appoint his in-law as the chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

    The governor urged Dickson not to entertain fears about the forthcoming election, adding that he had the credentials to defeat the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate.

    Fayose said the PDP was monitoring INEC and was ready to expose what he called its hidden agenda at the appropriate time.

    He said: “I have complained very clearly about the choice of the INEC chairperson. Nobody can give us an INEC chairman that is his daughter or in-law. This is our country and nobody can run us out of Nigeria.

    “Therefore, we are watching INEC and its activities. We will not allow you to play pranks. This is an Ijaw state; so, they are going nowhere. This is a PDP-controlled state. No hidden agenda will work in Bayelsa.”

    Fayose said Jonathan’s presence at the primary was like his (Fayose’s) homecoming in the state.

    He declared maximum loyalty to Jonathan, saying the former President brought him back to the Government House after he was humiliated by another President, apparently referring to former President Olusegun Obasanjo.

    Fayose said: “A President took me out of the Government House by force and another President gave me the leverage and a platform to come back. To whom much is given, much is expected.

    “My President and former President of Nigeria, my loyalty is not in doubt. Forever and ever, I am your person and I remain your person. When others fall by the way side out of disloyalty, consequences must come. We are witnessing consequences of such in the country…”

    Dickson announced his running mate for the December 5 poll.

    He said: “…I announce to you all that my running mate for this election will be Rear Admiral John Gborigboria Jonah (retd). We are running on a ticket of continuity, stability and consolidation. We are building institutions and stability in our state. That is why I have nominated him to run with me.”

  • Dickson lambasts ex-aide over unpaid salaries complaint

    Bayelsa State Governor Seriake Dickson yesterday denied owing his former Senior Special Assistant on Non-Indigenes, Chief Chinedu Mbah, one-year salary arrears and allowances.

    In a statement by his Special Adviser on Treasury and Accounts, Mr Timipre Seipulou, the governor said Mbah was ungrateful, urging the public to ignore him.

    Mbah recently resigned his appointment, citing, among other things, non-payment of salaries and allowances; daily intimidation and harassment from the Office of the Secretary to the State Government (SSG) and confiscation of his official car.

    But Seipolou described the claims as false, malicious and meant to impugn on the reputation of the Dickson-led Restoration Government.

    According to him, the government has always lived up to its financial obligations to workers and was “not owing any of his aides, including Mbah”.

    The statement said: “Available financial records reveal that Mbah was paid his remunerations to date, just like any other political appointee in the state, before his purported claim of resignation.

    “Mbah is only acting the script of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and particularly for his master and former Chief of Staff to Governor Dickson and now an APC governorship aspirant …who recommended him for appointment. Going by the facts on ground, it is clear that it is only a desperate and ungrateful man that can make such malicious claims.”

    Seipolou said the claims were politically motivated, adding that it was a deliberate attempt to smear the government’s image.

    The governor’s aide said the Dickson administration was not perturbed by Mbah’s resignation.

    According to him, the former aide has defected to the APC with his master and benefactor.

    Seipolou said: “Ordinarily, I would not have reacted to the spurious and false claims made by Mbah. But to put the records straight and save the unsuspecting public from being misinformed, I want to unequivocally state here that the Bayelsa State Government is not owing its workers and appointees.

    “It is public knowledge that this is one of the few states in Nigeria that have not failed in meeting their financial obligations, especially in terms of payment of salaries. Mr Mbah is only acting true to type. He is doing the bidding of his master and the opposition party, which his master now belongs to.

    “But I can assure you that our government is not losing sleep over his purported ‘resignation’ because he was more of a liability to our government, seeing that his exit was widely celebrated by majority of the non-indigenes. My advice is that people should learn how to play politics and not pay good with evil because of their inordinate political ambitions.”

     

  • Bayelsa won’t take N12.8b bailout cash, says Dickson

    The Bayelsa State Government has said it will not draw its share of the N222 billion approved by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) for states to clear outstanding workers’ salaries.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that CBN approved N12.85 billion for the state.

    Nineteen states have taken their shares from the funds that have a 20-year tenure.

    But in a statement by Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Mr Daniel Iworiso-Markson, the government said Governor Seriake Dickson was not ready to enslave future generations with a debt burden.

    Quoting the governor, the statement said: “I do not want to commit the state to unnecessary borrowing and mortgage their future because I love my people; I love my state.

    “I am not like others who will go and take facilities and loans and do not care what happens to the people. That is why we have not signed on the bailout funds because I am not satisfied that we will not be mortgaging the future of our people.

    “I am not like that. I care about what happens to this state, even after my tenure.”

    Dickson said his administration was reluctant to employ more people, to avoid increasing the wage bill.

    The governor noted that the delay in the payment of salaries of civil servants was due to the delay in the Federal Allocation Accounts Committee (FAAC) meeting.

    According to him, the state government depends solely on revenue from the Federation Account to pay the wages of workers and any delay in the monthly FAAC meeting will definitely affect the payment of salaries.

