Bayelsa State Governor, Senator Douye Diri, has urged members of the state’s All Progressives Congress to intensify grassroots mobilisation to ensure that no opposition political party secures 25 per cent of the votes in the 2027 presidential and National Assembly elections.
Diri gave the charge on Saturday at the grand finale of the Bayelsa East Renewed Hope Movement sensitisation campaign, where he stressed the need for APC members to consolidate their political gains and reach out to undecided voters ahead of the elections.
Represented by his deputy, Dr Peter Akpe, the governor said the party could not afford to become complacent despite its political standing in the state, insisting that members must intensify mobilisation efforts to secure an overwhelming victory.
The state’s helmsman also commended political leaders and stakeholders in Bayelsa East for embracing reconciliation and sustaining peace, as he described unity as essential to the state’s political and developmental progress.
He said, “On behalf of our leader and Governor, His Excellency, Senator Douye Diri, I want to thank you for your show of love and support. We are happy with what you are doing for our party. We appreciate your sacrifices. Look at how you have even defied the rain.
“So, I appreciate every one of you – the leadership and all those who have worked with the government of Bayelsa to ensure that peace and unity are maintained and improved on in Bayelsa East, going forward.
“But saying thank you does not mean you should go to sleep. It is time to dot the i’s and cross the t’s. One or two people are out there waiting for us to harvest. Bring them inside. Do not leave them outside because we want to squeeze the opposition to zero point.
“Our winning is sure, but if we score 75 per cent, we have not won because the other people should not get 25 per cent. I emphasise that no opposition party or candidate should get 25 per cent of votes in Bayelsa.”
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In his remarks, the Managing Director, Niger Delta Development Commission, Dr Samuel Ogbuku, described the unity among political leaders in Bayelsa East as a significant development, recalling that collective political action had contributed to the emergence of the district’s first military administrator and first civilian governor.
“It is our unity that gave us a military administrator in the old Rivers State (Alfred Diete-Spiff). It was our unity that gave us the first Rivers civilian governor (Melford Okilo), and this our unity, we know, will bring about better things and prosperity to Bayelsa East.”
He urged party members and supporters to sustain the momentum, insisting that the district would translate its political commitment into votes at the polls, and challenged other senatorial districts in the state to demonstrate similar political unity.
Also speaking, the state’s former Deputy Governor, Rear Admiral Gboribiogha Jonah (retd.), urged political stakeholders to prioritise their collective interests over personal disagreements, stressing that political differences should not prevent cooperation where common interests exist.
“Every politics is local. Every politics is for your interest. The fact that you are fighting with somebody does not mean that I will also fight with that person if that person is working for my interest,” Jonah said.
He also urged voters in the district to support Tinubu’s re-election bid, describing him as the only presidential candidate who had demonstrated a commitment to the devolution of power, which is a long-standing demand of the Niger Delta region.
Others who delivered goodwill messages at the event included the state APC Chairman, Warman Ogoriba; Campaign Director-General, Robert Enogha; APC Bayelsa East senatorial candidate, Israel Sunny-Goli; his House of Representatives counterpart for Nembe/Brass federal constituency, Dr Jonathan Obuebite; and the state Commissioner for Transport, Preye Broderick.
