A top aspirant for Bayelsa State governorship election under the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Ambassador Boladei Igali, has called for an opportunity for public debates among professional and civil society groups in the state.
Igali, who expressed this concern in the state capital, Yenagoa on Wednesday, 27th August, 2019 while receiving a delegation of Youth Leaders at his campaign headquarters, said that it is important that public debates are organized among the 21 aspirants vying for the state governorship in order to enable delegates access their readiness for office.
While noting that all the PDP aspirants are amongst the most qualified Bayelsans for the office of governor, he nonetheless suggested that open debates would enable the public and especially delegates focus on the commitment and vision of each contestant.
”The ongoing one on one and group discussions with delegates is very good and most of them have come to appreciate my worth and that of my colleagues. But the ability to openly debate and expound the blueprints which we have or clear the air on several issues has always been part of political process,” Igali submits, while he expressed optimism of capturing the PDP ticket relying on his massive support base from the over 1000 delegates across all the local government areas in the state.
On his part, leader of the Bayelsa Youth Mandate Forum, Evangelist Moses Timikidi, who described Ambassador Igali as first amongst equals, called on PDP delegates to put the interest of the state in their final decision while he condemned bote buying and imposition of candidate, promising that the group will work with other organisations to organise debates after the emergence of candidates from the various political parties.
-Folorunsho Hamsat
