ODAHIEKWU OGUNDE, Yenagoa
Fears and anger have gripped the members of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Bayelsa State over an alleged plan by Governor Douye Diri to postpone council polls scheduled for May 14, 2022.
The planned postponement, some sources claimed, was based on the advice to Diri that those that would be elected at the proposed council poll would not be qualified to be ad hoc delegates of his party for the forthcoming national convention of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
They also claimed that the councillors and chairmen that took part as delegates during the governorship primaries that threw up Diri as candidate of the PDP would be more loyal than any other ones elected by May.
Attempts to get confirmation from the office of the Special Adviser to Governor on Political Matters failed as an official, who declined to be mentioned, denied knowledge of such planned postponement.
“I am just leaving the office and such issue of alleged postponement was not mentioned,” the source stated.
It was gathered that already, the political parties under the Inter-Party Advisory Committee (IPAC), led by Comrade Brisibe Kpodoh, was also in the dark about the alleged plan to postpone the poll.
Kpodoh said that such an issue of postponement might be a possibility based on the scenarios playing out that the councilors and chairmen might not meet up with the number of months needed to qualify them as delegates of the PDP for the convention.
A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Hon. Sunday Frank Oputu, while confirming the development, described the excuse being adduced for the planned postponement as ridiculous.
According to him, the state can no longer allow the appointment of caretaker chairmen into office while the democratic process mandates the governor to conduct local government council election.
He stated: “The excuse being given is ridiculous. From what I am hearing, there is a plan to postpone the LG poll and the excuse given is ridiculous and unthinkable.
“We gathered that the outgoing ones may become uncontrollable at the State and National Assembly primaries. If they are changed, they may fight the choice of Governor Diri at the primaries.”
He described the excuses as “lame”, calling on Diri to immediately release money to the Bayelsa State Independent Electoral Commission (BASIEC) to conduct the scheduled election.
He equally said the APC was against the appointment of caretaker committees to run the councils in the place of elections.
Frank-Okputu threatened to approach the Federal High Court to seek an order barring the local government allocation’s release to the state if the election was postponed.
“We are also ready to approach the court to stop the State House of Assembly from entertaining the screening of caretaker committees,” he stated.