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Tag: Dickson

  • Dickson is a ‘Change Agent’, says Shettima

    The Governor of Borno State, Alhaji Kashim Shettima has described his Bayelsa State counterpart, Henry Seriake Dickson as a change agent of the century.

    According to him, Dickson has not only revolutionised agriculture in Bayelsa State but has changed the negative narrative of the state by enthroning sustainable development and peace in the only homogenous Ijaw State.

    In a statement by the Chief Press Secretary of the Governor of Bayelsa State, Francis Ottah Agbo, the Borno State Governor commended Dickson on Thursday while delivering a goodwill message at the maiden edition of The Nation Newspaper First Summit on Food and Agriculture, which held at the Sheraton Hotel and Towers, Abuja.

    Both Dickson and Shettima were also conferred with award of excellence in agriculture. Dickson was particularly honoured for the development of rural agro-business and for using agriculture to diversify the Bayelsa  economy beyond oil, through wealth creation, training, retraining  and skills acquisition in agriculture.

    Chief amongst the legacy agriculture projects/programmes that earned Dickson the award are: the eight aquaculture villages in the state with a 500- fish pond at Yenegwe, Yenagoa as the flagship, the Commercial Cassava Plant Factory and Cassava out Grower Scheme at Ebidebri, Oil Palm Plantation Development Projects, Integrated Poultry Farm Projects, Rice Development Initiatives, Ultra-Modern Fish Farm Projects etc.

    Shettima said Nigeria can thrive on agriculture because, according to him, all regions have comparative advantages. He noted that the North was blessed with grains and cereal, the Middle Belt can meet the tuber needs of the country while the South can meet the fish demand.

    He said if “we are serious as a nation, our national food security is guaranteed.”

    Governor Abubakar Atiku Bagudu of Kebbi State also hailed Dickson for his initiatives in agriculture which he said are people-oriented. He averred that Bayelsa State has the capacity to be the rice hub of the nation, because the “land is fertile and water is available for irrigation.” He lauded the Governor for working in this direction.

    The Nation award was received on behalf of Dickson by the Commissioner for Agriculture and Natural Resources, Mr. Doodei Week.

    The governor dedicated the award to the good people of Bayelsa State and the Ijaw Nation. He lauded Vintage Press Limited, publishers of The Nation newspapers for appreciating his modest efforts in Bayelsa State, stressing that the award will spur him to do more for.

     

  • Dickson restates support for state police

    Bayelsa State Governor Henry Seriake Dickson has restated his support for state police.

    He spoke against the background of its opposition by the President, Muhammadu Buhari

    Buhari, in a Voice of America interview in the United States, opposed state police.

    His position, however, is at variance with many protagonists of the idea.

    Dickson, ex-police officer, told the publisher of Africa Today, Kayode Soyinka, that state policing was long overdue in a multi-ethnic and multi-religious state as Nigeria.

    Dickson spoke in an interview with the London-based Africa Today to mark his sixth year in office.

    He said: “State police is a necessary element of a federal system… Nigeria is overdue for state policing”.

    The governor argued that state policing has its advantages.

    “I am a former policeman. I know how my colleagues feel, because we are all in this federally-controlled police force. Yes, it has its advantages, but the downside has become apparent and frightening, especially with the population and intricacies of our societies, our country has to adopt state policing”.

    One of Buhari’s reasons for opposing state police is the financial implication of a state police on states.

    He said: “But don’t forget that many times the Federal Government gave out what we referred to as “bail out” to states for payment of  salaries.

    ‘’How many states can pay promptly? And you want to add more financial burden to states”.

    The President, however, uhari cautioned.

    “We must carefully look at the position of the nation’s constitutione a decision. If the constitution allows state police, so be it”.

    Dickson told Soyinka in the April/May edition of his magazine, that he had always spoken in support of state policing “because I am a committed federalist.

    ‘’That does not mean they should wind up the federal police. No, we will still have room for federal police. But states should have the authority to handle policing.

    ‘’But when we have federal offences, of course the state police can cooperate with federal police.

