2023: Be Fair to All Parties, Diri Tells Bayelsa Monarchs

Olusegun Samuel in Yenagoa

Bayelsa State Governor, Senator Douye Diri, has implored traditional rulers in the state to steer clear of partisan politics in the 2023 general election, but be fair to all.

Diri, who said the monarchs should rather provide a level playing field for all political parties, spoke yesterday during a meeting with the state’s Traditional Rulers Council at its secretariat in Yenagoa, the state capital.

This is as the Deputy Governor of Bayelsa State, Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, has said there was a need for state governments to take appropriate steps towards reviewing and expanding the jurisdiction of their various magistracies to improve justice delivery in the country.

However, Diri, while urging the monarchs not to allow any political party hijack the process to perpetrate electoral fraud, expressed the hope that the introduction of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) would bring to an end electoral malpractices.

“As custodians of our heritage and culture, it is incumbent on you to provide a level playing field for all political parties in the state to freely canvass for votes in a conducive and peaceful atmosphere.

“We all know that issues like elections fragment brothers, sisters and communities. So, as we approach the 2023 general election, I implore traditional rulers to remain apolitical. Don’t allow any political party hijack the process in your domains to perpetrate electoral fraud. If that happens, while the traditional ruler sits in the comfort of his home, his recognition will be withdrawn.

“You have been recognised in your various kingdoms as custodians of our heritage and culture. In Bayelsa State, you have been performing administrative duties, working closely with council chairmen.

“I had directed the local government chairmen to involve traditional rulers in their monthly security council meetings. Our security archetechture, has been rejiged and for the past one month crime rate has reduced,” he said.

Responding to issues raised by chairman of the Traditional Rulers Council, King Bubaraye Dakolo, the Ibenanaowei of Ekpetiama Kingdom, Diri said collaborative efforts between the state government and security agencies on improving security on land and waterways were yielding results, particularly, in Ekeremor and Southern Ijaw local government areas.

Earlier in his remarks, King Bubaraye Dakolo, applauded the developmental strides of the administration, particularly, in the execution of people-oriented projects across the state.

Dakolo, who pledged the monarchs’ support to the administration, also highlighted a number of issues bordering on security, education and other concerns of the council.

Meanwhile, the deputy governor who spoke while delivering a keynote address at the opening ceremony of the 2022 Magistrates’ Association of Nigeria (M.A.N) Conference in Yenagoa, described magistrate courts as the bedrock of the Nigerian Criminal justice system.

He also called on the state governments to give magistrates a relatively better recognition as judicial officers like their senior counterparts on the higher bench.

The deputy governor noted that the role of magistrates was too crucial and indispensable in the administration of criminal justice to be left the way it is.

To this end, he challenged state governments to look at extant laws with a view to expanding the scope and quality of judicial services being rendered by magistrates in the light of current realities in the country.

“The magistrates are actually the bedrock of the criminal justice system in Nigeria. Your role is not only crucial, but also very indispensable.

“I feel that all state judiciaries should take steps to recognise magistrates as judicial officers. Let us look at our laws that empower us to set up the state judicial committees, to empower us do something about the recognition of these people that are dispensing justice at the first instance.”

“Government will complete the the Magistrate Court building to decongest the courts and speedy justice dispensation in the state,” he said.