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By Ariwera Ibibo – Howells, Yenagoa
Bayelsa State Governor, Seriake Dickson, Tuesday described the visit to former President Goodluck Jonathan by some Governors of the All Progressives Congress and stalwarts of the party before and after the Governorship election held last Saturday as a ploy to deceive the former Nigerian President into believing that they were in the state for genuine reasons.
Dickson stated this during a press conference in Yenagoa, describing the Governorship polls in the state as a show of brigandage and tyranny.
Governor Dickson questioned the outcome of the election, saying the visit to the former President by the Governors of Jigawa and Kebbi states was a pre-arranged plan with ulterior motives by the APC to mortgage the future of the state through rigging of the just concluded election which he alleged was characterised by lawlessness and violence.
The Bayelsa State Governor alleged that under the watch and supervision of various security formations of the federal government deployed to the state to maintain peace and order during the election, APC thugs in connivance with these security operatives dehumanised and intimidated PDP members and electorates who were at various polling units to exercise their constitutional mandate.
He said, “Well even though I am not against the former President receiving visitors from other political parties, but from recent happenings, especially in the weeks leading up to the Governorship election I see some of these things as a sign to tell the former President, who is my oga anyday, anytime and Bayelsans that the APC want to take over Bayelsa by force. I don’t know how the former President see it, but I think my friends, the Governors of Jigawa and Kebbi states were trickily telling Bayelsans through their visit to the former President that they want to forcefully take over the state.”
Dickson who condemned what he alleged was intimidation of PDP members and supporters of the party noted that the Peoples Democratic Party did not lose the Governorship election but rather there was no election in areas where the APC claimed to have recorded high results to their favour.
The State Chief Executive reiterated his willingness to continue working for the progress and development of the state in the months ahead, harping that he intends to inaugurate a transition committee soon, advising party members and supporters of the PDP Gubernatorial Candidate not take to violence and disorder in registering their grievances.
The Governor continued, “in Ogbia, the former President’s local government, who is my oga, election did not take place in most places. In Southern Ijaw where the Director-General of the PDP governorship campaign comes from, the speaker, the PDP state chairman and the four assembly members from that LGA are all PDP members thugs in military uniforms hijacked electoral materials and maimed PDP members and voters. In Ogbia, even when their son, the former President contested for the 2011 presidential election he was not given the number of votes that APC now claim to have in this election, how did they now get this number of votes? In Ogbia, even when I contested in 2015 the votes there were neck to neck, I won just with 2000 vote difference alone.”
Governor Dickson emphasised that the PDP would reclaim its mandate through legitimate means, alleging that INEC and security agencies legitimised illegitimacy in the Governorship election held Saturday. He stressed that with the outcome of the 2019 election, the 2023 election might be characterised by worse violence and manipulations which would be again carried out by the APC in their bid to turn Nigeria into a one party state.
