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Tag: Sylva

  • Commission of inquiry invites, Sylva, Lokpobiri, Brambaifa, others

    The Judicial Commission of Inquiry established by Bayelsa State Governor, Seriake Dickson, to probe alleged violence and breach of peace before, during and after the general elections, has invited leaders and chieftains of the All Progressives Congress (APC) to appear before it.

    Those the commission extended invitations to are former Governor Chief Timipre Sylva; Bayelsa State House òf Assembly member Israel Sunny-Goli and the Acting Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Prof. Nelson Brambaifa.

    Others are the Minister of State for Agriculture, Sen. Heineken Lokpobiri and Mr. Famous Danumiegha, the candidate of the APC for the Sagbama/Ekeremor Federal Constituency in the last election.

    The Commission under the chairmanship of Justice Inikade Eradiri is inviting the top APC chieftains to put up appearances and clear allegations against them by victims of the violence.

    Eight new witnesses appeared before the commission in Thursday and testified on the roles played by politicians in the last elections.

    Led in evidence by the Commission’s lawyer, Prof. Festus Emiri, the Commissioner for Transport, Mr. Daupirimo Ikuromo, said despite the peace accord signed, thugs allegedly loyal to Sylva forced the leadership of Okpoama and Ewoama communities to compel their people to vote only in favour of the APC.

    Ikuromo stated that he and other PDP stalwarts couldn’t exercise their franchise as they were chased out of the community.

    Read Also: Why youths confronted police boss in Brass, by Sylva

    He said those who came out to vote were beaten up and forced back into their houses, alleging that the Army and other security agencies were under the control of the APC during the period.

    Another witness, Chief Ebitimi Ayah, the Regent of Ewoama community said he was compelled to authorise a proclamation ordering his subjects to vote only APC or risk losing their lives.

    The traditional ruler avvered the community was thrown into fear by the heavy presence of thugs and threats to monitor and deal with whoever voted the PDP and its candidates.

    Also, the Auditor of Nembe Cheifs council, Chief Kio Eldred-Siari, indicted officials of the Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corp (NSCDC), who according to him prevented him and other PDP supporters from voting on the day of the election.

    Another witness, who is the Director Strategic Communication, Governor’s Office, Chief Nathan Egba-Ologo, said that an existing peace accord was violated by APC leaders and thugs

    He said that the thugs of the APC who laid siege on Okpoama community rough-handled the 84-year- old Chairman of the Council òf Chiefs, Chief Allen Orukari, and compelled him to approve an announcement forcing his subjects to vote only for the APC or leave the community.

    Others who testified before the commission are the Special Adviser to Governor Dickson on Student Affairs, Mr. Austin Adigio and Chief Febor Kuroekigh the Public Relations Officer Iwoama Chiefs Council.

  • Sylva alleges smear campaign in Bayelsa against Presidency

    FORMER Bayelsa State Governor Timipre Sylva yesterday alleged Governor Seriake Dickson was plotting a smear campaign against the Presidency.

    Sylva, in a statement, signed by his Media Assistant, Julius Bokoru, said the campaign was aimed at pitting him against some powerful forces in the Presidency.

    But Dickson, in a swift reaction, described Sylva as an unpopular and desperate politician, whose conscience remained his greatest threat.

    Bokoru said Dickson was planning to sponsor journalists to write damning stories against some key Presidency figures.

    He named Abba Kyari, the President’s chief of staff, as a target in the fake campaign, adding that his mercenaries  would leave artificial traces linking the stories to Sylva.

    Bokoru said: “What is most surprising here is not the fact that Dickson can cook up a plot as treacherous as this, because when it comes to demonic desperation and sheer cynicism, he has lost the element of surprise.

    “But it is the fact that despite being at the twilight of his failed governorship, Dickson still deludes himself with the notion that clutching on to attempts to discredit Sylva can either divert public attention from his years of misrule or burnish up his damaged integrity.

