In 2011 when the leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) led by Alhaji Kawu Baraje disqualified him from contesting the governorship primaries, many concluded that the sun had set on the political career of Chief Timipre Sylva. His serial loss of cases against the PDP candidate and incumbent Governor, Henry Seriake Dickson, further accentuated the belief in political circles that Sylva had lost relevance.

However, in the wake of the forma­tion of the All Progressives Congress (APC), election of the national party chairman, the presidential primaries and the 2015 elections, Sylva’s political fortunes received a boost as his party became the ruling party in the country.

Sylva, who does not hide the feeling that he is still embittered with the way some political elements ousted him from Bayelsa State Government, has told who cares to listen that he is lead­ing the APC in Bayelsa State to sack the PDP from Creek Haven (Bayelsa Government House).

In his recent visit to Yenagoa, Sylva whose eloquence has not diminished in the face of his political travails, stated categorically that APC would take the governorship seat of Bayelsa State. Ac­cording to him, the Goodluck Jonathan fear-factor, which made many Bayel­sans to follow the PDP was no longer there for the party to use to whip people into line to vote for it.

While fielding questions from a select group of journalists in Yenagoa, Sylva diplomatically parried questions on whether he would contest the governor­ship election or not. He, however, noted that constitutionally, he is still entitled to one term, stressing that the leadership of the party would take the final deci­sion on the party’s candidate.

What is the prospect of the APC winning the governorship election in Bayelsa State later this year?

I will tell you without doubt that the All Progressives Congress (APC) is go­ing to take Bayelsa State, in the coming governorship election. I have no iota of doubt about this. We may not have started the process early because in poli­tics, everything is about timing.

For me, I am very strategic. Before now, I was involved in the inauguration of Mr President. Going forward, we will now begin to take politics serious. I am in Yenagoa, the state capital today. I am going round and I am meeting with people. After this process, we will also go round all the local government areas in the state to sensitise the people be­cause you see, you cannot rule by fear.

The people of Bayelsa State were under the spell of fear during the time of Dr. Goodluck Jonathan as president. Everybody was so scared that if they did anything against Jonathan, they would be undone. So, a lot of people from the state were afraid to join us openly even though a good number of them were talking with us privately. Open support was the problem we had initially. Today, that fear is gone and gone forever. You see the commitment the people of the state had for Jonathan was born out of fear; it was not due to love and that kind of commitment can breakdown when the fear element is taken away. Right now, the fear element is gone because he is no longer the incumbent. So, you can see why there is a lot of upsurge in the support for APC in the state.

Unfortunately, this is the same pattern that Dickson is adopting, ruling by fear. You rule the people by intimidation and when you rule by intimidating the people, that kind of loyalty is liable to break under any form of stress. This is what you had during slavery and colo­nialism. Once you rule your people by fear and not by love, you find out that that kind of loyalty cannot endure.

The time for such loyalty to break­down in Bayelsa State has come be­cause the incumbency factor especially at the national level is not there. PDP is a dead party. Whatever they are do­ing in Bayelsa should not be taken into account. They are just shifting the day of the funeral of the party in Bayelsa. When that day of funeral comes, you would all be invited and we would ensure that it is buried finally.

How is the APC prepared to ac­commodate the big fishes in the state politics that are joining the party?

As from now on, APC will begin to wax stronger in Bayelsa State. I don’t know of big and small fishes names as you may claim. As far as I am con­cerned under God, everybody is equal and before the law, everybody is equal. Everybody has just one vote and the big names vote is not more than the vote of the man at the water side.

However, I will tell you that a lot of persons have approached us, but what we don’t want to do is not taking people without proper scrutiny. We want to structure the party properly such that it will be stronger than what it is right now in the state.

We were distracted by the inaugura­tion activities, we had focused on the inauguration, now that the government is in place, and we want to focus on how we can build the party and position it for victory in the state. What we want to do is to take people into APC but not trouble makers; we will be a little bit choosy.

Right now, what we want to do is re­ally sanitize the party; you know I have had the experience of governance. I know that the kind of people you put in front of your government tell a lot about you and as a party, the kind of people you also put in front will also tell a lot about your party. I know all of them because they have all worked with me. The kind of people I will put in front of APC will also tell a lot about our party. So, I have decided that there are certain kinds of persons who will be at the back stage even if they are going to join the party.

Do you have any apologies in the way you ran your administra­tion as governor

I did what I thought was best for Bayelsa. Under my administration, we completed all projects that were initi­ated by the Jonathan administration. I did not start my own projects. Because let me tell you any government that wants to steal money is a government that would abandon project and start their own. Let us face it, before I came, the contract had been awarded, I don’t even know the contractor. If I wanted to steal money, I would have gotten my own contractors to execute projects and pay them upfront. Because this is what the previous government I took over from did. Some of the contractors came to us and confessed because we were worried that some of them had collected so much and there was nothing to show for it.

Bayelsans are worried to know whether you would contest

Bayelsans should not worry at all, what Bayelsa should worry about is whether APC is going to run for the governorship of the state. The forthcoming governorship election in Bayelsa State, is not about me, it is about the change that the people are yearning for, it is about APC as a party. But the caveat is that you people must remember that I am still eligible and equally qualified to run under the law of Nigeria. I am still qualified to run and whether or not would be decided by the party. I want to assure you that the party, APC would take that final deci­sion and whoever we present will beat Governor Dickson in the governorship election in the state.

Have you spoken to Dickson since he became governor?

I don’t think we can ever meet to discuss anything. The Dickson govern­ment is so jittery right now. There is this desperation from the government. There is an adage that the broom the husband used to beat the senior wife is on the rooftop to be used for the junior wife. I don’t understand why Dickson expects a different treatment from the one he favoured me with. He came here with Army, Navy, Air Force; they took over everywhere. They shut me out of Government House, broke into the stadium and ensured that as a delegate, I was not even allowed to vote. So, what does he expect? I am telling you that I have no doubt that we are going to win. Whatever jitters they have are their own problem, PDP is already a dead party in Bayelsa.

http://sunnewsonline.com/new/pdp-jittery-in-bayelsa-sylva/

hmmmm

lf not for President Buhari this heediot would have been in a 2 by 2 jail by now