SYLVA NOT ELECTABLE, SAYS BAYELSA PDP

Bayelsa State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has said that the emergence of Timipre Sylva as the governorship candidate of the All Progressive Congress (APC) for the December 5 election is an indication that the opposition party was not ready to compete, saying the former governor was not electable.State Secretary of Bayelsa PDP, Keku Godspower, who made this assertion in a statement in Yenagoa, the state capital, yesterday said it was a shame and insult to the collective sensibilities of Bayelsans that of all their members, Sylva was the best they could put forward as candidate.Keku, who frowned at the choice of Sylva, said what the party’s decision meant was that the APC was not prepared for any serious outing at the election because as he noted “everybody in Bayelsa knows that Sylva is not electable”.He, however, hinted that since Sylva’s emergence, there are palpable fear, tension and apprehensions among Bayelsans which he attributed to the spate of violent incidents during the recent APC governorship primaries in the state.He also alleged that Sylva has a record of violence and that his second coming will not be different.He alleged that since the primaries, the state had witnessed the influx of cultists and militants which he also claimed had created palpable fears and tension among the people.He added that this development, if not checked, could lead to relapse of violence in the state and the entire Niger Delta region.Keku, however, was confident that possible violence would be contained, assuring the people that security agencies in the state will deal with anyone caught breaching the peace or molesting anyone.He accordingly advised Bayelsans to go about their lawful businesses without fear of intimidation, urging them to report any suspicious character to the security agents.While asking the people to vote for the PDP during the December election, Keku also called on the Federal Government to direct its security agencies to take urgent steps to ensure the security of lives and property in the state.“With the December 5 governorship election around the corner, we duly call on the people to outrightly reject Sylva’s candidacy and his APC-led politics of violence and intimidation which has become a well- known trademark”, he stated.