One of the disqualified contenders for the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, governorship ticket in Bayelsa State, Senator Emmanuel Paulker, yesterday slammed the ruling party in the state over lack of internal democracy.
The three-time Senator, who represents Bayelsa Central district in the National Assembly, stated this in Yenagoa at a forum with members of his campaign organisation, stressing that internal democracy remains key to democracy in Nigeria.
Expressing displeasure at his recent disqualification by the PDP’s zonal screening committee in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, he lamented that since his disqualification, the party’s appeal panel was yet to come out with the result of their screening.
During the screening, Paulker and a former Chairman of Kolokuma-Opokuma Local Government Area, Chief Ebikitin Diongoli, were disqualified, leaving Governor Seriake Dickson as the sole candidate of the PDP.
This left the party’s delegates to only affirm the candidacy of Dickson last Thursday.
According to Paulker, “For our democracy to thrive in this country, there must be internal democracy. Without internal democracy, it is difficult for a party to reflect democracy on the playground.
“It is better to quarrel in the process of internal democracy than to shut out internal democracy out of our democratic experience.
“Regarding our disqualification, up till now, the appeal panel has yet to come out with the result of the screening. Power comes from God. Irrespective of parties, Bayelsa belongs to all of us. If a government is formed tomorrow, all of us will benefit from it. Any government in power owes all of us a duty of service.
“Like I told them at the screening panel, when they criticised me that members of the All Progressives Congress, APC, attended my ceremonies, I said the party required more Paulkers now than ever because we require ambassadors to go out of this party to canvass for votes in order for us to win,” he stated.
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