    “The Dickson government has been built on layers of empty propaganda that he has sustained with robotic consistency. His habitually high-sounding claims and promises have not produced tangible results to uplift the people he has impoverished for close to eight years”.

    Bokoru said having tried in vain to to discredit Sylva since assuming office in February 2012, Dickson had settled for a dangerous fake campaign, to give himself a soft-landing.

    He said: “Unknown to Dickson, what the people of Bayelsa State need are imaginative economic strategies and tangible deliverables, not glib publicity stunts.

    “At the national level, Sylva unmistakably and unequivocally emphasises that the government of President Muhammadu Buhari is one he, along with other patriots, helped install in 2015.

    “He is all too enthusiastic to repeat this gesture this February. Sylva is not in the business of unhelpful, petty rivalry in this government as the darkest side of Dickson’s generally dark imagination is dreaming to manufacture.

    “It is incomprehensible that a man who refused to pay salaries even after the Buhari government’s consistency in allocations, a man who deliberately subjected Bayelsans to undue, undeserved difficulty through this Yuletide, would spend hundreds of millions of naira on terribly scripted propaganda, petty mudslinging, and building castles in the air.

    “The public should discountenance the shenanigans of Dickson and his lowly government. While he is exhausting state treasury sparring with the shadow of Sylva, the state has degraded infrastructurally and economically, and violence, both spontaneous and state-inspired”.

    But Dickson said in a statement by his Special Adviser, Media Relations, Mr. Fidelis Soriwei, that Sylva cut the gnawing image of a troubled man screaming and fleeing at the sight of nobody.

    Soriwei said Dickson was too involved and indeed occupied with the execution of the mandate the Bayelsa people gave to him, to be distracted by the hallucinations of a politician, whose lifeline in politics was the state of the mood of his political masters.

    He said it was queer and absurd that Sylva did not point to any story in the media but was only spewing out fake news that a report would be released to the public soon.

    The media aide challenged Sylva to come clean on any sin he might have committed against the chief of staff, who had no issue with Dickson.

    “This type of report falls short of the standard of a story that should command a place in our respected media space. Somebody of the exalted status of a former governor is crying wolf where there is none and hallucinating that a governor reputed to be his political nemesis is after him.

    “The point to note is that the governor is too busy with the execution of the mandate given to him by Bayelsans to be bothered by anticipated clashes between Sylva and the President’s chief òf staff.

    “This comic claim by Sylva and his minion is a classic example of the wicked on flight at the sight of nobody. The fact is that Sylva is so scared and intimidated by the shadow of Dickson, that his nightmares about him occur in the day time.

    “We hope Sylva is not having sleepless night over the possibility of yet another “leaked audio” in this era of “double speak and doubtful thoughts.”

    Soriwei stressed that while Dickson worked hard to put his name on all the life changing, big ticket developmental projects in Bayelsa, Sylva would be remembered for the descent to lawlessness, the slaughter of the innocent encapsulated in his killing machine, Famutangbe.

  • Sylva : Unsong hero of Niger Delta peace deal

    The years of agitation for a fair deal in the oil producing state of the Niger Delta is one legitimate demand that cannot be swept under the carpet. The agitation which had culminated in chains of unrest occasioned by years of marginalisation and neglect of the very dear goose that lays the Golden egg have claimed precious lives in the oil rich region of Niger Delta.

    Late Major Isaac Adaka Boro of Bayelsa state was the forerunner of the struggle to give the Niger people an identity. He was the first to engage the Federal Government in an armed insurrection, calling for the Niger Delta Republic. Though the idea at the time of the struggle sounded utopic; the impact of that engagement which is often referred to the Twelve-Day Revolution in 1966 actually set the stage for the chain of agitations especially with the blossoming of the oil money trickling in from the region.

