Last week, the suspended Chairman of the Bayelsa State chapter of the APC, Chief Tiwei Orunimighe, said the governorship candidate of the party, Chief Timipre Sylva, collected money from Mr. Lokpobiri for the ministerial slot.
The Minister of State for Agriculture and Natural Resources, Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, denied claims by factions of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Bayelsa State that he bought the ministerial slot for the State.
Last week, the suspended Chairman of the Bayelsa State chapter of the APC, Chief Tiwei Orunimighe, said the governorship candidate of the party, Chief Timipre Sylva, collected money from Mr. Lokpobiri for the ministerial slot.
In a statement issued by the Special Assistant of Media, Donald Ojogo, Mr. Lokpobiri stated that the crisis within the APC in Bayelsa State is being “orchestrated by an insignificant few within the party and oiled by some external forces who feel threatened about their political future, especially as the APC challenges the outcome of the last governorship election at the Election Petition Tribunal."
According to Mr. Lokpobiri, he was found worthy for the position and was appointed, adding that he did not need to pay anybody.
He also dismissed Mr. Orunimighe's comments that he did not believe in the APC, stating that he has been an avid supporter of President Muhammadu Buhari since 2003.
The statement read in part, “the Honorable Minister of State for Agriculture, Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, never got his appointment on the platter of financial negotiations, as expressly insinuated by the suspended State Chairman of the APC in Bayelsa State, Chief Tiwei Oruminighe, and his cohorts. Like other appointees of the President, Senator Lokpobiri was duly considered worthy to be so appointed in his position."
He added, "It is a clear case of misrepresentation of facts to insinuate that the former governor of Bayelsa State, Chief Timipre Sylva, collected money from the Honorable Minister before his appointment as Minister. This is an outright fabrication."
The statement also emphasized Mr. Lokpobiri’s consistent and long-standing support for President Buhari and the APC.