Since the 1999, two sister local government areas: Ekeremor and Sagbama in Bayelsa State, have been rotating the slots for the senatorial district without rancour. EBIOWEI LAWAL examines the politics, intrigues and the far-reaching implications.
Recently, some elders and stakeholders from Ekeremor Local Government Area of Bayelsa State held a meeting to re-affirm their position on an existing zoning arrangement between Sagbama and Ekeremor in Bayelsa West senatorial district, presently being represented by a former governor of the state, Senator Seriake Dickson, in the National Assembly. The argument of the participants was that there was the need for a power shift from Sagbama to Ekeremor in 2023. They said it was through such political zoning that liberal democracy could bring peace and evenly spread development in the area. The meeting, as expected, has elicited reactions from several elite politicians, including the governor of the state, Senator Douye Diri.
The stakeholders from Ekeremor, in a communiqué read by Fedude Zimughan, said that both Sagbama and Ekeremor which form the senatorial district, had enjoyed mutual understanding in electing representatives to the Senate and House of Representatives and cautioned against any attempt to truncate the arrangement. The communiqué read: “The leaders urge the two National Assembly members representing the Senatorial District and the Federal Constituency who are beneficiaries of the zoning, namely Senator Henry Seriake Dickson and Honourable Fedrick Agbedi to galvanise support to sustain the existing zoning between the two local government areas as patriotic leaders. Those who are interested in contesting for any of the National Assembly seats should confine themselves to comply with the existing zoning arrangement. It will be morally indefensible for any politician to allow the future of our children to be mortgaged. Posterity will not forgive us.”
Further investigations into what led to meeting and resolution revealed that from 1999 till date, the LGAs have evenly shared the tenure of the seats in the Senate and the House without disagreements until the present dispensation.
History has it that, in 1999 Senator Emmanuel Diffa, who hails from Sagbama, was elected to represent the district, and in 2003 when he had issues with party nomination, Senator John Brambaifa, from Sagbama, succeeded him and served until 2007, when Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, from Ekeremor, took over and served eight years in the Senate. It was also learnt that in 2015, Senator Lokpobiri attempted to go for a third tenure but advocates of zoning vehemently objected, and elected Senator Foster Ogola from Sagbama to replace him. Before the expiration of his tenure, Senator Ogola had issues with the leaders of the party and was replaced by Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo in 2019. In 2020 when Ewhrudjakpo was elected deputy governor, the former governor, Senator Dickson, contested the bye-election and won the senatorial seat. The reason for the new agitation for zoning between the LGAs, according to observers, is that if the arrangement is not altered, Dickson may not need to contest for a second term in the Senate.
However, pundits are of the view that two things seem to be wrong with the advocacy for zoning. First is the question of if elections into offices in Nigeria is based on merit or zoning. Secondly, since 2023 is still two years away, is it not premature for such agitations that may distract Dickson that has not said if he has the intention to contest for a second term or not?
While the questions continue to beg for answers, it was learnt that some identified youths allegedly attacked the political leaders of Ekeremor while they were on their way to the said meeting to discuss zoning. Comrade Odogu Kerike and Mr Seibide Finine, leaders of Bayelsa West Frontiers for Solidarity, alleged that the assailants attacked a former Speaker of the state House of Assembly, Honourable Boyelayefa Debekeme and Honourable Famous Daunimugha in a bid to disrupt the meeting. The group, in a statement, cautioned that any politician who wished to contest from Ekeremor should run for the Senate as the slot for House of Representatives has been zoned to Sagbama. According to the group, Mrs Jane Alek, Honourable Ken Kaiama and Japan Udoji insisted that zoning is a family arrangement that is mutually beneficial and no politician, no matter how highly placed, should deviate from it.
