APC lacks presence to win in Bayelsa, says governor

GOVERNOR Seriake Dickson has insisted that the All Progressives Congress (APC) lacked the political structure and presence to win the November 16 governorship election.

A statement by Dickson’s Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Fidelis Soriwei, said the governor spoke when he inaugurated the Peoples Democratic Party Grassroots Movement (PDPGM) from Brass and Yenagoa local government areas.

Dickson said the APC in its usual character was putting its hope on luring members of the PDP to its fold with money and fake promises which would fail them. He urged party faithful and the electorate not to be deceived by the antics of the APC.

The governor said the APC was torn apart by unaddressed grievances from the party’s primaries, which he said offended the original founders of the party and distanced them from its candidate, David Lyon.

Dickson said it was interesting that the APC opted to field a candidate who, according to him, lacked the experience and capacity to articulate issues of governance against the PDP standard-bearer, Senator Douye Diri, and his running mate, Senator Lawrence Ewhrujakpo, “who are tested and experienced with exemplary records in public service”.

The governor earlier received a prominent member of his party and former Caretaker Committee Chairman of Ekeremor Local Government Area, Mr. Tolu Amatu, who defected to the APC three days ago.

He lamented that the APC was banking on electoral fraud, through collusion with the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), and the use of violence and mayhem through use of the security forces to harass and intimidate innocent voters.

Dickson, who said the PDP abhorred violence, expressed the confidence that his party would win the election on November 16.

He thanked them for their continued support for his administration in the past seven years and charged them to mobilise support in the various units, wards and communities and work with INEC and security forces to protect their votes during the poll.

He said: “I want you to take the message to our people about the antics of the APC. The original founders of the APC, even those who worked for former Governor Chief Timipre Sylva are not with the party’s current flag bearer. There are more grievances in the APC and they are not doing anything about it.

“They are concerned about using ‘federal might’, money and making promises to lure people, particularly PDP stakeholders. Defectors do not win elections, political parties do. It is parties with structures and superior strategies and planning that win elections.”