    Late Ken Saro-Wiwa took the struggle to another level at the Unite Nations. Though it was armless, but the impact was felt all over the world and was consequently sent to his untimely grave through judicial murder in 1995 by the military junta of late General Sani Abacha in a phoney trial.The trial was so ridiculous and callous which prompted late Chief Gani Fawehinmi the Defence Counsel to pull out of the Defence.

    The rest is now a bitter history that continues to remind Nigerians of the inequities and hypocrisy of a Nation-state that professes to be ‘‘one Nation bound in freedom’’ as contained in its national anthem but everywhere like the typical Niger Delta people are bound in chains.

    Though the prolific writer turned agitator, Ken Saro-Wiwa was killed but the idea he and his comrades stood for in the Niger Delta struggle had lived on. Interestingly, before he was made to face the guillotine, Ken Saro –Wiwa who was fondly called ‘‘Ken’’ told the audience at his trial court that ‘‘ I fought for justice without resorting to arms but those who will come after me will engage the Federal Government in armed struggle’’

    Close watchers of history simply murmured in the depth of their troubled heart that the dooms day was only postponed.

    Less than five years after the murder of Ken and shortly after former president Olusegun Obasanjo mounted the saddle as president of Nigeria; Ken’s statement of premonition was dawn on the country.

    The Kaiama declaration in December 1999 by a group of youths of intellectuals mould from the Niger marked the water-shed heralding a new phase of the struggle to correct the injustice against the Niger Delta people.

    This was quickly followed by the emergence of other groups who felt the Federal Government will understand only one language to draw its attention to the state of neglect of the Niger Delta which is the language of violence in pressing home their demands.

    Whether you accept it or not, in a state of neglect, inequities and injustice it is unreasonable and illegal to be law abiding. That was the new frame of mind of the young men and women who carved out for themselves militant camps in strategic areas to advance the cause of the Niger Delta.

    The struggle was largely dominated by the Ijaw ethnic nationality and Bayelsa which is like the home of the Ijaw Nation nationality became the epic centre of the agitations. The activities of militancy took a monstrous dimension with a climax in 2007 when kidnapping, Sea piracy and pipeline vandalism became the order of the day.

    The indices of cases of kidnapping and pipeline vandalism frightenly soared to the extent that the swearing –in of Chief Timipre Sylva as governor of Bayelsa state was threatened by militants who invaded Yenagoa, the state capital on the eve of the Swearing-In-ceremony.

    The country home of President Jonathan too was not spared, with a bold move and sporadic shooting to destroy his house.

    In the midst of these security challenges where despair, fear and life becomes what Thomas Hobbes the great thinker would describe as ‘‘short and brutish’’ among people who had enjoyed communal peace.

    Apart from the plummeting Federal allocation accruing to the oil producing states and the rest of the constituent states, occasioned by the activities of militancy, the economy of the country was ground to a halt, such that both Federal and states contended with wide range of concomitant consequences.

    The general concern was how best to contain the crisis and change the narratives for the overall good and development of the country.

    The option then were many. At a point some people advised the late President Musa Yar’adua to go for military option. The military invaded Gbaramatoru Community which happens to be the home of one of the militant commanders who was only one out of thousands of the militants.

    At a time virtually all Niger Delta governors were scared of militants in spite of the retinue of security around them. The attack on the country home of the former president Goodluck Jonathan sent a chilling fever of fear down their spines. The question is; who will bail the cat in talking to the militants to broker peace and restore security in the region.

    Curiously, many people from the Niger Delta arrogated to themselves as the heroes and heroines behind the relative peace and security pervading the Niger Delta while the true heroes of the time and season are deliberately being buried in the narratives. Whether it is an act of omission or commission, the true story leading to the peace deal in the Niger Delta region in the contemporary history of the area cannot be complete without adequate reference to former governor Timipre Sylva of Bayelsa state fondly called Opu-Abadi which literally means the Big Sea.

    One is compelled to put the records straight because of the general twist by some politically exposed persons to suit themselves.

