TheCable

BY RICHARD AKINAKA

Faced with the consequences of the last four years of scandalous misrule of Bayelsa State, and confronted with the emerging reality that TIMI ALAIBE remains the single, most potent and capable politician in the state that is set to dislodge them from power, the ever callous leaders of the now failed Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), have resorted to what they know how to do best: TELL LIES.

Having scanned the environment sufficiently and discovered that TIMI ALAIBE is their headache in PDP, their warped ploy now is to make so much noise, tell so much lies and throw as much mud as possible, in the misguided belief that leaders and members of our great party, the All Progressives Congress (APC), would fall into a trap of presenting a weak opponent in the December 5, 2015 governorship election.

This is the strategy of weak minds. And it will not work because the people of Bayelsa State have been kept impoverished by these same people fr too long. They have made Bayelsa State to become a huge joke because the governor they produced has turned out to be the worst symbol of failure in many ways. It was because of this incompetence and shameless deceit that forced good and committed members of the party to leave in their thousands recently.

From last month’s failed attempt to insinuate an innocent man into their sanitation day show of shame when they lied about Alaibe’s presence in Yenegoa whereas he was in Lagos State; to the ungodly and inhuman play on the tragedy that befell our party when our former leader, Col Inokoba (retired), died, by sponsoring a story that the man died in Alaibe’s house, the leaders of PDP in Bayelsa State have been clutching at every weak straw as they continue to drown in their ocean of irresponsible leadership.

These are indeed interesting yet dangerous, very dangerous times.

The latest from the dirty stable of the PDP are the obviously unthinking, senseless and puerile lies credited to a certain factotum with the incongruous description of the state secretary of the PDP. According to one of the online publications where Bayelsa State funds are being pumped into in sponsorship, Alaibe has been accused in the most stupid and senseless manner of spending billions of naira on the former President Olusegun Obasanjo’S third term bid of 2006 and another several billions on the removal of Diepreye Solomon Peter Alamieyeseigha as governor of Bayelsa State many years ago.

On the issue of Alamieyeseigha, the PDP members should look inwards and ask those who took over from the governor how they became beneficiaries of Alamieyeseigha’s removal from office if truly someone else funded the grand betrayal of the governor. We will not go any further on that; yet. Those who live in glasses have no reason to throw stones.

The same goes for the Third Term bid and the silly allegation of my funding it. During the third term drama, Alaibe was neither a state governor nor the managing director of the NDDC as claimed by the publication. So, in what capacity did he fund the project and in whose interest? It would be good for these shameless liars to come out with facts; and not because of their wild sense of little appreciation for decency, begin to throw figures about.

On The Niger Delta development Commission, NDDC, we urge anybody who wishes to know the truth and the unmatchable level of service delivery during Alaibe’s tenure as the Managing Director of the Commission to do a search on the internet. It would be discovered that the quantum of service delivery during his tenure dwarfs, in all forms and ramifications, the achievements of PDP’s governance of Bayelsa State in the last four years. This is a fact, and not political lies.

Even the two probes by the PDP administration ordered by the government at the centre, after Alaibe had left the place, discovered nothing against his person. These are records these liars should be familiar with before embarking on this hate-loaded adventure. Instead, they are behaving like pigs that would not shy away from a mud-fight.

Finally, Bayelsans are wiser today and are ready to kick out PDP. No amount of subterfuge will or can subvert the determination of Bayelsans to sweep away PDP and their surest way of doing so – which the PDP leaders are so afraid of now – is to present Alaibe as the APC candidate.

Were it not so, how does the governorship primary of APC concern the scared leaders of PDP? In a free and fair contest where the will of the people will count, an APC governorship candidate freely chosen by accredited delegates of our party will dust PDP’s choice.

Because they know that that candidate will back Alaibe, based on the massive grassroots support anchored on citizen engagement, service delivery, foresight and insight on what constitutes true governance, the leaders of PDP are so scared they are losing so much sleep even before Alaibe engages them in the field as APC gubernatorial candidate.

We have it on good authority that some funny things are going on in government because of the fear of Alaibe’s emergence knowing that we will look into the books and where clear cases of corrupt enrichment are established, they will be pursued. The people want to speak and they will speak – first on Saturday September 19, and finally on Saturday, December 5, 2015.

Inciting Ijaw sentiments against Alaibe will not work. Alaibe is a true Ijaw son; tested, and proven. Ijaw people of today are wiser and better informed. No amount of falsehood by PDP or anybody else will counter their determination to effect CHANGE in its totality; soon, very soon.