    ‘’So, the two can exist side-by-side. All we need do is for the leadership to be committed, meet and sit down to work out details of the checks-and-balances”.

    Dickson admitted that   those who do not want state police are apprehensive.

    He argued: “These fears can be assuaged. We just need to be more ingenious and craft a mechanism for co-existence… so that every state can take responsibility for its security and stability with the support of federal police.”

    The clamour for state police has been rising, especially with growing insecurity in states occasioned by incessant attacks of farmers by herdsmen.

    This, the President hopes to curtail by approving 6,000 additional officers, to address security challenges.

    While celebrating his six years in office, Dickson inaugurated many projects.

    The list includes hospitals, roads, schools, farms and heli-port.

    Former President Olusegun Obasanjo was the special guest of honour at the anniversary.

  • OTC: Dickson, Houston Mayor partner to industrialise Bayelsa

    The Mayor of Houston, United States, Sylvester Turner has pledged to collaborate with Bayelsa State Governor, Henry  Seriake Dickson on the industrialisation  of the state.

    A statement by the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Francis Ottah Agbo, said Turner gave his word when Dickson paid a courtesy visit to the Mayor to solicit  investment the state.

    He said Dickson applauded the leadership qualities of the Mayor, stressing that his people-oriented leadership has further consolidated the political economy of Houston.

    The governor specifically listed the Agge Deep Sea Port, economic diversification, agric investment opportunities, oil and gas and the utilisation of the abundant gas reserve to catalyse the industrialisation of Bayelsa, as areas where Bayelsa State Government seeks partnership with the Mayor.

    Dickson said he led a strong Bayelsa delegation to attend this year’s OTC, and expressed satisfaction with the event which he noted, gave his government further opportunity to “take Bayelsa to the world and bring the world to Bayelsa.”

    Dickson expressed delight at the success of his visit to Houston, saying, saying he is willing to stage a comeback, to have a closer interaction with the business community. He also solicited the support of the Mayor in enlisting Bayelsa into the World Energy City Partnership.

    The governor also took advantage of his visit to condole with the Mayor and the people of Houston on the January, 2017 havoc caused by Hurricane Harvey.

    Turner appreciated Dickson and his team for the gesture, stating that Houston is the most diverse city in the country and that there are over 150,000 Nigerians resident in the city.

    He mayor promised to support Bayelsa State in line with the governor’s requests. The Mayor solicited  Dickson’s support in getting a Nigerian Consul office to be cited in Houston.

     

  • As Dickson tackles Bayelsa’s education challenges with new innovation

    The Governor of Bayelsa State, the Hon. Henry Seriake Dickson, has not left anybody in doubt about the determination of his Restoration Government to tackle decisively the challenge of education in the state. And he has opted to take on the seemingly daunting challenge of illiteracy with sustained efforts anchored on innovation. Right from the inception of his Restoration Government in 2012, Dickson highlighted the pertinence of education to the realization of a developed Bayelsa State. This quest to exploit the tool of education as the lasting parapet for societal development made Dickson to declare emergency in the education sector of the state.

    Since Dickson mounted the podium to make that defining declaration to embark on intensified deliberate measures to promote education in 2012, so much progress has been made in the sector. A leader with a burning passion for the development of the human mind, Dickson devoted a chunk of available resources in the state to the provision of accessible quality education. Like the late sage, Chief Obafemi Awolowo, Dickson holds the view that no investment would be too great for the promotion of learning and its culture in Bayelsa.

    At the level of lower education, the primary and secondary schools, Dickson introduced free education across Bayelsa. Under his watch, it became a matter of policy for every Bayelsa child to be in school. He had insisted on several fora that the greatness and indeed future of the young state was dependent on its younger generation whose intellectual capacity should be sharpened to steer the state to greater heights. To ensure that education was not only free and compulsory but also qualitative, Dickson committed over N70 billion to the building of new schools and the renovation of existing ones.

