STUDENYS of English literature, or anyone who has ever read Shakespeares Hamlet, would be familiar with this quote: Something is rotten in the state of Denmark. In this instance, one should think of Bayelsa State, and not Denmark: something is rotten in the state of Bayelsa! The economy and the infrastructure are rotten, and so also is the cultural space. Whats more, the political space is rotten -thanks in no small measure to the ineptitude, the greed, the excesses, and maladministration of the three administrations in the state since 1999.Lets leave Diepreye Alamieyeseigha out of the conversation, but instead focus on the Cold War between President Jonathan and Governor Timi Sylva because this treatise is about the two men whose actions and pronouncements, in private and in public, have stunted the growth of the state and abridged the peoples aspiration. What we have here are two men who have allowed their political ambition to cloud their judgment; and whose hatred for each other is limiting public and private possibilities that could have accrued to the state. In Jonathan, we have a man with insatiable need for attention, respect, and power. He is a man who does not take lightly to slights. Ironically, he found in Sylva, a man who has a high propensity for dishing out slights. This is a man with very low ranking across the state.It is possible that both men could have come to a sort of understanding if other factors were not in play. First is the internal Ijaw politics which was commonplace in the years before independence and for many years thereafter. This was when the Kalabari/Nembe-Ijaw elites considered themselves the numero uno of the then Rivers State. During this period, virtually all the plush federal appointments were given to the Kalabari/Nembe-Ijaw. It seems they controlled the state in every respect. In todays Bayelsa State, the Ogbia-Ijaw are on the way to dominating the economic and political space. But then, they have the Nembe-Ijaw to contend with. Jonathan is Ogbia; Sylva is Nembe.Second, we have the Iron Lady, the self-styled DameMrs. Patience Jonathan. This was a woman who, when her husband was the deputy governor, had exhibited Macbethean tendencies. As the First Lady of the state, she had a shadow cabinet. Today, as the First Lady of the federation, she runs a vetting agency that determines who gets what and when - not unlike her predecessor. And whether in Yenagoa, or in Abuja, she wears the pants; and still casts long shadow over the going-ons in Bayelsa. What governor would tolerate such interference' And the interferences are many: the President wants a say in the affairs of the state, and so does the Presidents wife. Into this mix are the hangers-on, the praise singers, the double-agents, and cronies of every size and stripes.And finally, there is the governor himself. He is not a good judge of character. Many of the people he appointed, or gave lucrative contracts to, ended up betraying him. I have met many Bayelsans who are ready to go to war for Alamieyeseigha; but I have never met any Bayelsan who is ready to sign a reference letter for, or be a character witness, for Sylva. He has a way of attracting leeches and rats. He has a way of distancing himself from the best and the brightest. After four years in office, he seems to have accomplished nothing. Hes got the talent and the intellect, but he wasted it all.Now, to say that the relationship between both men has been chilly ever since both entered office is an understatement. There are media accounts of how the governor has, over time, undermined Jonathan (as vice-president, acting president, and as the PDP presidential candidate). To hear some people tell it, Sylva is the only Judas in Jonathans vicinityhe is Jonathans biggest worrythe only man capable of pulling Jonathan down. One of these days, he will succeed. Whether they will admit it in public is another matter, but really, Ijaw elites and observers of the Ijaw political scene, will tell you that Sylva is looking to politically destroy the President. And vice versa.Sylva seems to have tried and failed. Jonathan waited, and waited, and waited. He missed two previous chances. The chance to politically destroy Sylva presented itself during the ongoing PDP screening for candidates for its primary (in readiness for the 2012 election in the state). According to media accounts - most of which are still fuzzy - the governor seems to have been disqualified from contesting. Without contesting and winning the primary, his chances of returning as the state governor become very slim. Only the courts can save him should his disqualification by the PDP stands.If Sylva is allowed in the PDP primary, he has the wherewithal to swallow his opponents. And considering the corrupt nature of politics, the hegemonic nature of the PDP in the state, and considering also that the President is from the state, there is no chance in hell, or in heaven, of the governor losing to the toothless opposition parties in the state. How do you stop Sylva, was the question that was mulled for months and years. There were other ways, but you disqualify him from the primary, was the rookie answer. This was the plan. But alas, this plan backfired. Frankly, it was not a plan that was well thought-out. It was dumb, it was silly! Sylva reminds me of the snake charmers. In an environment of low self-esteem and high physical and mental poverty- he was able to subdue them all.One of the questions I have is this: under what condition do you bar a sitting governor who has not been charged, or convicted, with a crime (from contesting the primary)' After all, this was a sitting governor that has not been indicted or accused in an open court of law. True, there may be some suspicions and innuendoes about his corruptibility; but really, they are just suspicions and innuendoes. With or without the Presidents knowledge, Sylva may have been entrapped. Several days before his crime was reported by the media, and before it entered the gossip sphere, word came that Governor Sylva has committed political suicide by threatening the life of the President and his family.If the alleged secret recordings are true, well then, why hasnt Sylva been picked up by the police, the SSS, or by the office of the Attorney General of the Federation' The world over, it is criminal for anyone to threaten the life of the president. In this instance, it is being said that he threatened the life of the President and his family. If Sylva said what he is being rumoured to have said, well, it is a crime, and should be dealt with by the courts. If he said those things, he broke the law. It is that simple! And if thats the case, well then, let the rule of law prevail.If Sylva committed a crime and he is not being charged, the government has failed in one of its fundamental duties. The police, the security and intelligence agencies all failed in their duty to protect our President and his family. The National Assembly should, therefore, as a matter of urgency and national security, look into this matter. Did the governor threaten the life of the President' But if he DID NOT -what then is the basis for disqualifying him from the PDP primary' What we must not stand for, and what we must not condone is the Presidency and a few people in the party sidelining him based on the dictate of the President and his wife.In the absence of illegalities, let Sylva contest the primary along with other capable Bayelsans. He may win, he may fail. Thats left to the PDP delegates. Should he win, his fate should be decided by the electorate - not by a President who thinks Sylva Must Go! Thats tyranny and abuse of power. Let the people of Bayelsa State have their say. That is democracy.- Abidde is with the Department of Humanities, Alabama State University Montgomery. He can be reached at: Sabidde@yahoo.com
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