Bayelsa Poll: Sylva Receiving What He Prayed For, Says Diri

Bayelsa State Governor Douye Diri has described the delisting of the governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Timipre Sylva from the list of governorship candidates in the November 11 election by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as an answer to his prayers.

Governor Diri also stated that Sylva’s disqualification by a Federal High Court in Abuja was in furtherance of that prayer.

The governor, who is seeking re-election on the platform of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), spoke at Ofoni community when he rounded up his campaigns in Sagbama local government area on Wednesday.

Diri recalled how the former governor told Bayelsans through a live programme on a Yenagoa-based radio station in November last year that the chapter of contesting the governorship of the state again was closed.

He also stated that Sylva said on the programme that his party would pick a credible governorship candidate and it would not be him.

Diri said his current travails were God’s answer to his prayers.

His words: “They (Sylva) said categorically that they will never run for governor of Bayelsa again and God answered their prayers.

“INEC has published the names of those to contest the November 11 governorship election and Sylva and (Joshua) Maciver’s names were excluded.

“The court has also disqualified him,” he said.

The governor thanked the Ofoni community, where his deputy, Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, hails from, for giving him their son who has been very supportive and working with him to deliver good governance to the people of the state.

He said the beauty of government was to bring happiness to the people and allow the principles of government to work for the collective good, noting however that others believed that they were emperors. love for him and his principal, urging them to again give what he described as ‘Kano votes’ to the PDP in the election.