Ahead of the November 11, 2023, Governorship election in Bayelsa, politicians in the state have been cautioned against reckless and unguarded utterances capable of undermining the prevailing peace in the state.
A concerned group, the Network of Bayelsa Professionals (NBP), made the appeal in a statement made available to newsmen in Abuja on Wednesday.
The statement, signed by the Co-ordinator of the group of professionals from Bayelsa state, Mr. Agbada S. Agbada, said the admonition was to discourage politicians, particularly the gubernatorial candidates, from the path of rancour and bitterness in their campaigns.
The Bayelsa professionals noted that while individuals reserve the right to aspire to any elective office, such aspirations must be pursued with decency and moderation to preserve the relative peace the State has experienced in the past few years.
The group commended Governor Douye Diri for demonstrating exemplary leadership through his consistent accommodation of dissent, criticisms, tolerance for the opposition in the State, and commitment to peace.
According to the group, Diri’s disposition of political maturity is a sharp departure from the norm and has significantly reduced political tension in the State, and; other political actors should emulate the governor in the conduct of their political activities ahead of the elections.
According to the statement, “Recent utterances of some aspirants reflect a fixation on the abhorrent politics of mudslinging and desperation. We note that such utterances could easily heat up the polity and threaten the relative peace in the State.
“While we acknowledge the constitutional rights of qualified Bayelsans to freely aspire to lead the State and encourage active participation by Bayelsans in the electoral process, we advise political actors to avoid politics of bitterness and rancor and take the path of brotherhood, decency, mutual respect, and peace in their political campaigns.
“We also appeal to media organizations not to allow their platforms to be used by politicians to promote hate speech, campaign of calumny, and other inciting and provocative remarks. Bayelsa is our only home, and we have a collective responsibility to protect it from politicians who place their ambitions above the interest of the State”, the group stated.