Bayelsa APC Under Sylva’s Leadership Was One Man Show-Lokpobiri

• David Lyon Joins Minister In Partnership With Diri For Bayelsa Dev

To drive the process of development and sustained peace in Bayelsa State, minister of state for petroleum (oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobori as well as the 2019 candidate of the APC in Bayelsa State, David Lyon have closed ranks with their state governor, Senator Douye Diri.

Lokpobiri who says he is the leader of the APC in the state, being the most senior political office holder in the party, said on Wednesday in Yenagoa, that under Chief Timipre Sylva as leader, the party had turned to a one-man show.

He said this when he led senior members of the party on a visit to Diri. The minister extended the commendation of the president, Bola Ahmed Tinubu to Diri, saying it was exciting to note that the governor was flowing well with the APC government even though he was in another political party.

Apart from Lyon, the immediate past Nembe/Brass Federal Constituency member of the House of Representatives, Israel Sunny-Goli, also a top APC member, was also with Lokpobiri during the visit.

Lokpobiri said he was in the state on the directive of President Bola Tinubu during Monday’s Federal Executive Council meeting for his appointees to join forces with state governors to ensure the planned nationwide protest does not get violent.

While appealing to youths from oil producing communities in the Niger Delta to jettison the protest, the Petroleum Minister thanked Governor Diri for engaging with various socio-cultural, youth and students groups to maintain peace in the state.

He acknowledged that some of the demands of the alleged sponsors of the protest were genuine but appealed for patience to allow the government address their concerns.

In his remarks, Diri thanked Lokpobri for giving the state proper representation in the Federal Executive Council. On the August 1 protest, the governor acknowledged the rights of the people to protest in a democracy but stressed that there must be a good reason, which he argued can be resolved through dialogue.

He said his administration deployed dialogue from the beginning and because of his performance, the people re-elected for another term. Diri said all government and private offices, including markets, will be open for business, the threats on protest notwithstanding.

He called on Bayelsans to come to the roundtable to resolve any grievance against government’s policies and also advised the people not to join the protest given that it was being orchestrated by failed politicians in the state.