The Governor of Bayelsa State, Mr. Seriake Dickson, has boasted that the opposition All Progressives Congress and its candidate, Timipre Sylva, will not stand any chance in the supplementary governorship election on Saturday.
The governor beat his chest on Monday while addressing a world press conference at the Banquet Hall of Government House, Yenagoa, entitled, ‘State of affairs in the past couple of weeks’.
Dickson said his party, the Peoples Democratic Party, would roundly defeat the APC like it did in six out of the seven local government areas where the election was conducted on December 5, 2015 before it was declared inconclusive.
The re-run governorship election will be conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission in Southern Ijaw Local Government Area and 101 other units across six LGAs on Saturday, January 9, 2016.
Dickson said he had mobilised the people of Southern Ijaw to guard against snatching of ballot boxes, electoral materials and manipulation of the process by the opposition candidate and his agents.
He told the audience that he had been holding meetings with the various stakeholders in Southern Ijaw including chiefs, men, women and presidents of youth groups ahead of the rescheduled poll.
The governor said the APC leadership was desperate to capture Bayelsa to “expand their scope across the Atlantic (Ocean)”.
“I have mobilised Southern Ijaw people and no one will be able to hijack electoral materials and take them to their homes to manipulate votes.
“There is desperation. The party, APC, is desperate. Their candidate is desperate. I hear they want to expand their scope across the Atlantic.”
He complained that Sylva and his political associates, including the Minister of State for Agriculture and Rural Development, Heineken Lokpobiri, were allegedly stockpiling arms ahead of the election.
Dickson lamented that the Federal Government would be laying a foundation for another Boko Haram if non-state actors were allowed to bear arms and compromise the security of Bayelsa.
He stated said although Sylva is my friend and brother, he did not like his brand of politics of violence, adding that he (Dickson) would roundly defeat him and the APC again and again.
He advised the agencies of the Federal Government that have a role to play in the election not to deploy ‘federal might’ against the will of Bayelsans and rig the poll in favour of Sylva and the APC.
The governor stated, “I hereby restate my call on all federal institutions that have a role to play in the election to be non-partisan in order not to undermine the integrity of the electoral process and the nation’s fledging democracy.
“The people of Southern Ijaw are waiting eagerly and more determined to cast their ballot. The only thing we are asking is that those institutions that have the duty to make it possible for the people of the area to cast their votes.
“They should please, in the interest of our nation and the security and stability of our state and this region and in the interest of our nation’s fledging democracy, do their utmost best so that the people can join the rest of their brothers and sisters in this state by casting their votes in a free, fair and credible manner.”
Dickson condemned the manipulation of critical national institutions by political leaders to serve their personal ambition, stressing that such acts could be seen as “a deliberate subversion of the country’s security.”
He added, “I want to remind the leaders of our nation; those heading strategic national institutions not to use them to promote either a partisan agenda of a political party or to advance the political aspirations of anybody, not even me because I don’t need anybody to kill or maim for me to achieve my political ambition. I am a man of peace and everybody knows our track records on peace and security.”
While calling for a free and fair supplementary election, the governor expressed optimism that the achievements of his administration in the areas of infrastructure, health, education, road construction and provision of electricity to communities would give him electoral victory.
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