The Labour Party (LP) Governorship Candidate for the Nov.11 Governorship election in Bayelsa Udengs Eradiri, has criticised last minute appointments and employments by incumbent Gov Douye Diri.

He described the ongoing employment and hiring of more political appointees ahead of the governorship election as a grand deception, that will not save him from defeat.

Eradiri made his position known in a statement issued on Tuesday in reaction to the defection if Alagoa Morris, a renowned Environmental Rights Activist who served as Labour Party’s Campaign Coordinator of LP in the Presidential Election to the ruling People’s Democratic Party.

Following the move, Morris was subsequently appointed as a Technical Adviser on Environment to Gov Douye Diri of Bayelsa.

Eradiri said Diri sensing impending defeat at the forthcoming election had resorted to underhand tactics to hoodwink people by engaging them in an endless job recruitment process in exchange for their votes.

The LP Candidate in sarcastic tone thanked the Governor for appointing some political players from the Labour Party in his desperate attempts to boost his chances at the poll.

Eradiri said he was also aware of the ongoing plan by the Governor to sign some willing LP executive members in the state to create false impressions that the LP had collapsed into the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

He said: “What is coming on Nov. 11 is beyond party. It is a mass movement and a revolution against bad, incompetent and clueless government.

“I am happy that LP has become a force to reckon with ahead of this poll and that my participation in the election as the candidate of the party is giving Governor Douye Diri a nightmare.

“My involvement in the election has provided jobs for people, who ordinarily were not considered fit to work in the government of Douye Diri. In the last three years, the governor did not consider rolling out jobs for people and engaging more political appointees.

“But today, a few weeks to the election, Governor Douye Diri is hawking appointment letters as a strategy to boost his chances. Unknown to him, Bayelsa people are wiser now. They understand his game. Besides, he is not doing them any favour because the money is not owned by the governor. It belongs to the people.

“So, if he invites you, go and take your money. If he gives you a job, accept it and enjoy it while it lasts. But the truth is that this great state deserves a better alternative and should be rescued from the incompetence of this administration”.

Describing the motive as vote buying, Eradiri advised persons accepting the jobs to be wary of the governor’s antics saying the offers were fake and would be terminated immediately after the election.

Eradiri recalled that such deceptive campaign method was deployed in the past but that those who thought they had secured jobs as appointees of the government were laid off after the poll.

He said: “Common sense will tell everybody that this is just a campaign strategy, which will fail woefully like a pack of cards. Governor Diri has occupied the office for over three years but did not deem it fit to employ anybody. But suddenly he woke up from his slumber a few weeks to another election and started hawking appointments.

“Tell Governor Diri that Bayelsa people are wiser now and cannot be deceived by his method of vote-buying ahead of the election. It is now clear that the process is already tainted by deception.

“It is only a bait to give the people false hope and subject them to making a decision against their will. The truth is that the process is designed to fail immediately after the election. We are calling on our people to be vigilant and not to be deceived by Governor Diri’s job and appointment scam.

“We make bold to tell the people of the state that everything this government is doing is borne out of desperation to retain power. Nothing is real. All is designed as a campaign movie series with incompetent actors. They are not sincere. I and LP stand as the only alternative for the liberation of Bayelsa and a vote for me is for a better and prosperous state”.