Today is the climax of the struggle for the soul of Bayelsa State among the major stakeholders and powerful blocs neck-dipped in controlling the machinery of governance in the Ijaw-speaking state. The battle of wits between the loyalists of President Goodluck Jonathan and the deposed former governor of the state, Chief Timipre Sylva, over the political control of the 15-year-old oil-rich state has been characterised by intrigues, political manoeuvring and controversy.

Before the recent Supreme Court ruling finally drew the curtain on the government of the former governor, he had put up a strong and energy-sapping fight to battle the loyalists of President Jonathan and the leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) over his botched ambition to secure the ticket of the party for his second term bid.

He had instituted litigations against the PDP over the party’s decision to shut him out of the governorship primary election, which eventually produced a winner in person of Mr. Seriake Dickson.

But the previous resolve of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) not to include the name of the PDP in the list of parties cleared for today’s governorship poll, citing litigation as major factor, had given a glimmer of hope to Sylva’s camp, who then was exploring legal means to wrestle the ticket from the party’s candidate.

However, the game suddenly changed when an order of mandamus from the Court of Appeal, secured by the legal team of Dickson, compelled the electoral body to include the name of PDP in the published list of parties for the election, thus clearing the coast for the party to intensify its electioneering activities.

At the kick-off campaign rally for the PDP gubernatorial candidate held last Friday in Yenagoa, President Jonathan did not hide his disdain for Sylva, when he publicly declared his five-year regime as a monumental waste and disgrace in Bayelsa.

He alluded to the stoning incident of Sylva, during one of his visits to the state, as a testament of peoples’ apathy against his non-performing administration. To President Jonathan, the state had retrogressed under the government of the former governor, with the criminal abandonment of projects initiated by the former state governments.

As Bayelsans go to the poll today to elect a new governor, so many forces would be at play to determine the outcome of the crucial exercise. The polarisation of the PDP in the state between supporters of the party and loyalists of immediate past Governor Sylva, is still a major albatross that may constitute a major challenge to the victory of the PDP.

Though, some of Sylva’s trusted aides, including former Commissioner for Youth Empowerment, Mr Bekes Etifa, had, late last year, dumped him at the peak of his travails, the embattled former governor still have some strong political allies on his side to work against the candidature of Mr Dickson at the poll.

The ability of Sylva to control some of the political office holders in the state is seen by some political analysts as one of his strongest weapons to throw spanners in the works of the PDP. As of today, all the eight chairmen of the local governments in the state are still under his becks and call, while majority of the legislators in the state House of Assembly form the nucleus of his camp.

Apart from this, there are speculations that he is currently backing the governorship candidate of the Change Advocacy Party (CAP), Mr Imoro Kubor, to whittle down the chances of PDP during today’s election.

But some of the ex-militant leaders, who were in the forefront of the struggle to actualise Sylva’s second-term project, had, somehow, gone underground, even before the apex court’s judgment sent him and four other governors packing. These ex-militants’ leaders include Boyloaf, Ogunbos and Pastor Reuben.

On the other hand, the camp of Dickson and President Jonathan believes that Sylva and his loyalists cannot constitute any impediment to the victory of the PDP during today’s governorship poll.

To them, the former governor had lost his political relevance in the state and does not have the clout to work against the electoral success of the PDP at the poll.

Similarly, the opposition parties in the state are not exhibiting enough convincing resolve to hijack power from the PDP through the ballot box. Keen watchers of politics in Bayelsa hold the view that the failure of the opposition to present formidable candidates, who can match the influence of the ruling party, with greater acceptability, may eventually be their undoing.

Some people believe that they are not really in existence in the state, as their impacts are not felt in terms of vigorous campaigns that could create the needed awareness on the part of the electorate both in the upland and coastal communities.

Beside, the solidarity that the majority of Bayelsans are giving to the PDP, being the party of President Jonathan, is another challenge that may confront the opposition parties, which include the Action Congress of Nigeria ACN), Labour Party (LP), Congress for Progressive Change (CPC) and All Nigerian Peoples Party (ANPP) in today’s governorship election.

A public affair analyst, who pleaded anonymity, contended that “What Bayelsans are waiting for is a directive from Jonathan as far as the poll is concerned and they have got it last Friday, when he told them during the flag-off campaign rally of the PDP to vote massively for Henry Seriake Dickson.”

However, one of the major issues raising the concern of the people, as the election holds today, is security. It is feared that violence may erupt as supporters of the polarised PDP in Bayelsa are spoiled for a showdown. This is more evident on Tuesday during the campaign rally of the PDP in Oporoma, in Southern Ijaw Local Government Area, when supporters of the council boss, Mr Tiwei Orunimigha and his vice, Felix Ayah, engaged in a violent clash that eventually claimed the life of a supervisory councilor.

The council chairman, a staunch ally of the former Governor Sylva, has been embroiled in a crisis with his vice, who is in Dickson’s camp.

But security agencies in the state have allayed the fears of the people, assuring that measures would be taken to ensure the protection of lives and properties.

In a chat with Saturday Tribune, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) of the Bayelsa State Police Command, ASP Eguaveon Emopkae, said “We are adequately prepared for today’s governorship election. Our men will be deployed to mount security all over the state to forestall or nip in the bud any breakdown of law and order.”

“I want to assure the people not to entertain any fear of attack or violence. They should go out to exercise their civic responsibilities. The Nigeria Police in Bayelsa is on top of any situation and I have the high hope that there would be a peaceful election,” he said.

Speaking in the same vein, the media co-ordinator of the Joint Task Force (JTF), code-named “Operation Pulo Shield,” Lt. Col. Timothy Antigha, remarked that “The nature of the military organisation is that in the circumstance that we are, there are no times we make special preparations. We would continue to carry out our patrols and collaborate with other security agencies, exchanging intelligence and information needed for a secured environment.

“We have been doing all these and we would continue during and after the governorship election. There is nothing out of the extraordinary that we have to do. We are just going to maintain our routine function,” he reiterated.

On the part of the INEC, all arrangements had been concluded to hold a free and fair gubernatorial election.

The chairman of INEC, Professor Attahiru Jega, who addressed a stakeholders’ meeting in Yenagoa, on Wednesday, expressed the total readiness of INEC to ensure that the poll is hitch-free.

“We are working in partnership with the security agencies on the safe and quick conveyance of electoral materials to all polling units, bearing in mind the terrain challenges of Bayelsa State. We have bought speed boats and the Nigeria Navy and the Nigeria Air Force (NAF), including the Joint Task Force (JTF) are assisting us in terms of other logistics that would make the conduct of the poll efficient and result-oriented,” he stated.