…Bayelsa APC Now United for PBAT 2027
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!The pioneer leader of the Progressive Movement in Bayelsa State, Hon. Prince Ebitimi Amgbare, has lauded Governor Douye Diri for convening a stakeholders’ meeting of the All Progressives Congress (APC), describing it as a major step that has brought together all shades of politicians under the party’s umbrella in the state.
According to him, the meeting has further united the Bayelsa APC ahead of the 2027 presidential election of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Prince Amgbare noted that the governor’s action further demonstrates that he is truly a “Renewed Hope Prosperity Governor.”
Speaking to journalists shortly after the APC stakeholders’ meeting convened by Governor Diri in Yenagoa last Monday, Prince Amgbare said the governor’s defection to the APC has unified the hitherto divided party in the state.
Describing Governor Diri’s defection as a great blessing to the APC, Prince Amgbare—who is also Chairman of the Bayelsa State APC Reconciliation Committee—said the governor has succeeded in uniting aggrieved members, as clearly seen at the meeting.
“The coming of Governor Diri to the APC is a blessing,” he said, adding that the governor’s leadership would take the party to enviable heights.
“I have always said this: one thing is for the right governor to come to your party, and another thing is for the wrong governor to come. When the wrong governor comes, it brings crisis and trouble. But when the right governor defects to your party, you know he has come to help the party.”
Likening the governor’s defection to the signing of a world-class footballer, Prince Amgbare, a former soccer star, said:
“It’s just like signing Ronaldo for a club that needs an attacker. When a Ronaldo joins your team—especially in his prime—you are sure of getting 40 goals in a season. Governor Diri has come in that form, like Ronaldo in his heyday. So we are going to get goals.”
He said with the peace process initiated by Governor Diri, the APC is now ready to deliver the 2027 presidential election in Bayelsa State.
“Let me commend the Renewed Hope Prosperity Governor of Bayelsa State, the 001 of APC Bayelsa, for convening this meeting.
For the first time, all key players and politicians in the Bayelsa APC from both divides came together in large numbers.
It was more or less Bayelsa United for Asiwaju and for APC.”
Prince Amgbare further described the governor as a man of peace:
“We have discovered that he is a man of peace who promotes unity. As a prosperity governor, he has created room for people to prosper, and unity is a key factor.
Where there is no unity, there can be no progress, and where there is no unity, prosperity can never be assured.”
Prince Amgbare, who is also the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Niger Delta Basin Development Authority, said past grievances within the party were openly addressed at the meeting.
“I was the chairman of the state APC Reconciliation Committee. I hit a brick wall trying to get some major stakeholders on board, but at this meeting, I was glad to see everyone present.
Even the chairman some of us previously refused to recognise addressed us when the governor invited him to speak. That shows we are now united. Those with grievances aired them openly, thanks to the maturity of the governor.”
Further commending Governor Diri for braving the odds faced by the APC in the state, Prince Amgbare recalled his role as the pioneer leader of the Action Congress (AC), later Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), in Bayelsa State.
“As the leader of the progressive movement in Bayelsa State, I understand what it takes to nurture a political party. The first thing is to bring people together and assure them of leadership.
I led the Action Congress in Bayelsa State, later the ACN, before it became the APC. I was also the governorship candidate of the party. So I know what it means to organise a party. This is the right way to go.”
On the ongoing APC e-registration exercise, Prince Amgbare said it was aimed at determining the actual strength of the party in the state.
“Politics is a game of numbers. E-registration captures only living human beings—you can’t register shadows. With manual registration, fictitious names can be included.”
Recalling the 2007 rerun election in which he was a governorship candidate, he noted that fictitious names in the voters’ register contributed to the annulment of the election.
“We proved that the foundation of the results was faulty because there were fictitious names in the register.”
He said the APC’s current exercise is designed to ensure credibility and verifiable membership figures.
“If we say APC has one million members in Bayelsa State, we should be able to point to them. In the past, some states claimed 100 million members, but election results did not reflect that.
We want a verifiable register, even if not everyone eventually turns out to vote.”
Prince Amgbare also disclosed that the governor, as leader of the party in the state, has concluded arrangements with the APC national headquarters to deploy ICT teams to train trainers who will cascade the process to the grassroots.
“Thanks to the governor, the ICT team from the national headquarters has been brought in to train the trainers, who will then train others at the grassroots.
Eventually, links will be made available so people can register from the comfort of their homes. This is our own census, and we will work hard to achieve it.”
He concluded by commending Governor Diri’s progressive approach and urging party members to temporarily set aside personal ambitions in the interest of party building.
“We pride ourselves as progressives, so we must do things differently. That is why the governor advised everyone to drop personal ambitions for now. This is the building process.
When the time comes, everyone is free to declare their intentions. But personal ambition must not frustrate the system.
Bayelsa is united for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and united for APC. This unity will deliver our candidates in future elections.”
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