How the Bayelsa State All Progressives Congress (APC)
governorship candidate will emerge is a major challenge to the party.
Correspondent Mike Odiegwu takes a look at the issues that will shape the the
party’s shadow poll.
The All Progressives Congress (APC) is the most beatiful bride in Bayelsa State.
Politicians of note and their supporters
are defecting to the party. The rate of defection from the Peoples Democratic
Party (PDP) leaves many guessing what will become of the ruling party before
and after the governorship election.
In spite of the APC’s popularity, analysts believe the only
hurdle standing before it and electoral victory is the emergence of a credible
and acceptable governorship candidate. They are of the view that the only way
APC can scale the hurdle is to provide a level playing field for aspirants and
allow them to slug it out in an open and transparent primary. According to
observers, given the array of aspirants, an open primary will save the party
from a post-primary crisis. The transparency of the process that produced
President Muhammadu Buhari made other aspirants to concede defeat and pledge to
work for his success at the poll.
It is not easy to unseat a governor. But, with strong
determination and collective will of the people, the problem is surmontable.
That undersores the need for unity of purpose among members of the APC; who
need to go to the poll as a united fold, if the party must take over power from
the PDP in the oil rich state.
A major problem threatening the unity of APC is the divisive
tendency of old members trying to label the defectors as new comers. Rather,
APC should treat every member equally irrespective of when he or she joined the
party.
Of the eight local governments in the state, only one has
neither produced a governor, or a deputy governor. The first governor, DSP
Alameiyeseigha, hails from Ijaw South Local Government of the Central Senatorial district. His
deputy, Dr Goodluck Jonathan from Ogbia Local Government of the East senatorial
zone took over after Alameiyeseigha was impeached . He won the PDP ticket for re-election but
was given the vice presidential ticket in 2007.
The exit of Jonathan threw up Chief Timipre Sylva, who is
from Brass Local Government Area in the Senatorial District.
After Sylva came the incumbent Governor Dickson who hails
from Toru-Orua in Sagbama Local Government Area of Bayelsa West Senatorial
District. Some leaders of the APC are of the opinion that the party’s ticket
will be contested on the basis of disparity and political inequality in local
government areas.
Among the eight local government areas in the state,
Southern Ijaw, Ogbia, Brass and Sagbama have produced governors in the persons
of Alameiyesiegha, Jonathan, Sylva and Dickson respectively.
Though Nembe, Ekeremor and Yenagoa have produced deputy
governors in the persons of Rear Admiral John Jonah (retd), Chief Peremobowei
Ebebi and Chief Werinipre Seibarugu respectively, the Kolokuma-Opokuma has
produced neither a governor nor a deputy.
Observers believe that the quest to govern the state was the
major reason behind the grand reception for the APC in Kolokuma-Opokuma. Most
political heavyweights from the area have dumped the PDP for the APC to present
a common front for the party’ tickets.
But, others have faulted the moves of the people of
Kolokuma-Opokuma. For instance, APC members from Yenagoa are arguing that the
APC ticket should be zoned to their area. Proponents of this idea argue that
Yenogoa, the state capital has not developed to the status of a state,
headquarters when compared with other states’ headquarters. The reason for the
under development, according to them, is that Yenegoa has not produced a
governor.
Besides, they argue that having the largest voting
population and highest concentration of non-indigenes, Yenagoa deserves the
party’s ticket.
Apart from Yenagoa, APC members from Sagbama, are also
demanding the party’s ticket. They are of the view that APC stands a clearer
chance of winning the election if it shops for a candidate from Dickson’s
enclave. They further posit that it will enable them complete their tenure in
case the incumbent governor fails to make it. But others are of the opinion
that instead of conceding the party’s ticket to Sagbama, APC should select its
party’s running mate from the council to divide the votes.
Besides, the contentious issue of party membership and
loyalty has cropped up in the race for
the party’s ticket. The old members of APC are warming up to confront former
members of the PDP who they accuse of planning to reap where they did not sow.
They swore not to allow new members to
outsmart and push them aside in the race.
APC members, under the aegis of the Third Force (TF),
brought the argument to the fore recently. Speaking in Yenagoa, the spokesman
for the group, Mr. Ebideinmo Perekeme, said only tested and trusted party
loyalists should be allowed to fly the flag of the party.
Perekeme said: “We also urge the national leadership of the
APC to support only steadfast and tested party loyalist, whose love for the APC
predated the election of President Muhammadu Buhari.
“We implore the party’s national leadership to pick only
candidates, who will add value to the progressive ideal of the APC and ensure
its victory in the forthcoming governorship race”.
He said it would be counter-productive to allow those he
described as fair-weather politicians, who never believed in the ideals of
Buhari and the ability of the APC, to take over the party.
“Such politicians are stomach infrastructure politicians who
will grab power to water their selfish ambition to the detriment of the populace
who are yearning for change as exhibited by Nigerians on March 28, 2015 with
the election of President Buhari.
Perekeme advised the APC to intensify grassroots
mobilisation, which, according to him, is the basis for winning elections. He
commended an APC chieftain and candidate for Bayelsa Central Senatorial
District in the last election, Mr. Preye Aganaba, for driving grassroots
support for the party.
