Sylva wins Bayelsa APC Governorship primaries, defeat Lyon, four others

Former Governor of Bayelsa State and immediate past Minister for State, Petroleum, Chief Timipre Sylva, yesterday, emerged as the governorship candidate of All Progressives Congress (APC) for November 11 gubernatorial election in the state.

  
The former governor defeated the former candidate of the party in the last gubernatorial election, Chief David Lyon, and four others to emerge winner at the contest, which took place across 106 wards in the eight local councils of the state.
  
The APC adopted the direct mode electoral system to hold the exercise in the 105 wards and eight local government areas of the state.  Sylva polled 52, 061 votes to beat the other contenders to the governorship ticket at the primary election conducted over Friday and Saturday. 
  
Chief David Lyon who won the majority votes in the last gubernatorial election in the state, was removed by Supreme Court on the eve of his inauguration, and came a distant third with 1, 872 votes, while Joshua MacIver came second with 2, 078 votes.

Announcing the results of the primary election at the party secretariat in Yenagoa, the state capital, the chairman of the APC Primary Election Committee, Maj. Gen. Ahmed Jibrin (rtd), declared Sylva the winner having scored the highest number of votes.

Jibrin, who had earlier assured party members of a free, transparent, and peaceful primary, commended them for conducting themselves peacefully.
  
Speaking during the primaries at Opouma, Brass Local Government Area, Sylva, who expressed confidence that he would emerge, the winner, stressed that he was the only candidate that would lead the party to victory during the gubernatorial contest proper.