You can’t stop Sylva, Bayelsa lawmakers tell PDP

The Bayelsa State Caucus of the National Assembly has urged the National Working Committee (NWC) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to ensure strict compliance to the constitution of the party by allowing Governor Timipre Sylva and other aspirants cleared by the Gubernatorial Screening Appeal Panel to contest the November 19, governorship primary in the state.

In a letter to the committee through the Acting National chairman of the party, Alhaji Abubakar Baraje, the caucus said the uncertainty being created over the non-clearance of Sylva for the primary is not only causing tension in the Bayelsa State chapter of the PDP but the entire state.

The letter was signed by Senators Heineken Lokpobiri (Bayelsa West), Paulker Emmanuel (Bayelsa central) and Clever Ikisikpo (Bayelsa East). Other signatories were Honourables Warman Ogoriba (Yenagoa/Kolokuma/Okpokuma), Jephatha Foinghan (Brass/Nembe), Nadu Karibo (Ogbia) and Henry Ofongo (Southern Ijaw). Citing Article 12.63 of the PDPs constitution 2009 as amended with regards to the powers and functions of the NWC, the caucus said that the screening and clearance of candidates for gubernatorial primary election is the exclusive function of the Gubernatorial Screening Committee and not that of the NWC.

The letter read in part: As representatives of the people of Bayelsa State and members of the Bayelsa State Caucus of the National Assembly, we are constrained to write to the National Working Committee (NWC) of our great party through your esteemed office in respect of the subject matter.

That the powers and functions of the National Working Committee (NWC) as enshrined in Article 12.63 of the constitution of the Peoples Democratic Party 2009 as amended do no not include screening and or clearance of candidates for any election.

That the screening and clearance of candidates for the gubernatorial primary election is the exclusive function of the Gubernatorial Screening Committee set up pursuant to Article 17.1 of the PDP constitution and paragraph 16 of the Electoral Guidelines for Primary Elections 2010. That in this case, the Gubernatorial Screening Committee duly empanelled is the one led by Brig Gen. Idi Adamu (rtd) which screened the aspirants in accordance with its mandate on October 27, 2011 at the PDP zonal office in Port Harcourt, Rivers State.

The legislators further argued that since Governor Sylva was not found to have contravened any of the partys guidelines for disqualification, he is qualified to contest the primary election. They added that it is illegal to subject the governor to further scrutiny by the NWC.

The caucus said: Chief Timipre Sylva is legally speaking cleared and qualified to contest the primary election. Subjecting him to any further scrutiny by the NWC is illegal, manifestly at variance with the PDP constitution and the Electoral Guidelines for Primary Elections 2010 and therefore null and void.

Anything short of this would be a violation of the supremacy of the constitution of our great party as enshrined in Article 2. This would send wrong signals that would undoubtedly have dare consequences for our partys fortunes in the general elections.

http://nationalmirroronline.net/politics/24701.html

Kai, na wa ooooo.

Sylva is a sure strong candidate. Everyone know that.
GEJ backdown abeg.
Rule like a President and not a weakling.

PDP Can't stop Sylva. It is a clear case.

You need to tell them. The era of PDP Mafia is coming to an end. I don't know GEJ should want to take us back to the dark days of dictatorship. If not, why should his desire supersede that of every other party member?

Sylva’s Disqualification: Shagari And Gowon Advise Jonathan

Former President Shehu Shagari and former Head of State, Yakubu Gowon, have advised President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan to act like a statesman and desist from his overbearing manipulation of the internal politics of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)
in his home state.
According to a source close to Shagari, the two national leaders in separate phone calls, warned the President that his direct involvement in the crisis engulfing the party in the state belittled his stature as leader of the nation.
Most importantly, the two national leaders, were miffed by the deployment of security agencies to the state at a time the Jonathan government appears lost about how to handle pressing security challenges in parts of the country.
The phone calls, it was gathered, was an idea mooted by Shagari and the two leaders later agreed to call Jonathan separately believing that the strategy will exert more pressure on the President.
The president was said to have assured them that he had no role in the crisis, saying it was purely a party affair.
The pressure by the two national leaders followed similar appeals by national leaders like Alhaji Balarabe Musa, Laiwa Kaita, Alhaji Abdulkareem Daiyabu and Civil rights activist, Mallam Sheu Sani following the controversial disqualification of incumbent Governor, Timipre Sylva from the PDP Gubernatorial primaries.
Kaita, a member of the PDP Board of Trustees said the decision to stop Sylva from pursuing his ambition for a second term was unfortunate and an infringement of his fundamental right.
Balarabe Musa, who is the Chairman of the Conference of Nigerian Political Parties (CNPP), also described President Jonathan’s role in the crisis “as bad politics,” warning the President to learn from the mistakes of the past.
Musa commended Governor Sylva for going this far in the legal tussle and urged him “not to give up.”

