Nigeria: Diri, NDC Trade Words Over Stoppage of Appointees Salaries in Bayelsa

23 April 2026

Bayelsa State Governor, Senator Douye Diri and the leadership of Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) in the state have disagreed over the stoppage of the salaries of appointees in his government who decamped from All Progressives Congress (APC) to NDC.

The Chairman of NDC in Bayelsa State, Hon. Dauprebo Ikuromo, had in a statement on Wednesday, condemned the alleged stoppage of salaries of political appointees under the administration of Governor Diri, describing the move as unconstitutional, vindictive, and a betrayal of democratic ideals.

Reacting to the NDC's allegation, Governor Diri, through his Chief Press Secretary, Mr Daniel Alabrah, said though he is not aware of such directive by the governor, he explained that if any appointee had defected from the governor's party to another political party, they ought to have resigned the appointment, because the held the appointment at the mercy of the governor.

"If as a member you were appointed based on your status as a member of APC, if you now went to register in another party or you start doing anti-party activities, you have lost your rights, because the appointment was not on merit, it's at the discretion of the governor. He has the power to hire and fire." He said.

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