allAfrica.com: Nigeria: When Election Campaign Re-Open N/Delta Problem (Page 1 of 2)

Last weekend, President Umaru Yar'Adua visited Yenagoa, the Bayelsa State capital to launch the campaign for the re-run election campaign of Mr. Timipre Sylva. The event later turned out to be a campaign on Niger Delta Affairs. Writes Charles Ajunwa

Apparently blazing the trail for a resounding victory for his party, President Umaru Yar'Adua last Saturday flagged off the re-election campaign of the former governor of Bayelsa State, Mr. Timipre Sylva.

Sylva who ruled on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) was recently sacked by the Appeal Court following an appeal by the governorship candidate of the Action Congress (AC), Prince Ebitimi Amgbare. The Appellate Court consequently ordered a re-run of the election within 90 days.

To this end, the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has accordingly slated May 24,this year for the election. But barely 48 hours before Yar'Adua's scheduled visit to Yenagoa, an explosion rocked the secretariat of the Bayelsa State chapter of the PDP.

The explosion, which hit the office of the party's women leader, Mrs. Nengi Ebitimi situated at the last floor of the two-storey building, did a serious havoc in the secretariat.

The explosion destroyed the entrance door, window planes, ceiling boards, a television set and furniture items. Although no loss of life was reported, the explosion was believed to be an orchestrated attempt to halt Yar'Adua's proposed visit. But the President ignored all security warnings, urging him to shelve the planned visit. Rather, he visited the troubled oil rich Niger Delta region as planned.

Before the ugly incident, Yar'Adua had pledged his determination to grace the campaign exercise, just as he did in Kogi and Adamawa states, where elections had been re-run in recent times.

To demonstrate his commitments to the success of his party in all ramifications, he actively participated in his party's campaign programmes at Kogi and Adamawa States, the efforts which paid off in the end.

In Adamawa for instance, PDP defeated its staunch opposition party, the Action Congress (AC) powered by the former vice president, Atiku Abubakar. The defeat of AC, in the judgment of analysts, implied a systemic end to Atiku's seeming robust political stature.

During the Yenagoa campaign, the President was accompanied by Vice President Goodluck Jonathan, the party's National Chairman,Prince Vincent Ogbulafor and other notable leaders of the party. They were duly received in Port Harcourt by governors of Rivers and Akwa Ibom, Hon. Rotimi Amaechi and Godswill Akpabio respectively. He had held a closed door meeting with traditional rulers and others party stakeholders before he was air lifted to Yenegoa.

At the Yenegoa Sports Complex venue of the rally, Yar'Adua made a bold political statement to the effect that the AC in Bayelsa State would again lose to the PDP at the re-run election.

Other important dignitaries at the event included the Acting Governor of Bayelsa State, Mr. Werinipre Seibarugu, Senate President, Senator David Mark, his deputy, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Mr. Timi Alabe, NDDC chairman,Sam Edem and many other party stalwarts.

The President who was apparently carried away by the overwhelming crowd at the rally, restated his administration's uncompromising belief in the application of rule of law and therefore boasted of PDP's imminent victory at the re-scheduled election.

"I know this election has been lost by AC and won by PDP," Yar'Adua said. Yar'Adua also used the occasion to warn the restive youth of the Niger Delta region to turn over a new leaf.

According to him, the action of the youth in the oil zone has not only portrayed the image of the country negatively, but can also result in Nigeria's losing its eminent position as the number one oil producing country in Africa.

"There is a growing energy situation in the world and the energy demand is becoming worrisome. The situation has started driving upward the price of crude oil.

When the world press talks about it, they said it was due to lack of peace in Iran,Iraq and now the Niger Delta region.

"This assertion is becoming true. It is because we provided the world with the opportunity to do so. It is painful for me because we have the potentials to become the petro-chemical hub of the region," Yar'Adua said.

Yar'Adua also promised to release all funds that the NDDC is entitled to as spelt out in the NDDC Act. "We have set aside funds for the oil producing states of the country and in the supplementary budget, we will make the issue of power/energy, security and the Niger Delta region, a priority. The administration is doing everything possible to lay foundation for development," the President said.

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