Bayelsa Guber: Ikiogha Declares Support For Diri

**Says Clement Blessing The Right Candidate For LP

An Epie Grassroots Politician, Diekivie Ikiogha has pledged his support and vote for Governor Douye Diri of the People’s Democratic Party in the Bayelsa November 11 Gubernatorial Election.

Ikiogha who was a governorship aspirant under the Labour Party in this 2023 Governorship Election in a media briefing on Saturday in Yenagoa promised to come back to PDP with all his supporters and work towards the victory of PDP.

The former APC and Labour Party Chieftain who said that he is desperate for the development of the state maintained that Governor Douye Diri has tried in the area of development even though he said that he has concentrated more on developing the rural areas than the urban areas disclosed that Douye Diri has assured to do more when he comes back.

The former Chief of Staff in Bayelsa State and former Commissioner of Agriculture in the state said that he has weighed the candidates of APC and PDP and found out that Douye Diri has the upper hand in winning the November 11 Election stating that for the Labour Party, Udengs Eradiri is not the authentic candidate of the party but one Clement Blessing.

Ikiogha who disclosed that he is the chairman of International Index Network an organization that ranks government activities in various states, the federation, and other foreign counties stated that if by next week, INEC didn’t change the name of Eradiri with that of Clement Blessing, it may lead to the disqualification of the election and subsequently taking INEC to court.

He said “Sometime ago in search of development, we moved from one party to another looking at who can develop the state for us, on that I tried to contest for governorship under APC. In 2019, I was one of the main political movers that supported David Lyon to win an election and at the end of day that government couldn’t be installed.

We built the PDP in this state and he has called all of us to come back so that we can put heads together and move this state forward. We are not against the federal government, we are not going to fight the federal government but we are going to use our lean resources with total understanding and develop this state.

“So I have no other option than to declare my total support for Douye Diri with all my supporters back to PDP and on 31st of this month, we will move back to PDP.

“When we left PDP, we depleted that party and now that we are going back, we are going back with more people and here will be the home state of PDP and we are going back to support Douye Diri for second tenure.

“And at a stage I discovered that irrespective of the fact the APC is at the national level, it might not win the state election because of the political high handedness and the mistake in the choice of governorship candidate.

“It is so obvious to me that PDP will win and with my support, PDP it will win. For PDP, the governor has done his best in the past four years, accepted there are some areas that he will still improve and he said he is prepared to improve in those areas that he is lacking.

“We are seeing that the speed of development is not sufficient and we need that equity and spread to be ok. Governor is spending so much on rural development taking roads to the rural areas but apart from that, we are supposed to be under twenty four hours light which most states are trying to get but here we are but he has agreed to handle it in his second tenure.

“I went round and saw so many lapses even in terms of the road the government said that they have done and I have my reservations but we have discussed all that and I think that the governor for now is the best to move this state forward no other person.

“In 2023, I supported a movement called Obedient in the country not at the state level but when it came to the state level, we were still in search of governorship and I carefully tried to contest under Labour Party. However, I discovered immediately that the party was factionalized at the national and state level and if any governorship candidate emerges, the person cannot win an election because of the faction.

I withdrew immediately after winning in one of the factions as candidate of Labour Party, I left and a woman took over from me (Clement Blessing) because she stepped down for me that day but she took over.
Frankly and legally speaking, Labour Party cannot present a candidate based on that factional office in Abuja.

All started right from the beginning of our invitation for screening, that letter that invited people to be screened alone can kick off any candidate. People invited you for screening to a particular venue, you went there and saw a different body that said we are the people that have taken over and we will screen you. No other option than to align because that is the venue of the screening. You did the screening only to come out and get the information that the people who invited me are at Opolo waiting for me.

“You went there and met them and they screened you again. Any product of the two screening is illegal. Even the primary that was done here was in two places with two separate dates. INEC was invited on the right date and some other people did it on another date.

“That is why I said that it is faulty and the national body has been fighting who is the authentic group, they have gone to Supreme Court in favour of one group and not Udengs group. I see no reason why Udengs should talk about being a candidate because it is not his group that got the judgment, it that woman’s group Clement Blessing.

“She will be the candidate by next week. If she is not then, INEC is heading towards another nullification of election in this state because they will take them to court for omitting her name.