Sylva’s Disqualification: Legogie Lambastes PDP

Former Deputy Senate President, Senator Albert Legogie, has berated the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) over the exclusion of Governor Timipre Sylva of Bayelsa State from the forthcoming gubernatorial election in the state.
Legogie, who spoke in Abuja, noted that every party had its guidelines for selecting candidates for elections, saying, “Unfortunately, we do not know the basis for the decision which has been made regarding the Bayelsa State governorship election.
“But I must say that from what I have read in the papers, the decision of the PDP cannot be said to be transparent.”
He further advised Sylva about the choices he had before him. “He can decide to remain in the party and not be a governor, he can decide to wait till tomorrow and contest some other positions and he can also decide to resign from the party and go into another party and run for the governorship.”
Legogie also frowned at the media for not following issues to logical conclusions, saying, “You know, when issues like this rear their ugly heads in this country, people talk about them for a very short time and in a week or two, people will forget about this. Nobody will talk about this again. You people in the media would not even mention it again. You will start following the new man that has emerged no matter how he emerged.”

Illegality of PDP’s Disqualification of Timipre Sylva

In recent weeks, the Nigerian nation‑space has been beleaguered by brazen intrigues and a suffocating obsession of a section of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) with the eerie connivance and covert encouragement and inducement of the Presidency)

with what was, hitherto, a hidden agenda behind the breakneck speed with which the anti-Sylva faction wants to prevent incumbent Governor Timipre Sylva from contesting the Bayelsa State gubernatorial elections on the platform of the PDP.

Following a gale of unconfirmed reports on President Goodluck Jonathan's alleged surreptitious bid to remove Gov. Sylva from office, Nigerian at home and in the diaspora expressed horror about the incredible rumors that the President of Nigeria should make himself a party to, or allow his high office to be associated with, such dishonorable manipulations and subversions of the Electoral Act and the Nigerian constitution which, by his oath of office, he solemnly swore to preserve, protect and defend.

Jonathan’s role in the unfolding Bayelsa gubernatorial election saga is nothing but shameless. Enjoined by his oath of office to uphold the laws of the land, Jonathan is expected to hold the scale even between the contending political forces and interests within his own party. That he has decided to abuse that role by picking a cheap quarrel with Governor Sylva, smacks of a betrayal of trust and shows the extent to which even the PDP constitution has been subverted.

After petitioning the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to stop the primaries scheduled for next Saturday, November 19, 2011, Sylva filed a motion ex parte against the PDP in the Federal High Court in Abuja seeking injunctive reliefs. As at the last instance, Justice G.O. Kolawole fixed Tuesday, November 22nd as the next court date and extended an invitation to the PDP, which the party must honour within 72 hours of being served with the said motion, or show such reasonable and just cause why the plaintiff should not be entitled to the reliefs sought in the motion.

The facts of the case are easy to understand. The governorship primaries were duly held in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State on 9th January, 2011 and at the end of that exercise (which was observed by INEC officials), Timipre Sylva emerged the winner, having scored majority of the valid votes cast. Huhuonline.com understands that in a letter dated January 24, 2011, the PDP subsequently submitted Sylva’s name to INEC as its governorship candidate in Bayelsa State as required by Section 31(1) of the Electoral Act, 2010.

The gubernatorial election which was scheduled to hold on 15th April, 2011 was later postponed in five states – Bayelsa, Cross River, Kogi, Adamawa and Sokoto. INEC eventually announced that the governorship election in Bayelsa State will be held in February, 2012, but did not call for fresh nomination of candidates by political parties. It was thus with a sense of shock and utter bewilderment that Sylva learnt from paid newspaper advertorials that the PDP will be conducting fresh governorship primaries in Bayelsa State on 19th November, 2011, despite the fact that Sylva’s nomination had already been forwarded to INEC as the PDP candidate for the governorship election.