    The administration has built and renovated over 600 schools in Bayelsa to keep children off the streets. Dickson took further steps to explore other areas of access to education at secondary school level with the introduction of free quality boarding schools in the state. On different visits, Nigeria’s first professor of English and renowned poet, Prof. JP Clark; Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka; former Head of State, Gen. Yakubu Gowon and former President Olusegun Obasanjo had heaped commendations on the Government for establishing the flagship boarding school, the Ijaw National Academy, a wonder symbolically located in Kaiama, the hometown of the Ijaw freedom icon, Jasper Isaac Adaka Boro.

    The governor’s voracious appetite for educational development was anchored on the unflinching conviction that a society which fails to invest in education would be left with no option but to commit public funds to the construction of prison walls and cemeteries. “There are only two options; it’s either we invest massively in education and encourage skills development or we build more prisons and more cemeteries because people are going to get killed.” To him, the second choice was no option. He holds tenaciously to the view that education remains the magical furnace with the incredible capacity to convert rust into diamond. That, no doubt, is the reason Bayelsa has over 7,000 boarding students who are in about 25 models schools across the country.

    It is not hidden that Dickson’s vision for development in Bayelsa draws its strength from the soothing breath of education. Although the administration’s sustained efforts for educational development have yielded some result and drawn commendation at the national level, the education flame is burning with higher intensity. It is pertinent to note that Bayelsa, which was listed 28th in the education development index for the 36 states at the inception of the Dickson administration has appreciated with speed to the third and fifth positions respectively in NECO and WAEC examination.

    And Dickson’s plan for education is as thorough as it is all encompassing. He has other plans for the education revolution is Bayelsa. He is preoccupied with the provision of unrestricted access to tertiary education as the logical measure to complement the feats recorded at the primary and secondary school levels. As a grassroots politician who answers to his chosen title, The Countriman, Dickson is abreast on the challenges of getting university education in his state. Bayelsa, under Dickson, is boldly exploring avenues of access to tertiary education which are a novelty in this part of the world. Already, the bill establishing the Bayelsa State Tertiary Education Board has been signed into law.

    On Saturday April 21, 2018, Dickson told a massive audience of Bayelsans and invited dignitaries at the maiden matriculation òf the University òf Africa, Toru Orua, an institution he established, that the board would be inaugurated not later than two weeks. One thing is unique about this idea. It is the badly needed panacea to problems of bright minds dropping out of schools because of lack of funds. With this masterstroke, Dickson has created a vista of hope to thousands of Bayelsa youths whose academic programmes in tertiary institutions have been yoked to uncertainties.

    “We have also taken care of the issue of access in another way that I have not heard done in any state in this country. Your government has also signed the Bayelsa State Student Tertiary Education Loan Board Law. I have signed that bill into law, and in the next one or two weeks, I will be setting up that board.  And just as we dedicated 5 per cent of the internally generated revenue of our state to the Education Development Trust Fund, the Government of Bayelsa State will also every month, allocate some amount of money that I will announce shortly to the funding of the Student Loan Board. The whole idea is that we don’t want any Bayelsa youth, boy or girl, whatever your background may be, whatever your circumstances in life maybe, (once you have the basic qualifications that will enable you gain admission into university, either in the UAT or in our state-owned premiere Niger Delta University or any other university in Nigeria) to be left behind.

    “As a responsible government, because we know all fingers are not equal and we do not want any child to be left behind, we are establishing the Students Loan Board. The loan that the board will give will be paid directly to the universities. The board will formulate its rules and the board will pay for the university education cost particularly with regard to tuition fees. I expect the university to cooperate with the board so that when the students graduate, when they begin to work, they can repay within 10 to 20 years without feeling it. That is the standard across the world.”

    For the purpose of emphasis, the new innovation, which many stakeholders are already celebrating even before it takes off, is coming on the heels of the Bayelsa State Education Trust Fund. The Fund chaired by a former Minister of Science and Technology, Prof. Turner Isoun, was put in place by the state government under Dickson to ensure effective prosecution of the project for free education at the lower levels of primary and secondary schools. In Bayelsa State, Dickson made it a matter of law for the critical body to be funded through an education levy on all state employees with him paying the highest amount of N1000,000 per month. The law mandates the state government to pay five percent of its IGR to the Education Trust Fund.

