Diri warns Wike, says ‘Bayelsa is not Rivers, we’ll deal with troublemakers’

Governor Duoye Diri of Bayelsa State has declared that he would do everything to protect lives and property in the South-South state.
Warning the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister, Nyesom Wike, that Bayelsa would not condone any act capable of disrupting the peace of the state, Diri advised security commanders, youths, elders and traditional rulers to be on the alert.
While raising the alarm about a plot to breach the peace of the 29-year-old state, he declared that Bayelsans have the capacity to protect themselves.
The governor spoke on Thursday at separate meetings with the Bayelsa Elders Council and at the 37th session of the state security council.

He warned that a planned mega rally and inauguration of a group loyal to Wike was capable of igniting avoidable crisis in the state.
Diri noted that a suspended member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), George Turnah, had been enlisted to create factions in the party in the state.
The governor also stated that holding such event at a time the political crisis in Rivers State had heightened ethnic tensions could degenerate into conflict in the state.
He further stated that the alarm was imperative given that Wike had threatened to cause crisis in PDP-governed states in the country.
He said: “Any attempt to import the Rivers State political crisis into Bayelsa will be resisted.
“I urge security commanders in the state to be on the alert. Parents and traditional rulers should discourage their wards and children from being used by unscrupulous elements to cause trouble in the state”.
Diri, who insisted that the peaceful disposition of the Ijaw should not be misconstrued for cowardice, said the state would not allow a faceless group to foment trouble in Bayelsa, which is the homeland of all Ijaw people.
“As you are aware, we have threats from our sister state. The political crisis there is threatening us and we will not allow what is happening there to come into Bayelsa State.
“We had in our party a renegade, who has decided to form a parallel PDP in Bayelsa State, working with an ex-governor.
“The party in our state suspended him for gross misconduct and for now, he is not a member of our party in Bayelsa State.
“He was a part of the kangaroo PDP South South zonal congress that was rejected by the National Working Committee of our party and he is threatening the peace of this state.
“This is not Rivers State. Bayelsa is the cradle of every Ijaw man. I have always said that being peaceful is not cowardice. We are very courageous and we can stand up for the truth at all times.
“Every public facility owned by the Bayelsa State government cannot be used except with the express approval of the state government”.
He enjoined the people to continue to maintain the prevailing peace in the state to sustain its development.
At the meeting with the elders council, the governor assured the elders of judicious use of the state’s resources.
Responding on the electricity situation in the state, Diri explained that the current blackout resulted from vandalised towers in Rivers and assured that he would work with relevant bodies to restore power.
He added that with the procurement of a gas turbine, the state would soon experience steady power supply.
He also revealed that the state was set to employ about 1000 Bayelsans into the civil service.
“Again, we are going to employ another 1000 Bayelsans. That process is already on. From information I got from the civil service commission, they have received about 36,000 applications. It is like what we are doing is a drop of water in the ocean, but it is a good way to start”.