Even the land of Bayelsa has rejected Sylva — Agbedi

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Hon. Fred Agbedi, Director-General of the Restoration Campaign Organization of Governor Seriake Dickson is the member representing Sagbama-Ekeremor Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives. Agbedi, a former Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Bayelsa State in this interview said the APC flag bearer, Chief Timipre Sylva is not electable and has been rejected by the people. Excerpts:

HOW do you see the alleged plot by APC to deploy federal might to secure victory?

Democracy has gone beyond what they refer to as the use of Federal Might. In democracy, there has to be vote casting and the votes must be counted. If we have grown democracy to that level and judging by the outcome of the last elections, it is clear that mandate can only be given by the people and not the Federal Might. Federal Might is not a voter. The Federal Might is an umpire. And an umpire is not a voter. An umpire is to provide the enabling environment for the people to cast their votes. So, the Federal Government’s involvement in an election is to provide funds needed by the umpire to work properly by providing security for safety of the people

We believe that the December 5 governorship election will have nothing to do with Federal Might. Bayelsa people will be allowed to vote en masse.

The APC has accused the governor of running away from a television debate. Is that so and why?

That is not true. The Governor has called on the other candidates for a debate. Not just the candidates of the APC but all the political parties. In the same way, I as the Director General of the Dickson’s campaign, we are ready to take anybody on. For us, we are ready. Maybe they are the ones not ready for the debate. Since they are without a significant presence in Bayelsa, except for few posters and brooms, they are jittery. There was no time Governor Seriake Dickson rejected a debate.

Posters and broom

Rather, the governor has called on them severally to come and debate so that we can tell Bayelsa people what we have done and what we intend to do in the next four years.

Some loyalists of the former NDDC Managing Director, Timi Alaibe, recently defected to PDP from the APC with the latter describing them as a political waste. What is your take on this?

I don’t know who described them as political wastes. But I know that the Governor said that those people were misled and that at the appropriate time, they will come back. And of course, they are coming back. And in party politics, when people decide to come back and join the party, you can receive them. That is the reception we held for them, for them to tell the world that they moved before and have decided to come back home.

There is nothing wrong with that. And that is exactly what we have done. A lot more people will come back. Why they are coming back is because the APC has been rejected by the land of Bayelsa.

Could you please explain?

This rejection happened in the open glare of all. It was not planned by anybody. The land said you have treated my people with disdain and high handedness and we don’t want you anymore. It was clearly shown at the Samson Sisia Stadium. I, again told Bayelsa people that I was part of the PDP primaries won by Sylva and annulled by the court. In those primaries, Sylva defeated us and became the flag bearer of the party. And the party in its procedural manner went to hand over the party flag to him in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

And I was present and we knew he was rejected by the land. When they gave him the flag, the flag flew away from the pole holding it. Sylva was left with the pole and was standing without a flag. Everybody knew that the God we all serve has rejected him because of his attitude and bad administration in Bayelsa.

And if you remember again that when we had the other governorship primaries that brought in Governor Seriake Dickson, Sylva, who was a sitting Governor, did not participate because God clearly spoke that he has been excluded from the process and that he can no longer rule his people. As God has spoken against Sylva, no man can turn the decision of the people. God has excluded Sylva to rule Bayelsa.

If you analyse the storyline, it is no longer a battle between Dickson and Sylva. It is about Sylva and the heavens. And no man can turn the hands of God. I keep saying that Bayelsa people should remember that with such decision, no one is running against Dickson. It also means that the APC does not have a candidate running against Dickson. Unfortunately, the APC has a candidate that has been rejected by God, the people and the heavens.

The APC has also accused the Governor of embarking on projects he can never finish. They said the state is littered with unfinished projects?

I think clearly it is no longer something that is new to the people of the state. Even the President, Muhammadu Buhari has come out to say that Nigeria is broke. That is the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Issue of salary

The President of the APC Federal Government says Nigeria is broke. What do you say about states of the Federation? If the centre is broke, the states are also broke. But let me tell you that the issue of salary is difficult.

There has been no time the issue of salary was delayed in Bayelsa. You also know that the state was a construction site. He also initiated a transparent government. He always tells the people about what the state got and how it was spent. When Sylva was there, the state got N45 billion and N36 billion. But if you ask, they will not tell you anything. When the difficulty came in government spending, Dickson told the people of the state.

Projects not going on and salary payment delay in Local Government Councils is a direct effect from poor allocation. Government is working on it. All these are because Nigeria is broke. The APC promised to pay N5,000 to unemployed Nigerians. When the PDP Senators brought it up, the APC Senators shouted it down. But the Dickson administration in Bayelsa has been paying the elderly a stipend of N5,000 monthly in the last four years.

Source: Punch