    Furthermore, the crave for a seamless introduction of a truly free education compelled the governor to again sign into law the Compulsory Primary and Secondary School Bill in February, 2018. This law makes it compulsory for all children of school age to be enrolled in schools. Under the law, it is an offence for parents to refuse their children access to formal education in the state.

    It is incontrovertible that Dickson is wielding a battle axe which no tree of illiteracy can halt. The establishment of the Bayelsa State Students Tertiary Education Loan Board promises to be the masterstroke of the Dickson Restoration Government to crumble the walls that were militating against access of Bayelsans to quality tertiary education. With the awaited board, a burden has been lifted off the shoulders of parents and guardians who lack the financial capacity to fund the education of their wards.

    • Soriwei is Special Adviser on Media Relations to the Governor of Bayelsa State

  • Ijaw youths support Dickson’s succession plan

    •Governor swears in aides

    Ijaw youths have backed Bayelsa State Governor Seriake Dickson’s search for a successor.

    Dickson, who hinted that he is searching for a successor, said God would raise a team to take over after him.

    Hundreds of Ijaw youths, who gathered for a congress at Oyakiri, Aleibiri in Ekeremor, said the governor deserved their support.

    Youths, under the auspices of the Ijaw Youths Council (IYC), Central Zone, said Dickson performed beyond expectations; they lauded him for building the road to Ekeremor, a feat believed impossible.

    The Chairman, Tare Porri, said: “Governor Seriake Dickson has done so excellently well that the Ijaw youths are standing behind him. For the first time in the history of the state and the Ijaw nation, the road conceived over 56 years ago, that we hitherto felt was impossible, the governor of is building and taking it to Agge.

    “The road has got to the venue of this congress. It, therefore, means that the governor means well for the Ijaw nation, and so we resolved that to further encourage him, we need to support him.”

    Besides Ekeremor road, he added that Dickson is building a road to Oporoma and undertaking other projects despite funding challenges.

    Bayelsa State Governor Seriake Dickson yesterday swore in Mr. Guy Murray-Bruce as Special Adviser, Entertainment and Tourism Development.

    He urged Bruce to leverage on the conducive environment created by the Restoration Government to turn the state into an entertainment and tourism hub. He is also to ensure that all major events in the country hold in Bayelsa State.

    A statement by the governor’s Chief Press Secretary, Francis Ottah Agbo, added that Chief Sunday Omekwe, Andy Obed, Comrade Bobolayefa Owoupele, Ayiba Duba and Chief Netus Zebakeme were also sworn in as Special Advisers.

    A former commissioner and immediate past Chairman of the Post Primary Schools Board, Benadoumene Dein, also took his oath of office as Chairman, Bayelsa State House of Assembly Service Commission. He was replaced by Dr. Asiam Blessing Ikuru.

    The governor also inaugurated Mrs. Biboye Ogola as Director-General, Inspectorate and Special Education, while Pius Jonah was appointed as Chairman, SUBEB.

    Foremost Youth Leader, Mr. Oyinkuro Lucky Asanakpo, was sworn in as Chairman, Bayelsa State Volunteer, while Mr. Tony Ekisah was sworn in as Chairman, Education Safety Corps.

  • Stop senseless killings now, says Dickson

    •Gowon to Nigerians: shun retaliation

    Bayelsa State Governor Seriake Dickson has called for peaceful coexistence and end to senseless killings in the country.

    He spoke at the weekend during the National Prayer Conference organised by Nigeria Prays at the Ecumenical Centre, Yenagoa, with the theme: “Lord rend the heavens”.

    Dickson, who noted that the ongoing killings were symptoms of a failed state, lamented that Nigeria was seriously bleeding and divided more than ever.

    “The continuous wanton killings by Fulani herdsmen across the country is symptomatic of a failed state,” Dickson said.