    However, this is the time to write the truth just as the great writer. George Orwell rightly said in honour of truth; that, ‘‘in a time of deceit, telling the truth is revolutionary act’’

    This is where the heroic exploits of Chief Timipre Sylva comes in over the Restoration of peace and security in the Niger Delta.

    Armed with the conviction that enough is enough over the blood-letting and sundry crimes in the Niger Delta, Chief Timipre Sylva embarked on deep and wide consultations with leaders of thought in the region cutting across youths and women groups and critical stakeholders across the region by spreading the message of peace as an imperative to resolve the conflict and ultimately attract the necessary process of sustainable development to the area.

    Typical of a peace envoy, Timipre Sylva further embarked on several visits to the various camps of the then militants in the high sea, swamps and creeks he did so at high risk and sacrifices, while some of his political detractors who were sleeping and snoring in the comfort of their homes were busy nurturing petty gossips that he was cuddling militants just to distract his good intentions.

    In spite of that spurious campaign of calumny mounted against him he remained unperturbed and went to the high sea, traversing areas declared as no-go-areas to secure the release of foreigners like Italians working in the oil industry.

    That bold initiative yielded positive result when some militant leaders across the region gathered at the Bayelsa state cultural centre Yenagoa, to sign a peace pact with the former governor Sylva for on behalf of other governors in the region.

    This cease fire agreement was a major breakthrough towards the drive to restore national security, peace and economic progress.

    Back in his state, Timipre Sylva initiated a novel Socio-Scientific formula to nip the growing state of insecurity in the bud.

    The formula which was known as the TRIPPLE-E APPROACH was basically to engage the militants in dialogue, re-orient them, empower the people, educate them and of course in making sure the enforcement of the law was applied where necessary.

    Like the last straw which broke the camel’s back was a private discussionSylva had with late President Yar’adua to consider the need to offer amnesty to the militants in exchange for peace.

    As a demonstration of his practical commitment and follow-up to his discussion with late President Yar’adua, TimipreSlva committed the idea to a private Memo for the then Mr President to appreciate and digest the idea and consequently secured the necessary presidential endorsement, culminating in what is being referred to as the historic presidential Amnesty proclamation whereby the Sylva formula had not only been replicated but have brought about socio-economic progress in the Niger Delta and changed the narratives of the region.

    Definitely, even critics of Chief Timipre Sylva cannot deny him of the fact that he remains a factor in any process that will move away from the current relative peace and security to that of lasting peace,security and prosperity in the Niger Delta and the Country as a whole.

     

  • Sylva’s deputy campaign chief dies in Bayelsa

    The Deputy Campaign Director of the Sylva-Igiri Campaign Organisation during the 2016 governorship election was yesterday reported dead.

    Chief Lionel Jonathan-Omo, former Commissioner for Enviroment was said to have slumped and fallen from a balcony in his country home in Ogbolomabiri area of Nembe, Nembe Local Government Area of the state.

    The sudden death of Omu, running mate to Chief Francis Doukpola during the 1999 governorship election on the platform of the All Peoples Party(APP), threw the Nembe communities and his party, the All Progressives Congress (APC) into mourning.

    It was gathered that the politician, who owned the biggest farm in Yenagoa, was rushed to the community hospital immediately but doctors advised his family to convey him to the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital in Rivers State (UPTH).

    He later died despite efforts by the doctors to stabilize his condition.

    Omo was also former lecturer at the River State University of Science and Technology (RSUST), writer and a frontline advocate that the country should return to commercial agriculture.

    The APC referred to  the death of Omo as an “indescribable loss” of a wonderful ally at a time his experience and energy were most needed.

    The APC State Publicity Secretary, Mr. Doifie Buokoribo, in a statement on Thursday said Omo was a forthright politician, and an illustrious son of Bayelsa State and the Ijaw nation who partook in popular activities to better the lives of his people.