He said Aganaba embarked on tour of 20 wards in
Kolokuma-Opokuma and Yenagoa local government Areas where he called on ward
committees to start working for APC’s victory.
He said: “Going forward, we call on other APC leaders in the
state to emulate the efforts of Aganaba in strengthening the party’s ward
structures with the aim of building a strong, united and vibrant APC that will
march triumphantly into Creek Haven come February 2016.
But, the Chairman of APC, Mr. Tiwe Oruminighe, said all
members of the party are equal, despite their membership status He said
everybody is welcome to the party and will be allowed to aspire to any position
of their choice.
He said the APC ticket is open to aspirants who must be
willing to go through a strict primary election. He asked members of the party
to disregard insinuations in some quarters that the party will settle for a
consensus candidate.
The party chairman said: “On the issue of adoption of
candidate and whatever the public must have heard about the APC, we want to
reiterate that this party in Bayelsa State will follow strictly what the
national party has demonstrated at the national level.
“Everybody in Bayelsa that wants to join the party somehow
has an ambition. They want to be governor or any other elective offices. Yes,
it is good to keep an ambition, but this party wants to tell the public that whoever
is joining us should keep an ambition at quiet end and join the party to work
so that the party can deliver.
“We will not make the mistake of saying we are adopting a
candidate. There will be proper party primaries to select whoever that will fly
the flag and I believe that the leadership in of this party is capable of
producing a good standard bearer that will win election for Bayelsa State.
“I believe this will prove people wrong that we have adopted
candidate and that we are are not together. This party remains one indivisible
unit, very united and we will forge ahead stronger to win the coming election
in Bayelsa.”
Apart from issues bordering on membership, the emergence of
the party’s candidate may be hampered by the overtures of Chief Perekeme Kpodo,
the former aide to ex-Governor Timipre Sylva. Kpodo has made himself a thorn in
the flesh of the APC.
He gathered some members of the legacy party and declared
himself a factional chairman after claiming to have dissolved the executive
committee of the APC led by Oruminighe.
The APC leadership has taken no legal action to stop Kpodo
and his group.
It was gathered recently that Kpodo was shopping for an
injunction in a court of competent jurisdiction to stop Oruminighe and his
State Working Committee (SWC) from parading themselves as leadership. Observers
believe that, unless the party acts fast, the action of Kpodo will constitute a
serious legal bottleneck to the activities of the APC.
Sylva, Alaibe, others in race
THE All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship primaries
in Bayelsa State to pick the candidate for the December 5, governorship election
will hold in Yenagoa, the state capital, on September 19.
Those who beat the deadline for the collection and
submission of nomination forms include Chief Timpreye Sylva, Chief Timi Alaibe,
Nigeria’s former Ambsaador to Japan, Emmanuel Otiotio, the former Chief of
Staff to Governor Seriake Dickson, Diekivie Ikiogha and Pastor Tonye Aprael, who is the only
female aspirant in the race.
Both Otiotio and Ikiogha were aides to former governor
Timiprieye Silva, who is also an aspirant.
Ambassador Otiotio, who was Nigerian Ambassador to Japan
between 1999 and 2003, said that the state is in dear need of people of
integrity to rescue it from the backwardness.
He described himself as a born again Christian, who will do
the job of governance in the state with fear of God. He dismissed insinuations
that a particular aspirant bought forms for other aspirants. He said that he
has not been informed that the former governor has joined the race to pick the
ticket.
He said he will introduce good governance and proper
management of resources.”
Chief Diekivie Ikiogha said that he was the most qualified
for the job, considering his wealth of experience.
He said that Bayelsa, being one of the richest states, has
nothing to show for the huge allocation it has collected from the Federations
Account, adding that he has the magic touch that will transform the state into
a model state.
He said as a retired Director in the civil service, a former
adviser and former commissioner, he was not coming into government to learn, but
to put into practice what he has learned in the past. He said: “I am not a
pretender in the race. I am a contender and I am out to salvage the poverty in
the state.
Ikiogha, who admitted being part of the PDP government he is
accusing of failing the state, added: “If you know how government is runned,
you will realised that there is only be governor and his followers and
appointees only do what he wants them to do.
“Your own as an appointee is to carry out the orders of the
governor. Some of us have disagreed with the government in the past and that is
why we stayed long in the government. But we left because we felt that APC is
where the positive change can take place in Bayelsa state.
Speaking on her experience since she joined the race, Mrs
Appeal said: “It has not been easy since I joined the race but with God all
things are possible with little or no money but as we stepped out God has been
making the provision, and it was a shocking news that we should come and get
the form for free, which I did and today I have come to submit the form.
“I want to use this medium to encourage all Bayelsans to
give me the ticket and I know that the sky is not even the limit for Bayelsa
state that every man will see in the world that every resources that come to
the state will be use judiciously.
“As a woman, meeting the delegates some of them were saying,
madam without money you can not do anything but I want say that money is not
everything. Let them just give people that are upright, people that has heart
for the people to man the state and if they did that, especially giving it to
me everybody will be affected positively in Bayelsa state.”
Credit: Nation
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