Some senior members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Bayelsa State are not happy with the state governor, Douye Diri. They are upset because the governor blamed former Petroleum Minister, Chief Timipre Sylva, for a protest about hardships in the state.
These APC leaders pointed out that Sylva had recently told Nigerian youths to support President Bola Tinubu and give him more time to fix the country’s problems.
In a statement released on Tuesday, Chief Clarkson Ayebaepreye, Secretary of the APC Elders Forum, said that Sylva has always wanted peace.
The statement mentioned, “Just a day after Chief Sylva’s plea, Governor Diri, whom we believe has a different hidden agenda, reluctantly issued a badly written and unenthusiastic message.”
They also asked, “Why did Governor Diri wait so long to give such an important message, only after Sylva spoke up?”
They added that Governor Diri seems to be trying to get back some power for the APC through court cases. They also mentioned that Diri started getting close to top APC members in Abuja as soon as there were legal questions about his election victory.
The APC elders said Diri supported and heavily funded the PDP and his leader, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, in the last election. They claim that Diri did everything he could to stop Tinubu from winning.
“Now, he is suddenly acting friendly with APC in Abuja, especially at the Villa. If he wins at the Supreme Court, he would return to supporting the PDP and Atiku Abubakar,” they said.
They reminded everyone that this same governor worked hard to make President Tinubu lose the election. They said he spent a lot of Bayelsa’s money to support Atiku.
The elders also mentioned that Governor Diri supported the Naira Redesign policy, thinking it would hurt Tinubu’s chances of becoming President.
They even said that Diri once blocked the First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, from entering the Government House during campaign time to avoid upsetting Atiku Abubakar.
They want Governor Diri to explain his actions during the last Presidential elections. They asked, “Who did you support? Who did you and your followers vote for? Are you now trying to become Atiku’s vice president?”
They claimed that the governor has been directed by Atiku to organize protests in Bayelsa State. They warned that the APC in Bayelsa will not be part of any protests against President Tinubu.
“Governor Diri says he supports President Tinubu, but he has tried to stop APC youths from organizing pro-Tinubu rallies in Bayelsa. While he is sponsoring protests against Tinubu, he is stopping those who want to support the President,” they added.
The elders concluded that the governor’s sudden friendliness with the APC will be scrutinized after the Supreme Court judgment, calling his behavior self-centered and deceitful.