    The statement said: “We do this tribute with great sadness over the indescribable loss of our leader, political mentor, and friend, Chief Lionel Jonathan-Omo.

    “Jonathan-Omo broke his limbs in a fall and fought bravely for his life at a private hospital in Port Harcourt to recover from the injuries he sustained. He never survived them. The chief died Thursday after an unsuccessful operation. All of us had hoped that Jonathan-Omo would recover from his injuries and get on with his life, particularly, at this time of intense political activities in our state and country when his experience and wisdom are seriously needed.

    “Lionel Jonthan-Omo who is from Nembe trained as a lawyer, and taught law at the Rivers State University of Science and Technology for several years. A former Commissioner in Bayelsa State, he was also a delegate representing the state at the 2005 National Political Reform Conference (NPRC).

    “Until his death, he was a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC). During the 2015-2016 Gubernatorial Elections, he was the Deputy Director-General of the Sylva/Igiri Campaign Organisation. He earned his living as founder of Achievers Farm in Igbogene-Yenagoa.

    “Jonathan-Omo was a wonderful party man, a great Bayelsan, and an illustrious Ijaw son. He was at the forefront of every popular activity – politically, economically, and socially – to better the lives of people in his state and nation. He believed in truth and fought for it with every resource and avenue at his disposal.

    “A democrat to the core, he always believed in dialogue and was always ready to listen to others. Lionel-Jonathan never judged or forced his opinion on anyone. He characteristically gave room for the ventilation of opinions, even from his fiercest opponents. His valuable and truthful counsels are some of the things we will surely miss.

    “Jonthan-Omo was focused and intelligent, a man of magically brilliant political ideas. The remarkable thing about his ideas is that they were always meant to help and better society. He was sacrificial, but strong and hated being vulnerable.  He was an incurable optimist and a huge encouragement to his political allies. He offered comfort and motivation to those around him.

    “Jonthan-Omo was sincere, loving, and simple. He was a wonderful father to his children and a great breadwinner who laid a solid foundation for not only his family but also his community and friends far and near.

    “Surely, his children and family will not lack people who will watch over them and ensure they continue to have a great life. Their father loved his people, lived with them, shared their pains and joys, and participated in activities to improve their political and economic wellbeing. He was a great man, brilliant and likeable”.

  • Sylva moves to stop illegal bunkering

    Former Bayelsa State Governor Timipre Sylva is leading a drive to end illegal oil bunkering in Bille Kingdom, Degema Local Government Area of Rivers State.

    Sylva at the weekend led a delegation to the community to seek the support in the fight against the operation of illegal refineries.

    Speaking through their president, Comrade Obirabi Samipi Sylvanus, the youths in the community, said:   ”As the president of youths in this community,  we are joining fate with the Federal Government to stop every illegal refining of crude oil within our dirmain,  but we appeal to the FG and oil operators in the areas is to employ the youths to end the theft,  otherwise we cannot guarantee the commitments to steer clear oilwells.

    “We have not accepted to stop the operation of illegal refineries here,  it is trade by barter,  garbage in,  garbage out,  we are unemployed despite being educated,  hundreds of us a graduates in various field but we have no job,  an idle mind is the devils workshop, that is the reason for all these illegalities.  On this visit, we are joining fate with the Federal Government to stop this activities,  but we should be gainfully employed.”

    He called on the Federal Government to site one of the proposed  modular refineries in their area, as a way to mop up the number of unemployed youths and shift their attention from unwarranted activities around oil wells.

    The former governor said that the companies operating in the area no longer have value for their investment and appealed to the community to assist and support the fight against illegal oil activities going on in the community  for better life and healthy environment.

    “Our worry is that in the future and even now we are beginning to see all kinds of diseases,  ranging from cancer to several others that are already there but yet to be diagonosed. As a result of this,  I have come to this community through your chief to inform you on the need to stop this kind of ilicit activity for the sake of the health of this present and future generation of this community, as well as that of the environment.”

