You Did Not Construct Sagbama-Ekeremor Road, Diri Tackles Sylva

Olusegun Samuel in Yenagoa

Bayelsa State Governor, Senator Douye Diri, has taken a swipe at the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the November 11 governorship election, Mr Timipre Sylva, for making false claims on the Sagbama-Ekeremor road project.

Speaking at Igeibiri in Southern Ijaw Local Government Area of the state during the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship campaign at the weekend, Senator Diri lambasted Sylva for claiming that he constructed the Sagbama-Ekeremor road to a level before the immediate past governor completed it.
 He said Sylva did not pour a shovel of sand on the road when he governed the state for five years.

A statement by his Chief Press Secretary (CPS), Mr. Daniel Alabrah, who is a member of the Publicity Directorate of the state PDP Governorship Campaign Council, quoted the governor as saying that the people of the state do not deserve a governor who tells lies and who had nothing to show for his time as governor.
Diri said he was not at Igeibiri to campaign, saying his achievements in the community speak volumes, assuring that he will do more when he returns for a second tenure.

He expressed appreciation to the Igeibiri people for always standing by the PDP and expressed optimism that they will again support him and his party during the election.
At Oporoma, headquarters of Southern Ijaw LGA, Diri was conferred with the chieftaincy title of “Owou fini-owei keni” of Southern Ijaw (One who opened the road to Southern Ijaw).
He assured the Oporoma people that the generator promised the community would be installed before the end of this year and that his administration would stop at nothing to ensure that Southern Ijaw is developed.

On the Yenagoa-Oporoma-Ukubie road, the governor said it would be completed next year and solicited their continuous support for his administration.
The campaign team equally stopped at Angiama where the governor also received a chieftaincy title as well as assurances of support from the people.
He said: “We saw their campaign in my local government, Ekeremor, and they were telling lies to the whole world. That (Ekeremor-Sagbama) road was started by the NDDC, worked on by my predecessor and I completed it. It was one of our campaign points and today I have completed that road. The governor who stayed for five years never poured a shovel of sand on that road but he is claiming he did it to an extent.

 “We did not come to campaign as we are your children. We know you have always been behind us and will do so again.
“We are not like those people who say I will do, so vote for me. With my background in the Ijaw struggle, I will do more to develop Bayelsa.
“We thought we were doing our work but we have also been rewarded with a chieftaincy title. On behalf of the campaign council, we are very grateful.”
In separate remarks, the Commissioner for Special Duties (Central Senatorial  District), Flint George, who spoke at Igeibiri; the Governor’s Special Representative for Southern Ijaw, Temple Ogili, who spoke for the Angiama people; and a former Speaker of the Rivers State House of Assembly and ex-Chief of Staff, Government House, Talford Ongolo, who spoke at Oporoma, all assured the governor of their total support during the election as a way of rewarding him for his love towards them.

Highpoint of the campaigns was the defection of some prominent APC members, including a former Commissioner for Agriculture, Professor Thomas Commander, as well as Mr. Napoleon Ombu, among others.