Bayelsa poll: Okoko chides defectors

Former Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship aspirant in Bayelsa State, Mr. Keniebi Okoko chided politicians defecting to other parties after losing elections.

He said the practice of jumping ship, which became rife in Bayelsa, following the governorship primary, was killing democracy in the country.

Okoko, who came third in the PDP primary that produced Senator Douye Diri as the candidate for the November 16 governorship election urged politicians and their followers to begin to play value-based politics.

He maintained that destroying a political platform because an aspirant lost an election was not in the best interest of the state.

He called for ethical politics, adding that selfish interests must be discarded by politicians fond of feeling that if they failed to get a leadership position, the occupant should be destroyed and stopped from the position.

The PDP chieftain advised party loyalists and other stakehokders threatening to leave the PDP because the primary did not favour a particular aspirant to have a rethink.

He said: “The grass is not always greener on the other side. We must sit back and fix what is wrong with our party instead of running away from it. If you read a history of how the biggest democracies work, you will find out that focus and persistence will make a difference in the long run. Not jumping ship anytime a decision doesn’t favour this or that candidate”.

“Leaving a party and coming back to it and leaving it and coming back to it is not a good example for our youths? Is it okay to act that way? For me, I believe that when a situation is not going the way you expect it, we should come together and repair it and not abandon it.

Okoko added: “Many people are not happy with a lot going on in the party, but do we abandon it just like that? Who then will correct it and make the needed difference? I’m saying this because I strongly believe that we all have a role to play in changing this country and our state. We can’t keep complaining and when the plain truth is said we get offended. We should be able to say the truth without hiding behind the guise of politics.

“I believe that we have changed politics to just a game of zero values and integrity. I’m not in agreement with a lot going on but we should stay to make the needed change”.

He urged politicians to borrow a leaf from former President Goodluck Jonathan, who conceded defeat election to his opponent, President Muhammadu Buhari.

He added: “It must not always be about ourselves and  our vision . It cannot be . The country or this state cannot move forward if we continue that way. We must always look at the big picture.”

“What if President Goodluck Jonathan had decided at that time that he was not going to concede after the election. Do you know how many souls could have been lost or if after that, he abandoned PDP for the APC. How would it look. By now Nigeria would be a one-party state.

“We must be able to do what is right for our people. When people tell me , you are young in politics, I say no. Values don’t change. You are who you are. What you are expressing is what and who you are. The way my father brought me up is the way I am today. I am not going to betray my people because of my own selfish interest” .

Okoko explained that he visited to congratulate his fellow contestant, Senator Douye Diri, because he was convinced that it was in the best interest of the people of Bayelsa to do so.

He said: “It’s the love for Bayelsa state that made me go and visit Douye Diri. The same urge to move my state forward , has made me go and listen to governor Seriake Dickson and to support the party because I believe that collectively, we can make a change. Not one governor can change a state. We need collective effort and if your governor is doing something that you don’t like, you don’t run away from the party, you confront him.

“Today, if I am on the seat with governor Dickson, I can tell him , your excellency, this thing you are doing is wrong sir. We should try and unify the party and not divide it. We need the kind of people who will tell them the truth , rather than lying to him because of personal ambition. We need to say the truth”.

END.