    Dickson said the country was grappling with an economic downturn, adding that the state had managed to stay afloat.

    The governor said the government’s prudence in the management of its scarce resources was responsible for the state paying its workers up to date.

    He added that the economic situation compelled his administration to commit the available funds to salary payment.

    Dickson said projects and other development activities had been put on hold because of funding challenges.

    According to him, some contractors in the state are being owed up to N15 million.

    The governor called for understanding and patience from the people, saying his administration was only averse to mortgaging the future and unprepared to commit the people to unnecessary credit facilities.

    He said: “It is a general challenge we are all facing; even at the federal level, the country is in a very serious situation.

    “Banks are laying off workers; companies are doing the same. But our state will not lay off workers.

    “We are not owing the workers and we are managing to pay salaries, even at the expense of my own allowances and those of others around.

    “For months, those around me have been making sacrifices. In fact, most of these sacrifices are not known to people.”

     

  • Dickson, UI VC condole with family

    Dickson, UI VC condole with family

    Bayelsa State Governor Seriake Dickson, has described Mrs Awolowo’s death as unfortunate, noting that, she passed on at a time, she was just getting ready to celebrate her 100th birthday.

    “On behalf of the Government and good people of Bayelsa State, I, sincerely, commiserate with the immediate and extended families on the death of Mama, who was the matriarch of the great Awolowo family. It is unfortunate that Mama died at a time when she was just getting ready to celebrate her 100th birthday”.

    The Vice Chancellor, University of Ibadan, Prof. Isaac Folorunso Adewole, said she was an upright Nigerian with an impeccable and immaculate character, worthy of emulation.

    Quoting the words of Victor Hugo, the VC said: “It is nothing to die, it is frightful not to live”; for Mama Awolowo, she came, she fought and she conquered.

    Prof. Adewole said she has lived and done her  best, “she is irreplaceable. She will forever live on in our memories.”

    The National Union of Textile Garments and Tailoring Workers of Nigeria, NUTGTWN, has said Nigeria has lost a role model.

    In a statement in Kaduna, its Secretary General, Comrade Issa Aremu, said: “Mama HID Awolowo lived to the end on her sweat and hard work NOT on corruption and stolen public wealth.

    “Both Mama and Papa Awolowo respected dignity of labour for Nigeria, Africa and humanity.  Africa has indeed lost a role model for womenhood, family, humility, hard work and love of “inestimable value”.

  • Bayelsa poll: Begin to prepare your handover notes, APC chair tells Dickson

    •Governor the man to beat- Aide

    The Bayelsa State chapter of the All Progressive Congress (APC)) yesterday asked the state Governor, Mr. Seriake Dickson, of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to start preparing his handover notes.

    APC said Dickson stood no chance of winning the poll, advising him to accept the reality in the state and begin the preparation to quit the Creek Haven Government House.

    The Chairman of the APC, Chief Tiwei Orunimighe, said the APC is poised to win the December 5 governorship election in the state.

    Speaking in Yenagoa on Friday while receiving the Gold Award for Excellence from an Abuja-based African Peoples Voice Newspaper, the chairman said the primary election of the party would be a watershed in the political history of the state.

    He said: “On the September 22 primary of the APC, I want to assure the people of the state and Nigerians that Bayelsa will witness another success in the party.

    “It is going to be a very peaceful primary where every aspirant will be given a level-playing field to exercise their franchise and to aspire.

    “So, we are confident that the APC is prepared to win government and change all things that need to be changed. We will occupy Creek Haven soon.”

    He urged the people to massively support the APC in the quest to change the current administration in the state.

    He stated that APC remained the only viable platform available to the people of the state to realise their political destinies.

    “When we came on board, I told Bayelsa people that in a few months from that time, the All Progressives Congress flag was hoisted that the party would remain the only platform that would be available for every Bayelsan to achieve their ideals.

    “They were a bit sceptical then. But today, that statement is real, because I know the Peoples Democratic Party would shut their doors against them as they believe in selection and godfatherism.

    “But in the APC, we believe in internal democracy and level-playing field for all those who aspire to elective offices. Bayelsans have seen that in recent times that the APC is now the only party for them to dream if they want to dream, and aspire if they want to aspire.”

    In his remarks, the Publisher and Editor-in-Chief, APVN, Mr. Samson Olayinka, said the award was given to Orunimighe because he had been found to have demonstrated a sense of integrity over the years.

    But reacting, the Media Consultant to Governor Dickson, Francis Agbo, said the governor will win the December 5 poll, adding that the governor’s track records in the state have endeared him to the people.

    “Governor Dickson is the man to win the December 5 polls because he has redefined governance, rebranded the state and Ijaw nation, and above all, delivered on his campaign promise to Bayelsans.

    “This track record of Governor Dickson has further endeared the governor to the masses, the critical stakeholders and the grandmasters of Bayelsa polititics, for which they have resolved to return him to Creek Haven.

