A former Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Hon. Yekini Nabena, has warned that Bayelsa State Governor Douye Diri will add no real value to the party if he goes ahead with his planned defection from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Nabena alleged that rather than strengthening the APC, Diri is scheming to destabilise the existing leadership structure in Bayelsa to pave the way for his personal interests.
Speaking with journalists in Abuja on Friday, the Bayelsa-born APC chieftain claimed that the governor’s planned move to the APC, expected to be formalised on Monday, would not have the kind of political impact Diri might be anticipating.
“We are not saying the governor should not join the APC; it’s a democracy, and he has the right to join any party,” Nabena said. “What we will not accept is his attempt to destroy existing party structures and people just because he wants to take full control of the APC in Bayelsa.”
He accused members of Diri’s camp of being behind false reports linking the Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Dr. Samuel Ogbuku, to an alleged coup plot — a story that recently surfaced in a section of the media.
According to Nabena, the rumours were a deliberate attempt to smear Ogbuku’s image and destabilise the Bayelsa APC leadership ahead of Diri’s defection.
“We have traced these recent developments to Diri’s camp,” Nabena alleged. “The plan is to destroy the existing organs and prominent members of the APC in Bayelsa before he officially joins the party on Monday.”
The APC stalwart questioned what political value the Bayelsa governor would bring to the ruling party, claiming that many key PDP figures in the state are not defecting with him.
“This is a governor whose deputy is not following him, and he is already plotting to impeach the deputy,” Nabena stated. “Even members of the State House of Assembly and over 90 per cent of serving National Assembly members from the state are not with him. He is not even in control of his local constituency, let alone his entire senatorial district.”
Nabena further maintained that many prominent PDP leaders in Bayelsa remain loyal to Dr. Ogbuku and are more likely to align with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda through the NDDC boss “at the right time.”
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