According to Section 33 of the 2010 Electoral Act, (as amended): “a political party shall not be allowed to change or substitute its candidate whose name has been submitted pursuant to Section 32 of this Act, except in the case of death or withdrawal by the candidate.”

The rationale for this particular safeguard is quite meaningful and important. It is not in dispute that Gov. Sylva is neither dead; nor has he withdrawn his candidature to contest the Bayelsa State governorship election on the PDP platform. By using tendentious and disingenuous arguments to conduct a fresh governorship primary in Bayelsa State, the PDP State Working Committee (SWC) is in clear violation and subversion of Section 33 of the Electoral Act, making the emergence of any other gubernatorial aspirant from the exercise, null and void.

The Wakili Momud-led SWC obviously has a strange and subnormal predilection for hypocrisy. It adopted a cunning stratagem in the nature of secret review meetings and retreats involving predetermined groups of duplicitous speakers as though there were no guidelines for electing the party’s flag bearer in the elections. Doubtless, the SWC never troubled its head about what it set out to do by trying to foist Jonathan’s choice, Hon. Seriake Dickson as the PDP candidate for Bayelsa State.

The entire process was totally flawed. And this is so by reason of the fact that everything, including their thinking caps, had to be subordinated to their gnawing obsession with how to prevent Gov. Sylva from seeking re-election. Otherwise, they would have known that the choice of the PDP candidate for the gubernatorial election as contingent upon adherence to the provisions of section 32 and 33 of the Electoral Act is settled law.

As Lord Denning said in one of his memorable pronouncements upon the law: "If an act is void, then it is in law a nullity, Every proceeding which is founded on it is also bad and incurably bad. You cannot put something on nothing and expect it to stay there. It will collapse": see Macfoy v. United Africa Co Ltd 1961 3 W.L.R. 1405 at page 1409. (emphasis added) An act that is null and void amounts to "nothing," being deemed in law not to exist or not to have taken place at all.

In conclusion, all the hateful machinations that have led to the disqualification of Gov. Sylva have been at the instance of President Jonathan. The President can no longer lie and hide behind the PDP; his dishonorable role in the unfolding saga, is now an undeniable fact which has been advertised in a flourish of trumpets, including the work of the divided SWC and other related PDP panels. They are therefore a nullity: the disqualification of Sylva from seeking re-election as the PDP flag bearer in the February 2012 election is patently null and void. Its nullity and illegality can be rested on the grounds set out above in sequential order.

sylva, is just unstoppable and indefatigable, no person or a group of persons, can stop him,

sometimes i wd wonder wat politics in nigeria is turning into, some people wd just be somewhr deciding who shd be some whr,
this mafia thing is becoming sometin else, all this are just to distract sylva, and cut him outta the loop, i wont work,

Why is Jonathan belittling the Office of the President Nigeria?

When MEND throw bomb, he will turn to their PRO and even invite them to tea season.
Now he want to put his own governor of Bayelsa with Federal Security might.

GEJ is just not concentrating neither is he even listening, of all the crisis and anomalies we av in this country,
bayelsa state govt, is wat concerns him, just for selfish claims, so unscrupulous , its so disheartening,

Anyone who voted for GEJ and not PDP should please not talk against the fresh air he wanted.
More of GEJ's incompetence will come to surface from next month. Happy fresh air!

Anyone who feels Sylva ought to be allowed to return to Yenagoa is either mentally derailed or related to him.

This is a state of less than 2M inhabitants,receives collosal amounts of monies as allocations and other grants,yet the people remain one of the most impoverished in the country.

Nigerians are the ones clamouring for the ouster or at least overhauling of the underperforming PDP and now that they're trying to get their acts together by putting the right people in the right places,people are still ranting.

This is why i could never be a politician in Nigeria.

^^^ maybe he has done better than " fresh air" when he ruled the state do 8 good years both as Gov & Depu. Gov.

well maybe sylva wasnt a good governor, dont knw much but wud prefer they had allowed him contest d primaries. If he loses, all dis issues wont be here.

The drama continues.

@ Olalekan O thanks my brother people just talk because they can talk, we are on ground here we know wat this evil has done. Silver must go. He has done worst things to others and killed many.