    The Vice Chairman,  Bille Council of Chiefs, Alabo Ibitamino Minapakama,  lauded the Federal Government for the visit and pledged support for the fight against  illegal bunkering.

    They demanded licence for the modular refinery,   land by reclamation and construction of sure protection in the area to expand the land mass of the area.

     

     

  • APC DISMISSES EX-GOVERNOR SYLVA’S BETRAYAL CLAIM

    The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Bayelsa State has dismissed claims by for the former governor of the state, Chief Timiprieye Silva that the party betrayed him during the governorship election in the state, saying the claim was a ploy to save his face and launder his image.
    The party said it is uncharitable and unacceptable for the former governor to describe leaders of the party as betrayals and rats when he did not physically contribute to building the party from the foundation in the state, but has benefited immensely from it.
    The Joseph Fafi-led faction of the party under the leadership of former acting governor of Bayelsa state, Hon. Nestor Binabo, said it view with utmost disappointment the comments credited to Sylva where he described APC state exco and the people as “rats.”
    In a statement signed by the Assistant Publicity Secretary of the party in the state Christopher Abarowei, and made available to newsmen in Abuja, the party said the former governor’s naivety exposed “him to recurrent and avoidable catastrophic defeats” in the governorship election in the state.”
    The party said “It is on record that these  people Sylva ignominiously referred to as rats facilitated his victory in 2015 governorship primary when it became clear to the blind and audible to the deaf that he has lost consensus of the party.
    “We want to also point out that Sylva  withdrew in his quest to be the National Chairman of our party when it became clear to him that he has lost to party consensus. His naivety exposes him to recurrent and avoidable catastrophic defeats in the polls.
    “Who betrayed Sylva when he lost to Senator Ben Bruce in 2015? The fact is that he lost woefully to Bruce polling only  16,924 votes as against his opponent’s 88,454 votes. Furthermore, it became a management of shame when Sylva withdrew his case against Bruce from the tribunal without a cogent reason, with records showing that Sylva did not even cast his own vote in his polling station.
    “We therefore see Sylva’s claim of betrayal as ploy to save face, launder his image and to hold-on to any available straw in trying to deny the fact that he is a serial loser.
    “Let us remind Sylva that he did not physically attend any of our congresses in the state in 2014 and never knew the source of the funding of the processes. It is therefore childish and unacceptable, when leaders of our great party in Bayelsa State who laboured to build a solid foundation from the modest 43,000 membership to what we have now, to be accorded undeserving and derogatory terms like ‘betrayals and rats.”
    While asking the former governor to show good qualities as one of the leaders of the APC and be abreast with the fact, the party said: “one of the hallmarks of a good leader is to accommodate different shades of opinion so as to win the ultimate prize of  occupying Creek Haven in 2019 and stop dishing out despicable languages in trying to score very cheap political points which should be reserved for the opponents as we work assiduously for the success of our great party in the 2019 elections,  both at the state and federal levels of governance.”

  • Bayelsa disappointed doomsday prophets, say Sylva, Lokpobiri

    FORMER Bayelsa State Governor Timipre Sylva and Minister of State for Agriculture Heineken Lokpobiri yesterday declared the state’s ward congress of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as a huge success.

    The party leaders, who spoke in Yenagoa, said the peaceful atmosphere that characterised the exercise, which took place on Saturday, was a disappointment to some doomsday prophets.

    Sylva, who was in the state to participate in the ward congress, noted that detractors of the state’s APC expected the congress to be marred by violence and confusion.

    He said to throw spanner in the works of APC, some persons procured a judgment reinstating the expelled state party’s chairman, Chief Tiwe Oruminighe.

    The former governor, who is the party leader, said persons behind the judgment erroneously thought that APC chairmen were vested with the power of conducting congresses.

