Stop interfering in Bayelsa governorship primaries, PDP youths warn Secondus

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) South-South Youth Vanguard has warned the party’s National Chairman, Mr Uche Secondus, against interfering in the Bayelsa governorship primaries scheduled for Sept. 3.

The organisation, in a statement issued by its National Chairman, Mr James Akpofure, on Monday in Abuja, warned Secondus against subverting the party’s constitution to pave way for any interest group.

Akpofure advised the PDP chairman to play a fatherly role in the governorship primaries rather than teaming up with Gov. Seriake Dickson to manipulate the process, as being alleged.

He said that it was being alleged that Secondus was trying to subvert the party’s constitution to please the governor and some stakeholders.

Akpofure advised that all the aspirants should be allowed to go for the primaries, with the party leaders ensuring level playing ground in the contest.

“The newly-elected local government chairmen in Bayelsa are not qualified to contest the Sept. 3 governorship primaries.

“The PDP national chairman is supporting Gov. Dickson to see if the chairmen can vote in the primaries against the provisions of the party’s constitution.

“This is not done anywhere. The chairmen are newly-elected and the party’s constitution does not recognise which the aberration the governor and the chairman are trying to bring on board.

“Recall that we had, few weeks ago, urged Dickson to jettison the idea of having a preferred aspirant and recognise all the 21 aspirants.

“We have also said that all the aspirants are PDP members and, as such, should be treated equally and allowed to go to the field and fight it out,” he said.

Akpofure said that the idea of trying to manipulate PDP’s constitution to please some people would not go down well with party members, adding “it will only destroy the party in the long run.”