Dickson: First Bayelsa Governor That Completed 8 Years In Office Since 1999

Former Governor, Henry Sariake Dickson is now in the history books as the first Bayelsa state governor to complete a full term of eight years in office since 1999.

Dickson became governor in 2012 after the PDP denied Timipre Sylva, now Minister for Petroleum Resources under the APC-led federal government second term ticket in 2008 to return to the Creek Haven.

In 2017, he was reelected to serve another term of four years without a glitch.

BIGPEN Online recalls that the first elected governor of the state, late Chief Diepreye Alamieyeseigha got impeached early in his second term.

His deputy, then Governor Goodluck Jonathan who later succeeded him, in a twist of fate also got elected as Vice President in 2005 and bow out to face the bigger job at the national level.

Dickson’s Special Adviser on Public Affairs, Mr. Daniel Alabrah, in a terse message corroborating this, wrote in his Facebook page: “A historic moment it was today (Friday) being the first time in the history of the state for a democratically elected governor to complete two terms of eight years in office and hand over to a successor.

“All past governors never completed their tenure and were succeeded by an acting governor, who happened to be a Speaker of the House of Assembly except for the late Diepreye Alamieyeseigha, who was succeeded by Dr. Goodluck Jonathan in circumstances not related to election”.