    “The promoters of APC in the state are disconnected from the ordinary people. They only bask in the euphoria of using federal might to win election and federal might has always failed here in Bayelsa.”

  • Dickson lambasts ex-aide over unpaid salaries complaint

    Dickson lambasts ex-aide over unpaid salaries complaint

    Bayelsa State Governor Seriake Dickson yesterday denied owing his former Senior Special Assistant on Non-Indigenes, Chief Chinedu Mbah, one-year salary arrears and allowances.

    In a statement by his Special Adviser on Treasury and Accounts, Mr Timipre Seipulou, the governor said Mbah was ungrateful, urging the public to ignore him.

    Mbah recently resigned his appointment, citing, among other things, non-payment of salaries and allowances; daily intimidation and harassment from the Office of the Secretary to the State Government (SSG) and confiscation of his official car.

    But Seipolou described the claims as false, malicious and meant to impugn on the reputation of the Dickson-led Restoration Government.

    According to him, the government has always lived up to its financial obligations to workers and was “not owing any of his aides, including Mbah”.

    The statement said: “Available financial records reveal that Mbah was paid his remunerations to date, just like any other political appointee in the state, before his purported claim of resignation.

    “Mbah is only acting the script of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and particularly for his master and former Chief of Staff to Governor Dickson and now an APC governorship aspirant …who recommended him for appointment. Going by the facts on ground, it is clear that it is only a desperate and ungrateful man that can make such malicious claims.”

    Seipolou said the claims were politically motivated, adding that it was a deliberate attempt to smear the government’s image.

    The governor’s aide said the Dickson administration was not perturbed by Mbah’s resignation.

  • Dickson’s sole candidacy worsens Bayelsa PDP crisis

    Dickson’s sole candidacy worsens Bayelsa PDP crisis

    The crisis in Bayelsa State Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has worsened, following the disqualification of other aspirants to allow Governor Seriake Dickson emerge as the party’s sole candidate in the December 5 election.

    A third-time senator representing Bayelsa Central in the National Assembly, Emmanuel Paulker and former Chairman of Kolokuma-Opokuma Local Government Area, Chief Ebitimi Diongoli, were disqualified by the party’s screening committee.

    Paulker, a close friend of former President Goodluck Jonathan, and Diongoli were the only aspirants who came for screening after refusing to step down for Dickson.

    Paulker’s campaign organisation told reporters in Yenagoa, the state capital that the senator and Diongoli were reportedly not cleared by the screening committee for some “incredible” reasons.

    The campaign organisation’s Director-General Dr. Ayakeme Whisky said the aspirants were not told the reason for their disqualification until they discovered that it was on spurious allegations of not attaching acceptable tax documents.

    Whisky said: “This was, indeed, laughable. That a senator, who ordinarily should have nothing against him (Dickson), should be whimsically disqualified by the same party that allowed him to fly its flag to the Senate barely six months ago – on a flimsy excuse of tax papers – is most unfortunate.”

    The campaign chief said the disqualification of Paulker was “a culmination of some well choreographed plots” by those who believed that they could play God in the lives of men.

    He added that those advancing their personal interests above the collective aspirations of the state were behind the undemocratic actions in the PDP.

    Whisky said the disqualification of Paulker came after Dr Jonathan tried in vain to prevail on him to withdraw from the race and allow Dickson to become the party’s sole candidate.

    He said: “We are aware of how much former President Jonathan prevailed on our principal to withdraw from the race to allow Dickson become the sole candidate of the party.

    “We are aware of how much energy he exerted to create a seamless ride for Governor Dickson because, in his thinking, only sitting governors can win an election. It was this myopia that led to the incalculable damage the leadership of the party foisted on the PDP, which led to its plummeting fortunes after the 2015 elections.

    “Where is the promise by the party’s leaders to provide a level-playing field for all aspirants? Can the party leaders, including Dr. Jonathan, come clean to tell Nigerians that a serving senator does not have tax papers or committed such heinous crime against the party deserving of disqualification?

    “It appears the PDP is not yet tired of losing more of its members to the opposition All Progressives Congress (APC). Perhaps, it is also not clear to so many people that part of the reasons for the large scale defection in Bayelsa State was premised on the leadership style of Jonathan.”

    Whisky noted that since Jonathan was promoting his personal interest above the collective aspirations of Bayelsa people, there is need for the residents to decide their fate on December 5, based on what he called enlightened self-interest.

    But in a live broadcast yesterday in Yenagoa, Dickson said the PDP was intact and united in its resolve to win the forthcoming election.

    The governor said his nomination as the party’s sole candidate was the decision of PDP’s highest decision-making organ.

    He urged the disqualified aspirants to respect the party’s action.

    Describing Diongoli and Paulker as his friends, Dickson appealed to them to bury their hatchets and work for the party’s victory.

    He said: “The party has spoken. They (other aspirants) are my friends; one of them was a commissioner under me. I expect them at this time to respect the supreme organ of the party. The campaign now is about our party and I look forward to welcoming them.”