Senator Seriake Dickson has criticised governors, including his successor, elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party for defecting to the All Progressives Congress.
Speaking with journalists after Wednesday’s plenary, Dickson who slammed the governors of abandoning the crises they created within the PDP, described the defections including that of his successor, Governor Douye Diri of Bayelsa as “sad and shameful”.
Dickson said he remains steadfast in the PDP, which, he noted, gave opportunities to the Ijaw Nation and the Niger Delta.
“As in this case, the governor consulted me several times to his credit. And I was not convinced because I didn’t see any compelling reason for a second-term governor to defect.
“I’m just using this to say that I am still standing in the PDP that gave my people (the Ijaw Nation) and the Niger Delta people an opportunity to run election, to emerge as vice president of this country, acting president of Nigeria, and president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“This other party cannot do that. And I’m standing there with the PDP. If and when, if we don’t succeed in retrieving the PDP, in saving the PDP, then we’ll be part of a collective decision, which again, should not be the ruling party.
“Because I believe there must be opposition. A democracy without opposition ceases to be democracy.”
He also backed President Bola Tinubu’s nomination of Professor Joash Amupitan as INEC Chairman, saying being in opposition does not mean rejecting everything from the ruling party.
