FROM Brass on the Atlantic fringe to Ekeremor, Southern Ijaw to Sagbama, Ogbia to Nembe, Kaiama to Yenagoa, the campaign trains of all the major parties have traversed all the nooks and crannies of Bayelsa state.
The PDP being the party at the helm of affairs in the last 12 years is banking on its strength as the dominant party in the state as well as Mr. President’s pronouncement that nobody can stop it from clinching the governorship poll holding today.
But to the opposition parties, Bayelsa State is about the most endowed but least developed state in Nigeria with one of the highest revenue profiles, yet one of the smallest states in the federation due to the mismanagement of its resources over the years by visionless PDP administrations.
Although President Jonathan during his recent visit to the state had expressed confidence in the ability of Seriake Dickson to turn around the fortunes of the state, the opposition parties, but for his attack on the Sylva administration, view the statement as admittance of the PDP failure by in the state. It is therefore left to be seen whether the opposition can exploit this remark made in the open by the country’s one citizen who incidentally is an indigene of the state to turn the tide against the PDP.
Not withstanding the unpredictability of the Bayelsa State weather where heavy rainfall is already being experienced, the people of the state will today troop out in their thousands to cast their votes for the candidate of their choice, bringing to an end all the anxieties and intrigues that preceded the poll.
The governorship election would have been held in April but for the tenure elongation suit instituted by the former governors of Bayelsa, Cross River, Adamawa, Kogi and Sokoto which truncated the exercise following their victory at the Federal High Court and Court of Appeal.
As an umpire that believes in the rule, the Independent National Electoral Commission INEC was compelled to cancel the governorship poll in the five states in April.
It however appealed the verdict of the Federal High Court and the Appeal Court at the Supreme Court which in turn voided the position of the two courts leading to sack of the governors as having completed their tenure.
But the disqualification of Chief Timipre Sylva by the leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party PDP from contesting the November 19, 2011 and his removal by the Supreme Court on January 21, 2012 have made today’s poll unique in the sense that a sitting governor will not be contesting.
35 parties vie for Creek Haven
Interestingly, a total of 35 political parties are contesting the governorship polls, 34 of which are poised to dislodge the PDP from the Creek Haven, which it had laid claim to since 1999.
Surprisingly, in spite of the large number of parties vying for the Creek Haven, the state had maintained an usual calm and refused to drift to its infamous past.
There were no incidents of dynamite explosions at campaign grounds or attacks on parties at campaign rallies, except for the isolated incident at Oporoma where an official of Southern Ijaw council was reportedly killed during a fracas between supporters of the council chairman and his vice chairman allegedly locked in supremacy tussle.
What Bayelsans say
Observers of the unfolding drama in the state are of the view that it would have been an exciting contest given the number of political parties going to poll and credentials of some of the candidates. They however concluded that they all lacked the financial muscle to match the ruling PDP war chest.
Money, they argued plays, a major role in influencing votes due to the pervasive poverty, especially in the rural communities, hence the ruling party had remained dominant not because it had performed creditably to the satisfaction of the populace but because it has the money to sway the poor.
The candidates: Their strengths and weaknesses
They argued further that if it were experience, the Change Advocate Party (CAP) does not lack this, as it parades as its governorship candidate, Dr. Imoro Kubor, a retired federal permanent secretary and his running mate, Rev Obegha Oworibo. Although, the CAP is relatively new in the state, it has the sympathy of many who feel Bayelsa needs change from the PDP years of misrule.
Sylva, Seriake Dickson and Imoro Kubor
Kubor is from Lobia in Southern Ijaw, one of the biggest local government areas in the federation. His choice of Rev Obegha Oworibo, the immediate past Head of Service in the state as his running mate has been dubbed by analysts as a political masterstroke to woo the state civil servants given his robust relationship with the workers during his days in the civil service.
Though blessed with two tested technocrats, the party’s undoing, according to analysts, is finance. It could not be compared to the PDP which boasts of some of the richest men in the state who had at one time or other held juicy government appointments or had benefited from multibillion naira contracts from the government.
Kubor though has his own shortcoming of switching parties, a move he defended saying, “The party does not bring development to a state, but the individual elected as governor,” citing Akwa Ibom’s Godswill Akpabio who he said had done well as an individual and not the PDP.
The Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), analysts argued, has in Kemela Okara, a scion of the famous Okara family as a credible candidate. The party’s mission statement of transforming Bayelsa State to become a 21st century pace_setting states in the federation as observers say, could have made a huge difference in an ideal clime where the voting pattern is determined by the ideological inclination of the people and not money politics.
But the party has had to contend with what it described as the anti party activities of some of its executive members who against party norm went ahead to endorse the CAP guber candidate. The leadership of the ACN wielded the big stick by suspending the erring officials as part of measures of maintaining party cohesion and discipline.
Also, the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) has as its candidate in Mr. Famous Daunemighan, a successful businessman. A Special Adviser on Mobilisation to former Governor Sylva, he enjoys the support of the youths having served as former National Deputy President of Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) worldwide.
Daunemighan hails from Ekeremor, West Senatorial District which is yet to produce a governor since the creation of the state. Described as a “man of the people” he is reputed to have assisted several youths and elders in the state right from his days as a youth activist. Though the party has traversed the length and breath of the state canvassing for votes in today’s poll its undoing at the poll might its relative newness in the state.
Like Kubor, he said the era of people relying on party was gone and that Bayelsans should instead look at the antecedent of the each candidate in deciding who leads them.
He said, “What we are telling the people is to look at the individual candidate and forget the party. Since 1999, the PDP has claimed to be ruling, but they have negative effects on the governance of the state. It is our time to take Bayelsa to a new level.”
Whichever way the PDP is seen, its candidate Seriake Dickson remains the man to beat. Dickson, a dogged fighter had so far soldiered on in spite of the wrangling within his party over the treatment meted to Sylva which many feared could bungle the party chances. As at press time, Saturday Vanguard learnt that except for members of the National Assembly from the state who have turned their back against their own party over the choice of Dickson, the party will be going into today’s election with the full support of members of the state house of assembly.
The PDP Gang
The assembly members led by the state Acting Governor, Binabo Nestor and the Acting Speaker, Fini Angaye were at the grand finale of the PDP campaign rally at Oporoma to rally support for Seriake Dickson.
Also, some of the political juggernauts in the state like former Governor Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, former Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta, Timi Alaibe, King Amalate Johnny Turner, who command respects and could sway votes in their domain are solidly behind the Seriake Dickson/Rear Admiral John Jonah (rtd) ticket.
The duo are security experts with Dickson having a stint in the Police force while the running mate was a commandant in the Nigerian Defence College.
Dickson, a former Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, a two time member of the House of Representatives was also a one time state chairman of the Alliance for Democracy and the Legal Adviser to the apex pan Ijaw organisation, the Ijaw National Congress (INC) the mouthpiece of the Ijaw nation which may have endeared him to Ijaw elders and opinion leaders, hence the presence of who is who on his campaign train.
In spite of its seeming invincibility, the PDP had been mindful of the threat posed by the CAP, the CPC, ACN that have shown consistency in the build up to today’s poll and as such launched the Keme_to_Keme volunteer outfit, Ijaw word meaning Person to Person campaign to reach out to all the nooks and crannies of the state.
Bayelsa is homogenous in nature irrespective of the claim of core and non Ijaw being played up by some for their selfish interest, hence religion or ethnicity will not be a determinant factor in deciding the outcome of today’s poll.
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