PDP PRIMARIES: TENSION IN BAYELSA AS ASPIRANTS FERRY THUGS INTO YENAGOA

...SECURITY AGENCIES HOLD EMERGENCY MEETING

There is heightened tension in Bayelsa as a particular aspirant has brought in a large number of thugs and cultists from Port Harcourt, Rivers State and Warri and Asaba in Delta State ahead of the September 3, 2019 primaries of the Peoples Democratic Party.

The thugs are being lodged as customers in some hotels within the Yenagoa Metropolis by the said aspirant with the intention of unleashing mayhem at the venue of the primaries with the aim to disrupt the election in the event of a loss by their principal.

Security operatives are said to have commenced  discreet investigation into the intelligence report about the influx of dangerous characters hired by the desperate aspirant outside the Restoration Caucus of the PDP to disrupt the process.

Investigations reveal that plain-cloth security operatives have been deployed in sensitive parts of the city to forestall a break down of law and order during the primaries.

Security  information filtered into the state last week that one of the aspirants who lost out during the party’s  three-man ward delegate congress and the National Delegate Congress was plotting to cause mayhem during the party’s primaries.

Attempts by thugs working for the particular aspirant were thwarted by security operatives when they attempted to bomb the PDP Secretariat during the August 23, 2019 ward delegates congress.

The frustrated hoodlums then  detonated the explosives near the Treasury Building at Lambert Eradiri Road, Onopa, Yenagoa when they could not beat security cordon around the area.

However, the fear of violence became pronounced when some hoodlums believed to be working for an aggrieved aspirant detonated two explosives at the residences of two PDP Chieftains in Yenagoa.

Those whose houses were bombed are the Chairman of Brass Local Government Area, Mr. Isaiah, and the Member representing Yenagoa 1 in the Bayelsa State House of Assembly, Hon Ojorji Oboku who was the immediate past Chairman of Yenagoa Local Government Area.

While the residence of the Brass Council Chairman was not destroyed, the Assembly member was not so lucky as four vehicles in his compound were badly damaged by the explosives.

Both Oforji and Isaiah said that the Commissioner of Police and the Director State Services in Bayelsa had been  briefed on the developments.

Isaiah said that the Commissioner and the Director of DSS personally visited his residence to confirm the explosion and had commenced investigation.

Oforji also said on Monday that his case had been reported to the police and the DSS adding that the matter was being investigated.

Meanwhile, an emergency meeting of the state security council was held in Yenagoa ahead of the election on Tuesday.

While the outcome of the meeting was not disclosed, there are serious indications that security agencies are making more deployments to the state to prevent violence during the primaries.