    The governor, who called for prayers to surmount the country’s challenges, said Nigerians must unite in prayers and resolve to work together to ensure fairness, justice and equity.

    Dickson urged leaders to take the responsibility and stop the bloodletting, adding that the emergence of Nigeria Prays was more critical than ever before, as it encouraged the different denominations to pray fervently for the nation.

    His words: “In this country, God’s children, human beings irrespective of the God they worship, are being slaughtered mercilessly, remorselessly in many parts of the country. Our nation is bleeding. We must unite in prayers and resolve to do what is right and fair. Our nation should be a nation of fairness, justice, equity, equal citizenship and united by common ideals of being the greatest black nation.

    “We are united by our common shared humanity and nationality. So, injustice and unfairness anywhere should be a concern to anyone and everyone in our nation. I join you in praying that the bloodletting, unnecessary killings in our nation under any shape or guise to end. God should intervene so that people will feel the need to do the right thing, be fair and just to one another.

    “Anyone who denies his fellow man justice is less human than his victim because what qualifies us humans created in the image of God is our belief in doing what is right and just.

    “So, I call for a just, egalitarian and fair Nigeria, where everyone is proud to call his or her country. No one should play the ostrich.”

    Former Head of State Gen. Yakubu Gowon, who is chairman and convener of Nigeria Prays, expressed appreciation to Dickson for giving his group the privilege of holding its National Prayer Conference at the Ecumenical Centre.

    According to Gowon, the governor has demonstrated his faith in God by building the Ecumenical Centre and urged other state governors to emulate his initiative.

    The former Head of State, who noted that prayers could solve Nigeria’s problems better and faster than military generals and soldiers with physical weapons of war.

    He assured Nigerians that God would honour the collective prayers and intercession for the nation, advising people to shun violence and retaliation.

    National Director of Nigeria Prays Reverend Moses Aransiola enjoined Christian faithful to pray fervently for the nation.

    He added that Nigeria Prays believed in the efficacy of prayer and praying for the country since it was the responsibility of Christians.

    Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria President Reverend Rev. Felix Omobude advised Nigerians to pray and speak well about the country.

    He said when people curse the country, they automatically curse themselves, assuring that with God’s intervention, there would be a new Nigeria.

     

  • Dickson signs N316. 9b budget

    Bayelsa State Governor Seriake Dickson yesterday signed into law the 2018 Appropriation Bill of N316.9 billion.

    The budget contained capital expenditure of N156 billion and recurrent of N160 billion.

    Assenting to the bill, Dickson assured that the budget will enable his administration consolidate on investments.

    He explained that the initial Appropriation Bill was N295 billion but that the House of Assembly increased it by N21 billion.

    He said the government would ensure the completion of projects and boost investments in critical infrastructure, such as the Eco-Industrial Park and Agge Deep Sea Port.

    He thanked the lawmakers for their commitment and expeditious passage of the bill, which was brought to them in  December.

    Dickson urged the members to collaborate with the executive in sourcing resources to fund the budget.

    The governor said: “The Appropriation Bill that I forwarded was about N295bn, but the House of Assembly increased it to N316bn. That is part of the checks and balances that they have exercised. And I know and trust, that in their own case, they will also work with me to ensure that we have the resources to be able to fund this budget.”

    Presenting the bills, Speaker Konbowei Benson said the Assembly scrutinised the proposal and passed it in the best interest of the state.

    `

  • Atiku, Makarfi, Dickson, Omisore, others felicitate with Christians at Easter

    Former Vice President and chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, has felicitated with Christians as they mark the ressurection of Jesus Christ.

    In this, he was joined by Governor Seriake Dickson of Bayelsa State, PDP chieftain and former Kaduna State governor, Senator Ahmed Makarfi and former Osun State deputy governor, Senator Iyiola Omisore.

    In a statement released by his media office in Abuja to mark the Easter celebrations, Atiku called on Nigerians to emulate the virtues of love and sacrifice which characterised the life of Jesus Christ.

