BAYELSA, DELTA BOIL AGAIN OVER PDP CRISIS

There may not be an end to the crisis rocking the Peoples Democratic Party in Bayelsa State as a faction yesterday (Thursday) out-smarted the rest factions in the party to hold a marathon State Congress to elect new officials. Similar situation was at play in Delta State.

Former Delta State Governor, Chief James Ibori, the incumbent Governor, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan, and Chief Mrs Maryam Ali, wife of the National Chairman of the PDP, Chief Ahmadu Ali shared the state's PDP positions to their cronies. The Bayelsa State Working Committee had penultimate week directed that as a panacea to the initial confusion that engulfed the party, following the declaration of Mr. Waripamo-Owei Dudafa for the state chairmanship of the party, the status quo be maintained by all factions.

The SWC had resolved that because of the good performance of the present executive council, they were going to be rolled over to serve for another two year-tenure. But a faction believed to be the loyalists of Governor Timipre Sylva within the PDP and led by his Special Adviser on Political Matters, Dr. George Fente on Thursday, re-ignited the crisis in the party by conducting the State Congress at the Gender and Social Welfare Auditorium, Yenagoa. Although Governor Sylva was not present at the State Congress, it was learnt that Fente had to ensure that it was carried out as directed by the governor.

At the end of the State Congress, which did not last more than 45 minutes, a contractor in the state and an ally of Governor Sylva, Mr. Rufus Abadi emerged as the state chairman, while Darius Obiene retained his position as the vice chairman. Others were Mr. James Akari, secretary, Mr. Ketebu Enei, publicity secretary, Mr. Sopere Appah, youth leader and Mrs. Nengi Ebitimi, women leader.

The State Congress was witnessed by the PDP 5- man National Monitoring Committee led by Mr. Augustine Adesina Buraimoh-Ademuyewo, Independent National Electoral Commission representative, Chief Austin Okonkio and the Resident Electoral Commissioner, Bayelsa State . However, members of one of the factions had claimed they were not aware of the emergence of the "so-called new executive council", adding that to the best of their knowledge, no state congress held, not to talk of new officials.

The displaced state executive council led by the chairman, Chief Fred Agbedi and the secretary, Dr. Tarila Tebepah, under which Mr. Obiene also served as vice chairman, have rejected the entire process that led to the emergence of the new executives. Mr. Kikile Esueme, who has been replaced by Mr. Sopere Appah as the youth leader said he was not aware of the State Congress and emergence of new officials but Mr. Alfred Itiedu, who has been replaced as the publicity secretary told our correspondent that he was now "a chieftain of the Action Congress".

A party source, who pleaded anonymity, informed our correspondent that the emergence of the new executive council would never be accepted by the stakeholders of the party. According to the source, the absence of the Vice President, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, Senator Emmanuel Paulker, (Bayelsa Central) Senator Hienekin Lokpobiri, (Bayelsa West) Senator Nimi Barigha Amange (Bayelsa East) including Hon. Seriake Dickson, Hon. Clever Ikisikpo, among other big wigs of the party in the state, was a pointer to the unacceptability of the new officials.

When contacted by our correspondent on the phone, Mr. Seriake Dickson, who represents Sagbama/Ekeremor Federal Constituency at the House of Representatives, denied knowledge of the Congress. Dickson, who sounded agitated, described it as "a kangaroo Congress which has no legal backing.

He added that as far he was concerned, there was not even Ward and Local Government Congresses, saying that those who organized the Congress on Thursday were jokers in the park.

The lawmaker said: "I heard Mr. Fente organized a State Congress, but the authentic party executives led by Agbedi and Tebepah would issue a statement rejecting the State Congress". Speaking however, at the end of the state congress, the chairman of the National Monitoring Committee, Mr. Augustine Adesina Braimoh described the exercise as peaceful through which new state party officials had emerged. Braimoh urged those who lost out at the election to accept the process, stressing that it might not have been a perfect one but it was all geared towards correcting certain anomalies in the party.

In his statement, the Special Adviser on Political Matters to Governor Sylva, Dr. George Fente said "he was particularly grateful to the over 3,000 delegates from the 105 Wards and eight Local Government Areas in the state for their comportment and orderliness during the congress". Fente said the "peaceful election of the executive members by voice votes was an indication of the desire of the party hierarchy to effect a change in the leadership of the party".

He expressed confidence in the ability of the new officials, adding that they would bring about effective and positive change in the PDP so that the party could witness cohesiveness in coming years. Fente also commended the roles played by the 5- man monitoring committee from the national secretariat of the PDP led by Chief Augustine Adesina Buraimoh-Ademuyewo and the Independent National Electoral Commission headed by Chief Austin Okonkio and the state Resident Electoral Commissioner during the election.

The Bayelsa State PDP has been engulfed in deep crisis since the 4th February when Mr. Waripamo-Owei Dudafa, under the aegis of The New Phase of Bayelsa State, declared at a campaign rally that he had been adopted by Vice President Jonathan and Governor Sylva as the consensus state chairmanship candidate of the party.

But his claim was quickly rebuffed by the Seriake Dickson-led Transparency Group, comprising loyalists of Vice President Jonathan, which insisted that Dudafa had not been adopted by anybody just as the party hierarchy had not anointed anyone as consensus state chairman of the party. Subsequently, Dudafa, Mr. Michael Ogbolosingha, Dr. Azibapu Eruani, other PDP members of the Bayelsa State House of Assembly were suspended.

This suspension resulted in counter suspension by another faction led by the Speaker, Mr. Werinipre Seibarugu. But Seibarugu was later purportedly impeached by yet another faction in the House even as the imbroglio consumed the former General Manager of Radio Bayelsa, Mr. Brighten Sorgwe following his sack by Governor Sylva.

The State Congress by a faction of the PDP in the state, observers pointed out, had widened the gulf of bitterness amongst party topnotch which may take a longer time to be resolved. At the Cenotaph in Asaba yesterday, and before a quickly arranged crowed, the Delta state PDP Chairman chief Emmanuel Ogidi addressed the gathering thanking members for supporting him during his tenure as Chairman of the party in the state.

Afterwards, the PDP National Committee Representative came out with a list and announced that after consultations on consensus has been reached with the Chief Peter Nwoboshi elected as Chairman PDP Delta State, Chief Ighoyota Amori Deputy chairman, and Chief Solomon Ogba elected as secretary. Information gathered revealed that Chief Nwoboshi is an associate of Mrs. Ali. He was the former Political adviser to Ibori and later Commissioner for Abuja.

He later joined the Ebielum faction before cross-carpeting to Ali' s side. Chief Amori is Ibori's man and was constantly in Kaduna to sympathise with Ibori during his recent detention by the Economic and Financial Crimes commission (EFCC).

Amori was until now not in the good books of Uduaghan. The release of Ibori brightened his political fortunes. Solomon Ogba elected as Secretary is Uduaghan's man. Already PDP stakeholders in Delta led by Chief Patrick Bolokor have dissociated themselves from what took place at the cenotaph. They questioned the rationale for such an arrangement when it is known across the state that there was no ward and