To avert a possible counter attack, the state governor, Senator Diri, during the 43rd Executive Council meeting in Government House, Yenagoa, threatened that any of his appointees found indulging in the zoning arrangement debacle would be sacked. He said: “I like to caution and admonish all political appointees that have started heating up the political temperature of the state, particularly in Bayelsa West senatorial district. I find it very difficult to believe that appointees in this government have started with open politicking without the approval of this government. Appointees have started issuing communiqués, signing and rocking the media and political space. At this time that we are trying to stamp our feet to meet our campaign promises and to deliver the dividends of democracy to our people, our own appointees are involved in open politicking. I hereby caution and admonish all those involved to immediately withdraw from those activities. If you will like to continue with this administration, then you should listen to the music of this administration. We are not prepared to start politicking from this year but deliver governance. Henceforth, any of our appointee involved in it should honourably resign. Of course, if you don’t resign and it comes to our knowledge, you will certainly be sacked,” Diri warned.
While the threat has succeeded in calming frayed nerves, the Executive Council of the Ekelga Federated Youth Council called on security agencies to bring the perpetrators of the violent attack to book to serve as deterrent to others. The Public Relations Officer (PRO) of the body, Comrade Preye B Jumbo, said cautioned that he and his colleagues would resist any attempt by anybody or group that wants to mortgage their future and cause hatred among youths in the senatorial district because of personal political ambitions. He declared: “The zoning formula remains sacrosanct in Bayelsa West. come 2023. Ekeremor LGA will produce senator, while Sagbama LGA will have the House of Representatives’ slot. As the political atmosphere is gradually taking shapes in preparation for the 2023 elections, after due consultations, an enlarged stakeholders meeting and a general congress will be called soon to strategise and re-echo our positions on trending political issues, particularly the Bayelsa West zoning agreement.”
Meanwhile, the deputy Speaker of the state House of Assembly, Honourable Michael Ogbere, convened a meeting of elders and political leaders from Ekeremor on the smouldering crisis of confidence in the area. A communiqué issued at the end of the meeting stated: “That there has been an internal zoning arrangement existing in Bayelsa West senatorial district from 1999, which has not been respected. However the trend in national politics whereby only rating members are elected into principal office of the National Assembly and equally made to chair juicy committees in order to influence projects to their people, the clamour and agitation for zoning has become unnecessary, anachronistic and hereby jettisoned for the growth, advancement and development of the district; that we hereby agree and resolved to elect any candidate of our choice irrespective of a particular local government area. We cannot therefore afford to sacrifice merit and competence on the altar of zoning for political expediency. Our position is justified with particular reference to the recent December 5, 2020 BayelsaWest senatorial bye-election, which Rt. Honourable Peremobowei Ebebi from Ekeremor Local Government Area contested on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and subsequently challenged the victory of the winner, Senator Henry Seriake Dickson at the tribunal, up to the Supreme Court. This attests to the fact that the purported zoning in Bayelsa West senatorial district has never been respected.
“That we totally disagree and condemn in its entirety the communiqué re-echoing and re-affirming a non-functional zoning arrangement that emanated from a meeting surreptitiously held on July 22, 2021 by a few persons in a private home, with a view to causing unnecessary political tension in the senatorial district; that we resolved passionately to be represented in the hallowed chambers of the National Assembly by a racking Legislator with vast legislative experiences such as the likes of Senator J.E Manager of Delta State; David Mark of Benue State; Ike Ekweredumadu of Enugu State; Ahmed Lawal of Yobe State; Honourable Nicholas Mutu of Delta State and lots more, whose tremendous influences attracted demands of democracy particular capturing the yearnings of their constituents in the budgetary allocation; that we further resolved to bring to the notice of the leadership of any party at all level the fact that the clamour for zoning is fraught with poor quality representations and under-development in the area. We, therefore, urge all constituents of Ekeremor Local Government Area the purported communique on July 22, 2020, as misguided and lacking in merit in modern democratic standards; that we hereby irreversibly and irrevocably resolve to embrace preference for competence and effective representation and not unproductive zoning agitations”, the communique stressed.
To some observers, the contest for the 2023 elections has begun in earnest in the zone and promises to be interesting in the coming months.
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