    The Waziri Adamawa described those two qualities as essential to the unity that Nigeria so desperately needs at this time when vested and provincial interests threaten to tear our nation apart.

    He also encouraged Nigeria’s leaders to use the opportunity of the Easter celebration to reflect on their stewardship to their people and to the nation.

    “Our leaders at all levels should follow the virtues that define this season – sacrifice, love and charity – and come together to help all Nigerians resolve the differences that divide us.

    We must not allow those who seek to divide us to pretend as if our problems are as a result of another ethnic or religious group,” Atiku said.

    On his part, Senator Omisore charged Christians as well as all Nigerians  to demonstrate the essence of Easter as exemplified by Jesus Christ, by living in love and harmony with one another.

    Omisore, a former Chairman Senate Committee on Appropriation, gave this charge in a statement he issued to felicitate with Nigerians on Easter celebrations.

    “As Nigerians, we must eschew acts that will divide us further. We must embrace Christ’s attitude of living in love and harmony with ourselves and our neighbours,” he said.

    “It is not by chance that God put all of us in this environment called Nigeria. Whether as Muslims or Christians, we must remember always that we are our brother’s keeper.

    “We must promote all the enriching values that make our lives and society embodiments of godliness.”

    Omisore, who was the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2014 governorship election in Osun State, urged the people of the state to be steadfast in their prayers.

    Bayelsa State governor, Hon, Henry Seriake Dickson, urged Nigerians, particularly Christians to jealously cherish and guide their faith by living a Christ-like life of selfless service, sacrifice, love and righteousness.

    The governor, in a press statement signed by his Chief Press Secretary, Francis Ottah Agbo, noted that, without the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, “our faith as Christians would have been a fallacy.”

    While stressing that Nigeria is presently at a crossroads, the governor called on Bayelsans to love one another, pray fervently for the peace, prosperity and stability of the nation and sacrifice for the common good of Bayelsa State.

    Governor Dickson also solicited for the maximum cooperation of the people and leaders of the state and the Ijaw Nation to enable his Restoration Government  consolidate on its legacy projects in order to finish strong by 2020.

    He said: “As we celebrate Easter, which of course is the basis of our faith as Christians, I urge Nigerians, particularly Bayelsans, to emulate our Lord Jesus Christ by words and deeds.

    “We must love one another and sacrifice for the common good of Bayelsa State and Nigeria.

    “This country is facing daunting challenges which call for fervent prayers and hard work to surmount.

    “Our Government in the last six years has put Bayelsa State on the path of peace and prosperity. I therefore, solicit the continued cooperation and support of leaders and the people of the state to enable our  Restoration Government consolidate on its life-changing legacy projects and finish strong.”

    In his own message, Makarfi said in spite of various challenges, there is still hope for Nigeria.

    Jesus’ death and resurrection, he said, are everlasting reminders that it is possible for Nigeria to overcome its difficult situation and embrace great virtues.

    He asked Nigerians to eschew bitterness and embrace the spiritual legacies of Jesus Christ which can immensely facilitate Nigeria’s peace and progress.

    He sent “warm felicitations and greetings to the Nigerian Christian community, and indeed all Nigerians on this auspicious occasion of the Easter celebrations in memory of the legendary spirit of sacrifice and selflessness espoused and exhibited by Jesus Christ.”

    It is imperative, according to him, that this period be “used by all for meditation and sober reflections on the life and times of Jesus Christ and his sacrifices, with a view to imbibing  such virtues as humility, forgiveness, tolerance, good neighbourliness, respect and empathy for others’ feelings as well as love for one another.”

    The Chairman, Senate Committee on Local Content, Senator Solomon Adeola, charged  his constituents and Nigerians in general to remain peaceful and exhibit the Christian virtues of sacrifice, love and abiding faith in a better tomorrow as exemplified in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

    Adeola said the season symbolises a new beginning of hope and redemption for all mankind, adding that for all true Christians, the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ means that all challenges confronting individuals and mankind are ultimately surmountable with fervent belief in God.

