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Femi Folaranmi, Yenagoa
There is anxiety as many governorship aspirants jostling to contest the governorship primaries of political parties for the November 16 governorship elections have shunned the peace accord signing to ensure peaceful governorship election.
The leadership of the two leading political parties, the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and All Progressives Congress (APC) were also not present and did not send representatives.
There was apprehension over the dimension the governorship elections in the state might assume and Ijaw elders are determined to ensure that the Bayelsa State governorship does not turn bloody like the one witnessed in Rivers State in March 2019.
The peace accord signing organised by Ijaw Elders Forum (IEF), Lagos, in conjunction with Ijaw Professionals Association (IPA), Embasara Foundation, Ijaw Women Connect and Ijaw Nation Forum, held over the weekend was coming on the heels of the public presentation of the Ijaw Nation Code of Ethics, Leadership and Governance held in May 2019.
Out of the 22 governorship aspirants in the PDP only four namely the Deputy- Governor, Rear Admiral Gboribiogha John Jonah, Dr Franklin Erepamo Osaisai, Amb Boladei Goodknows Igali, Secretary to the State Government Mr Kemela Okara and a former Commissioner of Police, Mrs Nsirim-Poweigha on the platform of the APC signed the peace accord.
The communiqué of the peace accord signed by Efiye Bribena and Denzil Kentebe harped on the need for all the governorship aspirants to ensure a peaceful poll.
He was, however, disappointed that many of the governorship aspirants failed to turn up for the signing even when invitations were extended to them.
“All the governorship aspirants were duly invited. Invitations were given to them in time. The formal invitations were followed by phone calls. They were all invited.”
However, some of the aspirants said they did not receive the invitations from the organisers of the peace accord signing.
The Director-General of the Heineken Lokpobiri Campaign Organisation (HLCO), Hon Warman Ogoriba, in an interview said no invitation was extended to the APC governorship aspirant, Senator Heineken Lokpobiri to attend the ceremony.
According to him, Lokpobiri being a man of peace that has advocated an issue- based campaign would have attended if he was invited.
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