The Bayelsa State Government and a former governor of the state, Timipre Sylva, are locked in a war of words over the security situation in Twon Brass, in Brass Local Government Area of Bayelsa state.
Sylva, in a press statement, signed by his Media Officer, Doifie Buokoribo, on Sunday, alleged that the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the Bayelsa State Government wanted to destabilise Brass council by imposing curfew and attacking APC supporters.
Sylva, who also claimed that there were plans to launch a campaign of calumny against him in the media sponsored by the PDP, advised Governor Dickson to be “more imaginative and pay more attention to alleviating the suffering of Bayelsans.”
But Special Adviser to Governor Dickson on Public Affairs, Mr. Daniel Alabrah, said in a statement, on Sunday, that the governorbwas too busy with the execution of the mandate given to him by the people of the state, to join issues with politicians who have failed Bayelsa and the Ijaw Nation.
Dickson said that being in the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) should not be a license for Sylva to allegedly sponsor criminal activities to the detriment of peace and security in the state.
He called on the security agencies to be firm in the performance of their statutory responsibility and not to allow unscrupulous politicians to take advantage of them.
“This is a government that has a mandate to execute on behalf of the Bayelsa people. We cannot afford to be distracted by falsehood emanating from Sylva and his men. Sylva should stop encouraging criminality in Bayelsa; he should support stability and development of his state. We have worked hard to address the insecurity and underdevelopment that Sylva left behind. He is not even concerned that his local government area, Brass, has become a den for criminality.
“He should stop using the name of the President to intimidate security agencies to cover up his criminal activities. We call on the leadership of the security at the national level to encourage and support what the state has been doing and indeed the region instead of allowing criminally minded politicians to play politics with security and use the so-called federal contacts and the name of the President to intimidate people in matters that we believe the President is not aware.”