A Federal High Court judgement in Jos, Plateau State capital, on tenure of Governor Olusegun Oni of Ekiti State is currently causing political fever among the supporters of Chief Timipre Sylva of Bayelsa State.

Sylva’s supporters are afraid that the judgement may also affect their principal, since he also had a re-run election, The Tide gathered.

Opponents of the government had openly jubilated with the hope that there will be election in the state next year instead of 2012, following the judgement of a federal high court sitting in Jos, which stated there will be election in Ekiti State.

Reacting to the stitation, the State Commissioner for Information, Strategy and Orientation, Mr Nathan Egba, said there is no cause for alarm as Sylva’s case is different from that of Oni.

Mr Egba explained that the circumstances in which re-run election was done in Ekiti was not the same as that of Bayelsa State.

“This is because unlike the situation in Ekiti State, where only results in 63 units in 10 local government areas were cancelled and re-contested for, the entire Bayelsa governorship election was cancelled and odered to be held afresh on the ground that no governorship election took place in 2007.

He refered those in doubt to a portion of the Jos judgement where it specifically refer to section 180 (2) (a) of the 1999 constitution and stated that since not the whole election was cancelled, Governor Oni had to go back to the electorate to seek re-election in 2011.

Piqued by the reaction of the Commissioner, the state Action Congress (AC) described the statement, as deceptive, misleading and laughable.

The Action Congress in a statement through its Acting Chairman, Comrade Miriki Ebikibina, who faulted the reaction of the Bayelsa Commissioner, said that it is unprofessional of Hon. Egba to make such jaundiced statement in a legal matter.

The statement which reads in part, “For the avoidance of doubt, the 1999 constitution and the recent amendment to the constitution, as well as the federal High Court, Jos ruling on Governor Oni’s tenure has addressed the issue instructively and constructively”.

He expressed hope that Hon. Egba “would not join the bandwagon” of past Information Commissioners in the state who had in the past acted as  town criers without a listening public.

“Section 180 (2a) of the 1999 constitution states that the Governor shall vacate office at the expiration of a period of four years, commencing from the date when he took the oath of allegiance and oath of office.”

“The 2010 amendment to the constitution further clarifies the position and state that a person whose election as Governor was annulled and also wins a consequent re-run does not serve more than constitutionally prescribed term of office.”

“The constitutionally prescribed term of office for a Governor is four years. Governor Timipre Sylva was sworn-in, in 2007 and, therefore, the oath of office he took as a Governor in 2008 was a mere confirmation of the 2007 oath of office he earlier took. His tenure effectively ends on May 29, 2011”.

The Action Congress expressed belief that the overwhelming majority of Bayelsans would not want to see Governor Timipre Sylva extend his tenure to 2012, saying that would be an aberration and a source of embarrassment to the people of the state especially as his administration “has only succeeded in impoverishing the people”.