PDP Clears 4 For Bayelsa Guber Polls …Gov Sylva, Alaibe Missing From List

The National Working Committee (NWC) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has cleared four gubernatorial aspirants  for Bayelsa state elections so far.

Those cleared in the first batch of contestants in the governorship primaries are Oruta Justine Boloubo, Henry Seriake Dickson, Enai Christopher Fullpower and Kalango Michael Youppele.

Incumbent Governor Timipriye Sylva is yet to be cleared.

This list emerged from an emergency meeting, Monday, during which the committee considered reports on the preparations for the forth- coming gubernatorial primaries in Bayelsa State.

According to a statement from the PDP national secretariat, the list is an outcome of a thorough review of the reports of the screening panel and the screening appeal panel.

The NWC is expected to conclude the review exercise in order to consider cases of other aspirants on their individual merits.

The committee has also advised party members, particularly stakeholders in Bayelsa State to communicate all its decisions in due course to the NWC, and advised them to await the decisions of the NWC while they mobilise all their  supporters for the success of the primaries.

It would be recalled that the National Organising Secretary of the PDP, Chief Uche Secondus said last Sunday that only the National Working Committee of the party could decide who will fly the party’s flag in next year’s governorship election in Bayelsa State.

Secondus spoke against the backdrop of denial by the chairperson of the Appeal Committee and former Deputy Governor of Ekiti State, Chief Biodun Olujimi that her committee had disqualified Governor Sylva, former Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, Timi Alaibe and Ben Bruce of Silverbird Communication.

According to Secondus, both the party’s screening committee headed by Gen Idi Adamu and Appeal Screening Committee headed by Olujimi are provisional, saying, the final decision of the screening lay with the NWC.

Meanwhile, the embattled Bayelsa State Governor, Chief Timipre Sylva, says he is very much in the race for his second tenure in the Creek Haven, describing the rumour making the rounds in the state as false  and  fabricated by those afraid of his track records.

Chief Sylva who stated this in a press statement signed by his First Chief Press Secretary, Mr Dofie Ola, said the story that the governorship screening appeal committee of PDP had disqualified him from contesting the 2012 governorship election in the state, was not true.

The statement reads, “we have read with horror a report that the Bayelsa State Governor, Chief Timipre Sylva, has been screened out by Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the 2012 Bayelsa State gubernatorial election. The report claims the gubernatorial screening appeal committee of the PDP headed by former Ekiti State Deputy Governor, Mrs. Abiodun Olujimi, considered Sylva ineligible to fly the party’s flag “for operating foreign accounts”.

“Whatever the quality of the sources, this report is completely false. It is low quality fiction. It is a cheap lie sponsored by those who are afraid to meet Governor Sylva in the political field of contest, and their paid and unpaid agents, working collectively or severally.

But then, we are not surprised as it follows a familiar pattern of a structured campaign of serial untruths about Governor Sylva, a fact we alerted the world about last weekend.

For the avoidance of doubt, there is no basis whatsoever for the PDP to exclude Governor Sylva from the 2012 Bayelsa governorship race. He is the man to beat. Ownership and operation of a foreign account by a serving public officer is a criminal offence. No competent court of law has indicted Governor Sylva for operating a foreign account. He has no such charge pending anywhere in the world.

The PDP gubernatorial screening committee for Bayelsa last Friday issued Governor Sylva a clearance certificate to participate in the party primaries slated for 19 November. That clearance certificate remains valid. It is true that the governor was at the National Headquarters of the PDP, Sunday afternoon at the instance of the gubernatorial screening appeal committee. But as Sylva himself confidently told reporters after meeting with the committee, “the deliberations were fruitful”.

In the face of continuous lies against Governor Sylva, we appeal to our numerous supporters to continue to remain clam, peaceful and law-abiding. Governor Sylva remains confident that the will of the Bayelsa people, guided by God, shall prevail’’, the Chief Press Secretary said.

Nneka Amaechi-Nnadi, Abuja

Secretary to Rivers State Government, Mr George Feyii (right) with Minister of Youth Development, Mallam Bolaji Abdullah (middle) and state Commissioner for Youth Development, Mr Owene Wonodi (left), during the launching of Youth Enterprises in Port Harcourt, recently.