Olalekan 0:

Anyone who feels Sylva ought to be allowed to return to Yenagoa is either mentally derailed or related to him.

This is a state of less than 2M inhabitants,receives collosal amounts of monies as allocations and other grants,yet the people remain one of the most impoverished in the country.

Nigerians are the ones clamouring for the ouster or at least overhauling of the underperforming PDP and now that they're trying to get their acts together by putting the right people in the right places,people are still ranting.

This is why i could never be a politician in Nigeria.

Don't mind them!
Check their total number of posts. Most of them have just 3 or 4! Its easy to draw an informed conclusion from that, I can bet that some would have only joined this morning. Lol!

I wonder whether it is poverty that makes people think like this!! I am not against his second tenure but let me ask you guys, "what has been his achievements for the past four year?" Does he deserves another tenure based on his judicious use of the state resources?  

Even the parliament thinks Sylva was a better governor  than Odechukwu Retardeen

Beaf:

Don't mind them!
Check their total number of posts. Most of them have just 3 or 4! Its easy to draw an informed conclusion from that, I can bet that some would have only joined this morning. Lol!

Tanx!These emergency posters are dfinitely paid agents.I stand wt GEJ on this one,he shd not allow Sylva anywhere near d ballot paper;infact if he had d kind of guts I wish he had,GEJ shd make sure d guy is prosecuted for d numerous offences he has committed.Rubbish paid posters trying to hoodwink there unborn children!

kholis:

Anyone who voted for GEJ and not PDP should please not talk against the fresh air he wanted.
More of GEJ's incompetence will come to surface from next month. Happy fresh air!

fresh air indeed!

Fresh air that has turned into hot air for Nigerians.

Olalekan 0:

Anyone who feels Sylva ought to be allowed to return to Yenagoa is either mentally derailed or related to him.

This is a state of less than 2M inhabitants,receives collosal amounts of monies as allocations and other grants,yet the people remain one of the most impoverished in the country.

Nigerians are the ones clamouring for the ouster or at least overhauling of the underperforming PDP and now that they're trying to get their acts together by putting the right people in the right places,people are still ranting.

This is why i could never be a politician in Nigeria.

This is so off point. What people are calling for is the rule of law. We don't need more strongmen who mistake their whims and caprices for the rule of law.

You can not build a just and progressive society by illegal and unconstitutional means. Sylva is the LEGAL candidate. They should have defeated him legally.

Aside the squandering of his state's resources, is it GEJ that is belittling the office of the President of Nigeria or Governor Silva, when he openly THREATENED THE PRESIDENT OF THIS NATION AND HIS FAMILY MEMBERS by saying he would murder GEJ and his family!

Tell me anywhere in the world where "any man" can threaten to slaughter a SITTING PRESIDENT, his wife and kids, OPENLY and yet he wants to have a "smooth ride"?
I've got NEWS for you: When his SINGLE TERM is over and he is purged of his "Governorship immunity", he will be charged for TREASON!

No one should have the audacity to threaten a common man, OPENLY, not to talk of someone who occupies the "position" of the President and Commander-in-Chief of a Country! Not Tympriye Silva, Not anyone. Wetin im dey smoke sef?

Just wait small.

Johndoe100:

This is so off point. What people are calling for is the rule of law. We don't need more strongmen who mistake their whims and caprices for the rule of law.

You can not build a just and progressive society by illegal and unconstitutional means. Sylva is the LEGAL candidate. They should have defeated him legally.

Exactly. The issue at hand is not about slvia's failures but the rule of law.

There is something i fail to get.
Does PDP not have the right to disqualify Sylva from contesting the primaries on the grounds of POOR PERFORMANCE?
Is it a God given right that an incumbent must contest and win a primary?
What is the need for all this drama? Can't PDP simply say,thank you for the past four years,We have a better candidate now.Good bye.

Most commentators on this issue are neither bayelsans nor resident in Bayelsa. The state legislators are only interested in their private investments.
The truth is that Sylva has failed the state. He and his cohorts want to use public funds to perpetrate themself in office for wastage of more revenue. God forbid that their plan should work. What do you say of a governor that has been booed openly by the people on several occassions?
What GEJ is doing is not strange in nigerian politics. Lets not behalf like hypocrites, Bayelsa must be liberated from drug addicts and mediocres.