Investigation: Why Bayelsa Ministerial Nominee’s Name Was Omitted By Tinubu

There are fresh indications to why ministerial nominee from Bayelsa State failed to follow the first batch of 28 nominees, sent to the senate by the president.

The President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Thursday sent in 28 ministerial nominees from 25 states and that of the nominee from Bayelsa and ten other states failed to make the first set of appointees.

It was gathered that intrigues and in-fighting among members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state was responsible for the president dropping the name forwarded to him by the leadership of the party.

A party source who do not want his name mentioned hinted that power play among party big wigs caused the omission of the name of the nominee

The source further hinted that the former Governor of Rivers State, Mr. Nyeson Wike had submitted the name of a former minister of state for Agriculture and former Senator, Senator Heineken Lokobiri to the president, but members of the party kicked against the nomination.

It was further learnt that a former governor of Delta State, Chief James Ibori also made case for the former Bayelsa speaker. Which has generated serious altercations among party members.

Earlier Speculations were rife that a former Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) Managing Director, Mr. Ndutimi Alaibe was the nominee of former President Goodluck Jonathan, but when the list was made public, the name was not mentioned by the Senate president God’s will Akpabio.

The Senators are expected to start the screening of the 28 ministerial nominees on Monday. There are three blocks within the party in Bayelsa State haggling for the slot, we learnt of the Ebitimi Amgbare’s camp, Chief Timipre Sylva’s camp and David Lyon’s camp.

Meanwhile, the dissolved Tinubu/Shettima Independent Campaign Council, (ICC), Bayelsa chapter, has urged the President Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu to consider for appointment those who contributed to the victory of the All Progressives Congress APC, and not those who contributed next to nothing.

Pastor Joseph Fafi, the Director Finance, Tinubu/Shettima Independent Campaign Council, stated this during a press briefing.
He said that the ICC was formed to amongst other things to effectively sell the Tinubu/Shettima ticket by engaging in one-on-one Campaigns with the electorate at the grassroots.

According to him, the ICC in Bayelsa state under the leadership of Mr Preye Aganaba, painstakingly set up the required structure up to the units. Which work hard to produced the result we had.

He said: “While we acknowledge the immense contributions of some individuals especially in Ogbia and Member Local Government Areas of the State.

“Even in those areas, the ICC was the most visible campaign outfit reaching to the grassroots in the state.

“It is based on the forgoing that we have invited you to express our worry at the actions of some highly placed individuals both within and outside the state in recommending persons who contributed next to nothing for appointments.

“There are those whose sense of entitlement is only based on friendship to those at the corridor of power and not on effective participation.

“We have seen in the past few days persons and groups, even those who sat in their air-condition offices throughout the campaign period making unsubstantiated claims,” he said.

Fafi who was a former Chairman of the APC in Bayelsa state further said that the action is taken in the state to avoid the mistakes of the past, where people who are complete strangers to the party are appointed into offices and immediately turn their back on the party. It’s the party that suffers at the end of the day.

” Those who we campaigned to in creeks and villages are eagerly waiting for the fulfillment of promises that were made.

“We are therefore appealing to Mr President to give priority to members of ICC in Bayelsa state in the ongoing recruitment process,” he said.

Bayelsa APC Elders Kick Against Jonathan’s Attempt To Nominate Minister
Aggrieved elders from the Bayelsa State chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) have condemned relentless attempts by former President Goodluck Jonathan to nominate the state’s ministerial slot in President Ahmed Bola Tinubu’s forthcoming cabinet.

The stakeholders under the auspices of the Bayelsa APC Elders Council wondered why Jonathan was angling to produce a minister after actively and openly supporting the candidate of his Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alh. Atiku Abubakar.

Speaking in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, on Tuesday, the Chairman of the council,
Chief Michael Adomokeme, said it was wrong for Jonathan to be trying to reap where he did not sow.

He said Jonathan was threading the part of unfairness and injustice insisiting that his desperation could be likened to someone seeking to receive salaries from company A after working for company B.

But Adomekeme expressed confidence that President Tinubu as a known rewarder of hardwork would not allow a situation of ‘monkey work, baboon chop’.

He said: “People shouldn’t try to reap where they have never sowed. Some of us have been here since the early days of this party, when it was considered to be a taboo just by being a member’

“You all remember, APC in Bayelsa was called either Islamic party or Hausa party by these same people, I mean, Jonathan and his people. Fast forward to the 2023 elections President Jonathan did everything to make sure we failed, but we didn’t as God would have it. What right has he to suddenly want to now nominate the minister from Bayelsa State?’

“He was president for six years, he personally nominated dozens of Ministers. Why is he now so interested in just the single we as a party in Bayelsa wants to get? Is it to truncate the APC’s visible path to victory come November?’

“It is even an aberration and very demeaning for a former President to go cap-in-hand begging for a single ministerial slot. It ridicules and relegates the office of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria’

“He has been dubbed a statesman and hero of democracy. Fine and good, let him continue being that and not being a statesman by day and a political lobbyist by night”.

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