It’s no crime to leave PDP and return, group cautions Dickson, others over Timi Alaibe

The race for the governorship of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in Bayelsa State is getting interesting, as a group on Thursday condemned moves by Governor Seriake Dickson and other stakeholders in the State chapter of PDP to discredit the govenorship ambition of a former Managing Director of Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, Mr. Timi Alaibe.

Opposition to Alaibe’s governorship aspiration has been mounting of late, with many saying he is not qualified to contest for the PDP ticket after defecting from the party in 2015 to the All Progressives Congress, APC.

Specifically, a group, Bayelsa PDP Restoration Foot Soldiers demanded from the former NDDC henchman, a public apology for abandoning the party at its most critical period.

The group also said it was immoral for Alaibe to return to the party only to seek the govenorship ticket, as he would be reaping where he did not sow.

Similarly, the Peoples Democratic Party Youth Network had accused Alaibe of being responsible for the large number of governorship aspirants of the PDP in Bayelsa State.

The PDPYN claimed that the deluge of aspirants from the party was because of Alaibe’s ambition, while the political adviser to Governor Seriake Dickson, Wilson Fynman had also issued a statement where he qouted Governor Dickson as speaking against Alaibe’s aspiration.

A political pressure group, Logic, has however discredited the growing opposition to the former NDDC topshot, insisting that it was not a crime to defect from PDP and returning to the party.

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Logic, which prides itself as a political pressure group committed to the emergence of credible candidates to represent the party in elections nationwide, said Alaibe remains the best, most experienced and easily sellable aspirant to the electorate in Bayelsa.

A statement signed by the group’s coordinator, Dr. Lanre Toluhi, said it conducted a covert investigation asking voters of their choice, especially at the grassroot and major towns across Bayelsa State and discovered that Alaibe is already an established brand that will ensure PDP retains Bayelsa state in the next election.

The group then urged leaders of the party not to look back at incidents that should have been confined to the dust bin of history, saying if Atiku Abubukar that left PDP, returned and could be given the presidential ticket of the party because of his electoral value, Alaibe should also be considered as the consensus candidate of the party for the governorship poll.

The group also reminded all stakeholders in the party how strategic Bayelsa is for the continued relevance of PDP in the nation’s political system and pleaded that forgiveness of past wrongs is needed to keep the party in power rather than bickering that may eventually end the party’s hold on the oil rich state since 1999.

The statement reads is part: “Bayelsa is strategic to PDP and Nigeria. It gave Nigeria the finest president we may ever have. Now that we are to consolidate on our hold on to power, we must go for the best.

“Our covert popularity test for all aspirants that have so far shown interest in PDP governorship ticket returned Frank Timi Alaibe as the most acceptable to the people across all divides.

“We must not take chances with the party in power by allowing past inconsequential events to determine our future. Our Presidential candidate got the nod to run on the platform of PDP after he left and returned because of the quality he brought to us.

“Now a Timi Alaibe is possessing similar quality that we can’t ignore. We must not allow agents of APC carefully planted in our fold to foist an unpopular candidate on PDP. Alaibe should be the consensus candidate of our party for Bayelsa 2019.”

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