    The senator said the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ gave mankind hope of a new beginning and a better future, stressing that in spite of enormous challenges confronting the nation, Nigeria is at the threshold of a better tomorrow.

  • Dickson makes case for PDP Southwest leaders

    Bayelsa State Governor, Seriake Dickson has urged the national leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to give leaders of the party in the Southwest geopolitical zone a sense of belonging.

    Dickson also called for the immediate constitution of the various standing committees of the party, with the view to carving out specific responsibilities for women youths members.

    “The South West is too strategic not to play a strategic role in PDP. We recommend closer interaction with the leaders of the Southwest to build confidence in the region”, Dickson said.

    The governor spoke in Abuja Wednesday night while presenting the report of the party’s Reconciliation Committee to the National Chairman of the PDP, Prince Uche Secondus.

    Dickson also charged by party’s leadership to constantly woo those who had left the PDP back to the fold and to “lead a coalition of all other parties to win more states and form government at the centre”.

    The governor said, “PDP National Working Committee and its leaders must be temperate; not to join issues with ourselves and even those who have left the party.

    “The manifest destiny of PDP is to lead a broad-based coalition to sack APC. To achieve this, everybody is important and must be brought on board because the umbrella is large enough for all.

    ‘‘The National Working Committee of our great party should constitute all statutory committees urgently and in the composition, women, youths and leaders should be involved in the committees.

    ‘‘We believe the national convention has come and gone but we recommend that the party deliberately create positions for women in PDP because the party is the most women and youth –friendly. Mr. Chairman, if we do this, it will reassure our women and youths that they are the future of our party.

    “There is no party as democratic as PDP in Nigeria but I must concede that we are not where we should be. But by deepening internal democracy and returning the party to the Nigerian people, the party will regain its pride of place and wrest power from the APC”.

    Responding, the party chairman, Secondus thanked Governor Dickson and his committee for doing a wonderful work and pledged to implement all the recommendations contained in the governor’s committee report.

    Secondus said the APC has become a threat to national security and declared the resolve of the PDP under his leadership to galvanise Nigerians to displace the ruling APC.

    The party chairman said, “The APC is a threat to national security. The APC-led Federal Government is broken. The APC has so disunited our people and Nigerians no longer trust it.

    “Only the PDP rekindles hope; the party represents the labour of our heroes past; only PDP can secure and keep this country united. That is why our emphasis is on returning the party to Nigerians, especially women and youths and I want to seize this opportunity to call on all Nigerians including those who have left us to return to the party.

    “PDP belongs to all Nigerians and our party is the only party that is not owned by an individual or a cabal. We shall provide level-playing field for all aspirants to actualise their ambitions unhindered.

    “We are ready to bend backward to accommodate everybody, including those who have left us. The PDP is ready for a robust arrangement to lead other political parties to form government at all levels to banish hunger, insecurity, nepotism and clannishness from Nigeria.

    “The 2019 general election will be a referendum on the survival of the country. APC and INEC will try to rig but they cannot succeed. Nigerians will resist them”.

  • Amosun, Dickson greet Obasanjo at 81

    Amosun, Dickson greet Obasanjo at 81

    Ogun State Governor Ibikunle Amosun and his Bayelsa State counterpart, Seriake Dickson, have congratulated former President Olusegun Obasanjo on his 81st birthday.

    The Ogun governor described Obasanjo as a quintessential leader.

    In a statement by the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Otunba Adedayo Adeneye, the governor said the former Head of State, ex-President and statesman had demonstrated an exceptional passion for the socio-economic development of the country and the wellbeing of Nigerians.

    Amosun added: “His service to the nation can be summarised as that of total sacrifice and exceeding zeal to ensure that Nigeria is great. Even incarceration did not douse his vision.”

    In a statement in Yenagoa, the state capital, by his Chief Press Secretary, Francis Ottah Agbo, the Bayelsa governor prayed God to grant the elder statesman long life and good health so that “we can continue to tap from his fountain of knowledge and experience”.