Bayelsa: Oshiomhole, Sylva berate Dickson as APC ends campaign
The All Progressives Congress on Tuesday held its final campaign ahead of Saturday’s Bayelsa State governorship election.
At the event, which took place at the Ox-Bow Lake Pavilion in Yenagoa, Senator Biobarakuma Degi-Eremienyo, was recognised by APC leaders at the rally as the deputy governorship candidate of the party despite being disqualified by an Abuja Division of the Federal High Court earlier on Tuesday.
In its ruling, the court agreed with the Peoples Democratic Party that Degi-Eremienyo provided conflicting information in the documents he submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission and disqualified him from the polls.
Meanwhile, about 20 other parties, represented by Williams Ifidi adopted the APC candidate David Lyon for as their sole candidate for Saturday’s contest.
Two prominent leaders of the party who took part in the primary poll, Heineken Lokpobiri and Preye Aganaba – were absent from the campaign.
The National Chairman of APC, Adams Oshiomhole; and the Governor of Kebbi State and Chairman of the Progressives Governors’ Forum, Atiku Bagudu, were among those who addressed Degi-Eremienyo as Lyon’s running mate at the event.
Oshiomhole, who presented Lyon and Degi-Eremienyo to the crowd, expressed hope that Lyon would emerge victorious at the polls.
He advised Governor Seriake Dickson against resorting to violence in his quest to ensure victory for the ruling PDP.
Oshiomhole described Lyon as “humble and harmless”.
The ex-Edo State governor said, “We believe in one man, one vote; one woman, one vote. Even outgoing Governor Dickson, one vote and of course, one Lyon, one vote.”
The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, who is also the Director-General of the Bayelsa State Governorship Campaign Council, said Dickson had taken Bayelsans for a ride.
He alleged that the Dickson administration received over N1tn with nothing on the ground to justify the money in the past eight years.
The Deputy Senate President, Ovie Omo-Agege, and the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Chief Godswill Akpabio, asked the people of the state to reject the PDP.
Omo-Agege said, “So much money, so much resources have been pumped into this state as an oil-producing state, not only in terms of federal allocation but receipts from the 13 per cent derivation. When you come to Bayelsa you will not see anything on the ground.”
The Chairman, APC National Campaign Council and Governor of Jigawa State, Badaru Abubakar, said Bayelsa and the people had been under “tyranny and intimidation in the past eight years”, stressing that change had come to the state.
Osun State Governor Gboyega Oyetola and Bagudu said Bayelsa was in need of help and the APC had brought help to the state.
Lyon said he was prepared to tackle the problems of insecurity, darkness in Yenagoa and youth unemployment.
The governorship candidate, who blamed the PDP for youth unemployment in the state, urged the people “to vote out the PDP”. Punch