    Unknown to them, Sylva explained that APC chairmen by virtue of the party’s constitution have nothing to do with congresses.

    He picked holes in the judgment of Justice E.G. Omukoro, describing it as unbecoming of the judiciary.

    Justice Omukoro, in a motion ex parte brought before him at the High Court, Sagbama Division, sitting in Yenagoa, returned Oruminighe as the party’s chairman pending the determination of the motion on notice.

    Oruminighe was expelled by the APC National Working Committee (NWC) over allegations of anti-party activities.

    Sylva said the injunction ordered by the court was procured inappropriately, saying the judge erred for granting a motion ex parte on a matter that was before the Appeal Court.

    He said: “We are happy to be here today in this very peaceful atmosphere. I emphasise peaceful because as expected by some people, Bayelsa State disappointed many. We also hear that in other states things are happening but we wish them well.”

    Also speaking, Lokpobiri said instead of disintegration as expected by some persons, the congresses would make APC stronger and more united.

    He hailed the congress committee and party members for the peaceful manner they conducted themselves during the congress.

    Ward Congress Committee Chairman Dr. Abiodun Dawodu hailed the state APC members for their conducts, adding that the exercise was peaceful in the wards.

     

  • Bayelsa: Sylva slams judge for reinstating sacked APC chair

    A former Bayelsa State Governor, Chief Timipre Sylva, yesterday derided a state High Court Judge, Justice E.G. Omukoro, following a judgement reinstating a sacked Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief Tiwei Orunimighe.

    Omukoro in a motion exparte brought before him at the High Court, Sagbama Division, sitting in Yenagoa, returned Oruminighe as the Chairman of APC in Bayelsa pending the determination of the motion on notice.

    Oruminighe was expelled by the National Working Committee (NWC) of the party over allegations of anti-party activities.

    But speaking in Yenagoa when a five-member Ward Congress Committee from Abuja led by Dr. Adebayo Dawodu visited the state party secretariat, Sylva, who came to participate in the ward congress of APC, said the injunction ordered by the court was procured inappropriately.

    Sylva, who is the leader of the party in the state, said the judge erred for granting a motion exparte on a matter that was before the Appeal Court.

    The former governor was accompanied by the Minister of State for Agriculture, Heineken Lokpobiri and other party leaders.

    He said: “We believe that even the injunction was procured inappropriately.”

    He said the detractors of the party thought that reinstating the sacked chairman would create confusion in APC and hamper the conduct of the ward congress in the state.

    He explained that by virtue of Article 12 of the APC Constitution, a party chairman has no role to play during the conduct of party congresses.

    He said the congress was going on peacefully adding that persons who had expected violence in Bayelsa during the exercise were left in disappointment.

  • OGFZA to accelerate take-off of Brass Oil, Gas City, says Sylva

    The Oil and Gas Free Zone Authority (OGFZA), will accelerate the take-off of the Brass Oil and Gas City, the Chairman of the board, Chief Timipre Sylva, has said.

    The former Governor of Bayelsa State, who spoke during the inaugural meeting of the board of the agency at the Oil and Gas Free Zone, Onne, Rivers State, the BOG City was approved and licensed as a free zone a long time ago, saying “we have to make sure that Brass Oil and Gas City becomes operational as soon as possible.”

    Observing that the governing board had little time in the face of so much to do, Chief Sylva said the situation called for hard work and firm prioritisation in project execution. He said the task the board has set itself would be accomplished because of its high quality membership. “I am very proud to be part of the board of such eminent Nigerians,” he said, adding, “we are all very seasoned people, very skilled people and it is easy for us to understand ourselves.”

    The Chairman commended the executive management of the agency for its effective leadership, stating that OGFZA’s Managing Director, Umana Okon Umana, has demonstrated the right leadership in directing the affairs of the free zone regulator and in administering the oil and gas free zones under his control. “Umana is leading OGFZA in the right direction,” Chief Sylva said.

