It Is Difficult Being In Opposing Political Camp With My Deputy – Gov Diri

By Suleiman Anyalewechi

The Bayelsa State Governor, Douye Diri, has affirmed that he will not force  his Deputy, Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo, to follow him to his new political nest- the All Progressive Congress, APC.

The Source reports that Governor Diri who was elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic party, PDP, and is currently serving his second term in office, had on November 3, 2025, defected to the APC to the shock and surprise of not a few.

But his Deputy not only resisted the pressure to join his principal, but headed for an Abuja High Court to stem an alleged impeachment move against him by the State legislators over the development.

It is widely believed that the Bayelsa State Governor who is said to be perceiving the stance of his Deputy as a challenge, is leaving no stone unturned to either woo or cajole Senator Ewhrudjakpo to also jump ship.

But speaking during the weekly Executive Council meeting at the Government House, Yenagoa, on Wednesday, November 12, 2025, Governor Diri emphasized the need to constructively engage his Deputy rather than forcing him to follow him to the APC .

A statement from his media aide, Daniel Alabrah, noted that while the Governor is mindful of the difficulties  presented by the two principal officials of Bayelsa State founding themselves in opposing political camps, he nevertheless believes that dialogue will produce the desired result.

Already, according to the statement, the policy of engagement between the Governor and his Deputy has started yielding positive results, with the latter withdrawing the case he filed at an Abuja High Court against his purported impeachment by the state law makers.

” Let me address an issue that has been a subject of speculation in the media. I do not intend to force people to join the APC, but rather to appeal to them to see reason with me .

“I might have the power today but not tomorrow. It is actually difficult for the Governor to be on one side, and the Deputy on another.

“But we will continue to talk ,and we might end up in the same party tomorrow .

“We must not heat up the polity. We are done with violence in Bayelsa state . We are brothers, and we are one. Politics should be for the development of the State, and not to fight one another”, Diri stated .

The Governor had on October 15, resigned his membership of the PDP, citing the festering internal crisis rocking the party as a major reason.

However, his Deputy and a handful of others, particularly, within the PDP circle in the state, never floated on the same page with him.