Incumbent Governor of Bayelsa State Douye Diri and his deputy, Lawrence Ewrudjakpo, have been sworn in for the second term in office.
Diri and Ewrudjakpo took the oaths of office and allegiance which were administered by the state chief judge, Justice Matilda Ayemieye, yesterday at the Samson Siasia Sports Complex, Ovom, in Yenagoa, the state capital.
Vice President Kashim Shettima, his Liberian counterpart, Jeremiah Koung, former President Olusegun Obasanjo, former President Goodluck Jonathan and his wife, Dame Patience, and the APC national chairman, Abdullahi Ganduje, were among the dignitaries who graced the occasion.
Others are Akwa Ibom State governor, Umo Eno, Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki, Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, Delta State Governor, Sheriff Oborevwori, Plateau State Governor, Caleb Mutfwang, Taraba State Governor, Kefas Agbu, Enugu State Governor, Peter Mbah, Adamawa State Governor, Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri, Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, Niger State Governor, Mohammed Bago and Kwara State Governor AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq.
In his inaugural address, Governor Diri, expressed gratitude to the people of the state for entrusting such a great responsibility again to him and his deputy, adding that the inauguration marks the end of one chapter and the beginning of another in the collective pursuit of prosperity for Bayelsa State.
He assured the people of the state that his commitment to the progress and advancement of Bayelsa remains steadfast, saying that there is still more to be done in spite of the remarkable milestones achieved in various sectors during our first term.
He said, “During our first term, we worked to improve the condition of our roads, schools and hospitals, create more jobs for our people, and tackled the disunity and insecurity affecting our people. Four years later, we can modestly tell ourselves that we have done well. And this could not have been possible without your support.
“By effectively managing our resources, we have successfully developed vital infrastructure and implemented strategic measures in various sectors, which created opportunities for our people across the eight Local Government Areas and also established a robust foundation for optimism about our future prospects.
“Under the Prosperity Administration, there is no culture of abandoning projects as we continued and completed a number of inherited projects while initiating new ones. So much so that it is safe to say our state resembles a humongous construction site.
“For the past four years, this government has prioritized interventions in education, health, infrastructure, agriculture, sports, transportation, human capacity development, youth and women empowerment as well as security,” he said.
