Bayelsa Election Tribunal granted Dickson right to inspect election materials

The Bayelsa State Elections Petition Tribunal sitting in Nyanya, Abuja, has granted the prayers of Governor Seriake Dickson, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) gubernatorial candidate in the last election, giving him leave to inspect the election materials used to conduct the January 9, 2016, gubernatorial election in Brass Local Government area of Bayelsa State.

The election in Brass, the only local government won by the All Progressives Congress, (APC) candidate, Chief Timipre Sylva, was alleged by the PDP to be characterised by irregularities while the PDP candidate in the election and incumbent governor, Hon. Dickson won in the remaining seven local government areas.

Governor Dickson, on Tuesday, described this development as a step in the right direction to unravel the issues involved in the case before the tribunal, adding that the conduct of the governorship election in Brass local government area, where Chief Sylva, hails from was a charade as the exercise was marred by violence, intimidation and snatching of electoral materials in most communities of the area.

The governor  further noted that the then state PDP acting Chairman, Chief Serena Dokubo-Spiff, was among several other party members attacked during the election in Brass as a ploy to scare away voters, claimed that PDP actually won the election in the area.

Buttressing his claim, the Governor cited the outright rejection of the APC and its Governorship candidate by some communities in Brass such as Odioma and Egwe-ama during the electioneering campaigns.

While commending the tribunal for its decision to enable him inspect the election materials, Governor Dickson expressed optimism that the outcome of the tribunal would be favourable to the PDP