By Samuel Oyadongha
Yenagoa — Scores of youths from Ekeremor Local Government Area of Bayelsa State, yesterday, took to the streets of Yenagoa, the state capital, calling for the resignation of the state deputy governor, Peremobowei Ebebi, over the conduct of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) primaries in the council area.

However, in a swift reaction, Ebebi urged Bayelsans to discountena-nce the action of the youths, describing them as paid protesters.

The protesters armed with placards, some of which read, Ebebi Must Go, Enough of Ebebi, were provided security by the Police.

Two Mobile 30 anti-vice Hilux patrol vehicles gave the protesters cover as they marched peacefully through the ever busy Ekeki-Ovom stretch of Mbiama-Yenagoa road to Government House where they were addressed by Governor Timipre Sylva, who returned to state after two weeks sojourn abroad.

The action of the youth, sources said, is a culmination of the simmering crisis between Bayelsa State governor, Chief Timipre Sylva and his deputy, Mr. Peremobowei Ebebei, which is only being hinged on the violence that characterised the Peoples Democratic Party primaries in the state on Saturday.

Several people were reported injured in the fracas when supporters of the deputy governor and the governor clashed after the primaries in Ekeremor.

Relations between the governor and his deputy, it was learnt, have for sometime been frosty, with the latter’s office being starved of funds.

Responding to the protes-ters, Governor Timipre Sylva commended the youths for not taking the laws into their hands, saying that, “this shows the new Bayelsa youths have decided to follow due process and the Rule of Law.

“Information has reached me from the security agents about what happened and the circumstances surroun-ding it.
“All I can say now is that it is sad. I have been to the hospital where the Transitional Monitoring Committee (TMC) chairman is lying critically injured. It is sad, an act unbecoming of a deputy governor.

“I don’t believe he can do this. I need to see him and ask if truly his men perpetra-ted this act. I need to see him. You know how this system works.

“We are going to investi-gate the matter. Government is not going to take it lightly. Just like you rightly said, this is democracy and nobody is above the law.”

Sylva, who said anybody found guilty in the dastardly act will be made to face the wrath of the law, appealed to the youths to conduct themselves peacefully and promised that “my people will communicate our findings to you”.

In his reaction, Ebebi, who spoke to Vanguard in Yena-goa, said he cannot resign because his detractors paid some youths to demonstrate against him.

Tracing the protest to last Saturday’s PDP primaries in Ekeremor, he said, “while we were at the election venue, the Commissioner for Youths and Conflict Resolu-tions, Bekeakpor Etifa, and the  chairman of the TMC council, Robert Eyiroroku-mo, came with some military personnel (JTF) to disrupt the primaries, destroy the public address system and challenge the crowd. But we ignored them and they left. Hence we had a peaceful primaries.”

He, however, said on their way back from Ekeremor before Patani, a car tried to block his convoy even though his siren was blaring.

The deputy governor said as his convoy moved past, another car tried to block him and in the process it skidded off the road, adding that some persons might have sustained injuries.

Ebebi said he stopped his convoy to ask what was amiss when fracas broke out and that in the process they blocked the road and unleashed a reign of terror.

“The Police escorts of the commissioner even fired teargas at us and they took one of my supporters hostage and later released him,” he explained, adding that the matter had been reported to the state Commissioner of Police who directed the officer-in-charge of the state CID to investigate the matter.

The deputy governor, who confirmed the soured relationship with his boss, said, “things have never been alright. It is just that we tried to bottle things inside.

“I don’t know the cause. My office has been a three bedroom apartment with no light. They claim I want to contest election which is basically a rumour. They decided to stop funding the office so that they can exposed me to attack, so that my security personnel can become disgruntled.”

On the involvement of the JTF, the deputy governor said he called the authorities of the Joint Task Force and they said they had made all the necessary contact to find out about the involvement of their personnel in the matter.