Violence: APC stained with blood, predominantly evil, says Bayelsa PDP

THE Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), has expressed concern over the increased perpetration of violence by the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Bayelsa State, saying apart from having “a predominantly evil nature”, its hands have always been stained with blood.

The party was reacting to the recent spate of violence and bloodletting unleashed on members by the Bayelsa State Chapter of the APC in Yenagoa.

The PDP in a statement by the Bayelsa State Chairman, Cleopas Moses, shortly after its emergency at the Executive Council (EXCO) meeting said, recurring bloodshed in APC had become a threat to grassroots democracy and embarrassment to Bayelsans.

He said, “The fight for supremacy between the two warring factions of the APC, which led to the firing of arms and ammunitions on the streets of Yenagoa, is a clear fact that the APC plays politics of do-or-die. The recorded violence is an embarrassment to Bayelsans and a threat to grassroots democracy.

“PDP is worried about the cases of violence which resulted in reported cases of deaths, all in the disguise of Politics. Extreme violence has become a recurring decimal in almost all APC activities in the State, not forgetting the orgy of violence in the 2015 governorship primaries, APC 2017 non-elective congresses and the attempted inauguration of their acting state chairman was mayhem in the state.

“These same characters have a predominantly evil nature which played itself out during the last Bayelsa State governorship elections where innocent people were killed in Silga, Ekeremor, Brass and other Local Government Areas, in their fight against the matchless candidate of the PDP, Governor Seriake Dickson.”

Moses therefore raised the alarm that the spate of political violence among APC members was an omnibus signal of what they could be planning for subsequent elections.

He therefore called on the Commissioner of Police and other security agencies not to relent in their efforts to ensure that the culprits were found and brought to justice in accordance with the laws of the land.

While commending the efforts of the Governor in sustaining harmony and peaceful co-existence of all citizens of the State, the PDP urged government not to relent but to continue as no state can make remarkable progress in an insecure environment.

Moses, however, called on all members, supporters, followers and well-meaning Bayelsans to give their solidarity and allegiance to Governor Dickson, who is the leaders of the party in the State, as he is poised to sustain the PDP rule in the state beyond 2020.

He shun divisive elements attempting to crop up in order to struggle for the state party leadership only for their selfish political interests, adding that Governor Dickson remained the only certified, approved and respected leader who knows and understands the political intrigues and strategies to defeat the APC in Bayelsa State.

The State PDP EXCO, passed a vote of confidence on Dickson and his team; adding that PDP remain intact at the state and national level, even as he urged party members to be law-abiding and go about their businesses in a peaceful manner without fear of any molestation.