As expected, Bayelsa State Governor, Seriake Dickson, has emerged the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party for the December 5 governorship poll in the state.
His emergence, it was learnt, followed the disqualification of Dickson’s two other contenders for the governorship ticket – Senator representing Bayelsa Central Senatorial District, Senator Emmanuel Paulker and a former Local Government Chairman of Kolokuma/Opokuma Local Government Area, Chief Ebikintin Diongoli.
Reasons for their disqualification were yet to be ascertained as at press time but they were said to have been disqualified on Saturday during their screening at the party’s zonal office in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.
Confirming the successful screening of Dickson, the Bayelsa PDP spokesman, Osom Makbere, said he was not aware of the reasons for their disqualification.
The spokesman, said, “All I know is that Governor Dickson was successfully screened. However, I am not aware of the statuses of the duo of Senator Emmanuel Paulker and Ebinkintin Diongoli.
“I only heard they were disqualified and I have not bothered to seek for reasons. For me those matters are inconsequential. The screening committee knew why it disqualified them”.
He, however, disclosed that there will still be a primary election despite the fact that Dickson is the only man standing in the PDP.
“There will still be primary. The fact that only one candidate registered for an exam or one person is qualified for an interview does not mean the interview or exam won’t go on. The party will still need to assess the intelligent quotient of their candidate”, Makbere said.