By Emeka Alex Duru
Before the November 16, 2019 governorship election in Bayelsa State, many had tipped Senator Douye Diri of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for victory. In a system where the incumbency factor and possession of structures play big role in elections, everything had pointed in his favour. He was the candidate of the out-going governor, Seriake Dickson.
Many political parties in the state, fielded candidates in the exercise. But it was obvious that the race was, a straight fight between Diri of the PDP and David Lyon of the All Progressives Congress (APC). Diri ran on the mantra of continuity, pledging to sustain the tradition of the Dickson administration in many respects. In particular, he promised to give education a boost and involve more Bayelsans in the economic activities of the state. Lyon promised change.
Diri seemed to have upper hand at the campaigns. But on the election which was marked by high scale irregularities, Lyon of the APC was declared the winner. The shock was unprecedented. Aside Lyon not being popular, the APC had no foothold in Bayelsa. Since the commencement of the current civilian dispensation, PDP has won most of the elective positions in the state. Even the former president, Goodluck Jonathan, is from the state. Bayelsa, is thus, held as representing the soul of PDP. That accounted for the shock that trailed Lyon’s victory.
But the victory song, was not wholesome. In fact, three days to the election, there were some developments that eventually turned the tide against Lyon and the APC. A Federal High Court in Abuja, had on November 12, 2019 disqualified Lyon’s running mate, Biobarakuma Degi-Eremienyo in the election for submitting forged certificates to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). APC had appealed the judgement at the Appeal Court and received favourable judgement. But the Supreme Court, on Thursday, February 13, upturned the verdict of the Appeal Court and upheld the judgement of the Federal High Court.
The Apex Court nullified the election of Lyon and Degi-Eremienyo, who were already preparing to be inaugurated into office on Friday, February 14.
The five-man panel of the Court led by Justice Mary Peter-Odili ordered INEC to withdraw the Certificate of Return issued to the APC candidates as the winners of the November 16, 2019 governorship election in the state.
It ordered INEC to issue fresh certificates to the candidates of the party with the next highest votes and with the required constitutional spread of votes in the results of the election. That was the PDP.
Justice Ejembi Ekwo, who read the lead judgment of the Court, made the orders after disqualifying the APC’s deputy governorship candidate, Degi-Eremienyo, as a candidate in the election. The Court ruled that Degi-Eremienyo’s disqualification had infected the joint ticket with which he and the governorship candidate, Lyon, ran for and won the November 16, 2019.
After the pronouncement, the Government House in Yenagoa and supporters of the PDP in the state went into celebration. Yopele Andrew, an indigene of the state, explained the turn of events as “exciting and refreshing”. According to him, “the Supreme Court judgement is a soothing reversal of the unprecedented rigging that produced Lyon on November 16, 2019”. For Agnes Tompra, another Bayelsa indigene, the eventual outcome of the election, provides opportunity for Douye to consolidate on and even strengthen the good qualities of the departing Dickson Restoration Agenda.
