ARTICLE AD
Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Heineken Lokpobiri.
A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, Chukwuemeke Ogbuobodo, and other South-South zonal officers on Thursday condemned the suspension of the Minister of State for Petroleum, Heineken Lokpobiri, by his local government executives in Yenagoa, Bayelsa.
The South-South APC zonal legal adviser condemned the action in a statement issued in Abuja.
Lokpobiri, former Bayelsa governorship candidate, David Lyon, and eight others were sanctioned for alleged anti-party activities.
The suspension was extended to Bayelsa Commissioner for Power, Kharim Kumoko; Commissioner for Lands and Survey, Peres Biewari; former APC state chairman, Jothan Amos; an ex-officio member of the National Executive Council, Godbless Diriwari and Southern Ijaw APC Youth Leader, Sabi Morgan.
Reacting in a statement issued on Thursday, Ogbuobodo described the action as illegal because the local government executives cannot be judged in their matter.
He said, “The action of these individuals was borne out of envy and a wicked plot to destabilize APC in Bayelsa State and the South-South Zone. They need to be mindful that the entire exco in the state was invalidated by the decision of the Bayelsa High Court in Suit No YHC/16/2022. So who gave you the power to suspend the Minister?
“As a consequence, the decision is unknown to both the party’s Constitution and the laws of the land. To this end, we urge party members in Bayelsa State and members of the general public to disregard the purported suspension of Senator Lokpobiri by individuals who are out to cause confusion in the Bayelsa State APC.
“Lokpobiri has demonstrated capacity as a minister and has attracted meaningful development projects to Bayelsa in particular and the South-South region in general. This is why we condemn and reject the unlawful act and we urge all well-meaning party members in the county to do the same”.
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