The approach of an unseasonal governorship election in Bayelsa State has unearthed a number of surprises. Nearly a thousand former members of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party, PDP stormed an All Progressives Congress (APC) rally in Yenagoa penultimate Saturday almost stumbling over each other in their haste to switch allegiance.

However, conspicuously absent in the rush out of the PDP was one of the key figures around former Governor Timipre Sylva (the acknowledged leader of the drive to take over the state for the APC) was Anthony George-Ikoli who served as Attorney General in the Sylva administration. George-Ikoli, who has the honour of being the first Bayelsan lawyer to earn the prestigious Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN) title had sought but lost the Bayelsa East Senate ticket to show-business impresario Ben Murray-Bruce.

Lindsay Barrett (l) chats with George-Ikoli in Yenagoa

Unlike many others who lost out in the PDP primary contest, George-Ikoli chose not to defect from the PDP pledging to follow the principles carved out by his grandfather, Ernest Ikoli, the journalism icon and political activist who hailed from Brass. Ernest-Ikoli who was in Yenogoa on the day of the defection spoke to Vanguard on his reasons for abiding in the PDP among other things. Excerpts:

By Lindsay Barret

MANY people have assumed that because of your importance in the Sylva Administration you would have followed him into the APC; why haven’t you done so?

First and foremost Sylva is family. He is my brother and remains a dear friend and compatriot, but when I came to serve in his administration I did so in order to serve the people of Bayelsa State and not out of personal sentiment. My membership of the PDP preceded my coming to Bayelsa State and the reasons behind my joining the party were based on my belief in its stated principles of equity, fairness, and good governance.

Goodgovernance

The APC may have achieved national spread now as result of its belated realisation that it needed to consolidate its membership across the nation, but the PDP was the only party that truly promoted that belief right from its inception. Over the decade and a half that the party was in the ascendancy there is no doubt that mistakes were made and many of the principles that we promoted were betrayed.

However what we need to do is to learn from the mistakes made while we were in power and provide a robust and effective alternative platform so that democracy can grow in our nation.

I have no doubt that Sylva had very good reasons for making his decision to cross carpet, because he was hounded out of the PDP by his opponents in his own state, but his circumstances are different from mine. I am still planning to serve the people of my ancestral home to the best of my ability, and nothing that has happened so far has convinced me that I cannot do so as a PDP member.

How do you see the forthcoming election playing out: and what advice would you give the PDP State Chapter as it prepares for battle?

This is no time to play the ostrich and bury our heads in the sand. As far as I can see now the PDP has an uphill struggle on its hands to hold on to the Government of Bayelsa State, especially since the challenge is being led by Timipre Sylva who has legitimate grievances, and a strong support base in the state.

In addition to this the PDP structure in the state has been decimated by the abdication and defections of a large group of turncoat members who have declared that their new allegiance is to the APC. In spite of these challenges the PDP still has the support of several people especially at the grassroots and for it to retain this support it must listen to the advice of the community leaders who have remained loyal to the traditional sympathies of the people.

Traditionalsympathies

The Governor and the party leaders in the state must reflect these sympathies in their actions as well as in their utterances. The party leadership in particular must be transformed to reflect these sympathies effectively.

Since so many of the former leaders of the party have defected the existing party executive must be reformed quickly with the best and most experienced of those who have remained in the party being elevated to new positions of leadership so that they can convince the electorate to stand firm on the electoral decision that they have taken to keep the party alive in the state. The Governor must listen not only to his supporters but also to his critics and respond to the real demands of the people.

What are some of the causes of the PDP’s loss of the last election at the national level and how should the party remedy its mistakes in the future?

The most important cause of the PDP’s downfall at the national level was the fact that President Goodluck Jonathan and his close allies appeared not to understand the dynamics of the process that had led to his emergence as President. As they say, they misread the political tea leaves and as a consequence they approached governance and the campaign for his second term without taking advice from those who had placed him on the path to the highest office in the land in the first place.

What role do you intend to play in the renewal of the party’s relevance and have you any electoral ambition?

My role in the party will be what it has always been. I have never been an office-seeker but rather I have tried to be a loyal member subscribing to the principles that are articulated in the party’s constitution and manifesto.

No, I do not have any electoral ambitions for now, even though I believe that if due process had been followed strictly in the primaries I would have been the Senatorial candidate, but if circumstances arise in which I am called upon to throw my hat into the ring again I would first consider the issues at stake and the real consequences of the decision before accepting or rejecting the offer.

You have in the past spoken of the influence of your grandfather’s spirit in your life; what can modern politicians learn from the politics of the past?

The legacy of my grandfather Ernest Sisei Ikoli has been a constant inspiration to me right from childhood.

Constantinspiration

Like him I was born in Brass but have spent most of my working life in Lagos but that has not dampened my attachment to my ancestral home. Like him I regard the entire nation as my constituency. My grandfather established himself as an icon of the political ambitions of the times to an extent that surpassed the expectations of his socio- political background.

He proved that by dint of hard work and erudition an individual can overcome the most daunting obstacles in life. This is a lesson that every generation must absorb. It is not simply a lesson for political conduct but a lesson for life!