Ex-militant leader and chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Bayelsa State, Eris Paul, popularly known as Ogunboss, has warned leaders of the party against carefree attitude in their approach to win the November 16 governorship election.
Ogunboss particularly urged the national and state leaders not to underrate the Peoples Democratic Party and its leader, Governor Seriake Dickson.
Speaking in Yenagoa, the state capital, the ex-creek warlord insisted that winning the forthcoming election would go beyond the popularity and wide acceptance Chief David Lyon.
He said the APC must avoid non-chalant attitude, overconfidence and embrace hard work, early preparations by quickly setting up campaign structures in units, wards and the state levels.
Ogunboss, who hails from Southern Ijaw observed that the APC has so far dominated the political stage of the state following the acceptance of its candidate and political errors of the PDP.
But he said the APC should be serious from the beginning to the end and stop parading itself as if it had won the election.
He said: I am shocked when some party faithful claim that we have gotten the crowd, the numbers and even the publicity is on our side. But that does not get the job done. The might, the crowd, the number and media publicity are good designs. A good design in politics is a great combination of common sense, but not enough to say you have already arrived.
‘Yes, you have the chances and opportunity that are knocking on our door as APC, but the most common way people give out their chances is by thinking they have arrived when they have not.
“Elections are won by structures not by number of defectors. The same way theatres and actors were required for the creation of the world, so are structures required to win a governorship election.
‘What are our structures? Where are our theatres and actors to win the elections? Good designs are not foundations of a map. A map is not the territory it represents, but the ground it occupied. Dickson is not an easy target in an election.
“I repeat, Dickson is not an easy fight during an election. You’re going to territories that were once structured by PDP and they are surviving like an old monuments or quaint customs’.
“This is time to break thumbs, smatch quaint customs, kick structures to build structures or its medicine after death. Efforts and courage alone is not enough to win an election, this is time for direction, know your job, go down and kickstart the job. You have a task that challenges your human excellence and definitiveness, because no fixed purpose in any struggle is lost”.
Ogunboss also called on the Chief Dikivie Ikhiogha Committee on peace and reconciliation to reach out to known party chieftains that may have become aggrieved before and after the Governorship primaries of the party to shealt their swords and work for the victory of the party.
“Though every member of the party have the right to be aggrieved if wronged, the preparation of the party and the setting up of a peace and reconciliation committee should be seen as an indication to embrace dialogue and work for the victory of the party”, he said.
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