    In a media chat, Chief Sylva outlined the vision and agenda for the new board, saying the board would provide power in Onne. “We are engaging a group of investors that will build a turbine for the free zone; that would be one of the things we would like to achieve before the end of the year.”

    The OGFZA chairman said efforts to improve the revenue position of the agency through effective IGR strategy would receive equal priority attention, pointing out that the board would do all that is necessary to resolve issues of conflict between the Nigeria Export Processing Authority (NEPZA) and OGFZA.“That will take a lot of our attention because we are going to make sure that we resolve those issues of conflict,” Chief Sylva said.

    Present at the inaugural board meeting were, Chief Timipre Sylva, board chairman; Mr Umana Okon Umana, Managing Director; Kuyebi Temitope; Hon. Frank Owhor; Mrs. Ngozi Jipreze; Murtala Adhama; Dr Emi Membere-Otaji and Mrs Ifuoma Isaac, while Abdulwasiu Sule is Secretary to the Board.

  • Dickson, Sylva clash over violence in Bayelsa

    Dickson, Sylva clash over violence in Bayelsa

    Bayelsa State Governor Seriake Dickson and former governor Timipre Sylva have disagreed over the alleged sponsorship of violence in the state.

    Three persons were injured in Brass Local Government Area at the weekend, when loyalists of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressives Congress (APC) clashed.

    Dickson faulted a claim by Silva’s media office that he was hatching a plot to begin a campaign of calumny against the former governor. He described the allegation as a futile attempt to distract his government.

    The governor, in a statement by his media aide, Daniel Alabrah, said he is too busy with development to take issues with “politicians who failed Bayelsa and the Ijaw nation”.

    He asked Sylva to stop using President Muhammadu Buhari’s name to cover up his criminal activities.

    According to him, being a member of the APC does not give Sylva a licence to sponsor criminal activities to the detriment of peace and security in the state.

    He appealed to security agencies to perform their statutory responsibility, and not allow unscrupulous politicians take advantage of them.

    According to Dickson, Sylva should be concerned that Brass, his local government, had become a den of criminals; he threatened to invoke the law against anyone sabotaging security in the state.

    The statement reads: “The government will not hesitate to invoke the powers of the law against anybody found to have indulged in acts that consistently threaten the peace and security of the state.

    “This government has a mandate to execute on behalf of the people. We cannot be distracted by falsehood emanating from Sylva and his men.

    “Sylva should stop encouraging criminality in Bayelsa; he should support stability and development of his state. We have worked hard to address the insecurity and underdevelopment that Sylva left behind.”

    But Sylva has urged Dickson to face the business of governance rather than engage in a campaign of malicious defamation against him.

    Sylva, in a statement by his media adviser, Doifie Buokoribo, urged residents to discountenance any malicious defamation scheme against him.

    He advised Dickson to be imaginative and pay more attention to alleviating the people’s suffering, rather than taking them down the well-worn path of disparaging him to divert attention from his misrule.

    He said: “We wish to alert Nigerians to the plan by Dickson to launch a structured campaign of calumny against me.

    “We are not surprised, as this is in his character. We witnessed this irresponsible behaviour before, during and after the last governorship election, which he bought.

    “Dickson is living in fear, the fear of Sylva. The governor finds it difficult to come to terms with the fact that despite his shenanigans and schizoid propaganda to diminish me, my political profile continues to rise and rise and rise.

    “Also, Dickson’s paranoia is an attempt to destabilise Sylva’s home community of Brass Island. Already, Dickson has appointed a cretin as Caretaker Committee Chairman to do the dirty job. Last Thursday, this caretaker chairman shot two APC supporters with the help of mercenaries and thugs.

    “It did not end there; he declared a curfew on the Island, a place that has been peaceful.

    Clearly, these actions are meant to provoke me (Sylva). As a man of peace, I have had to restrain my supporters from seeking self-help.”