Udengs Eradiri, the Labour Party’s candidate in the recent Bayelsa State governorship election, has criticised the party, describing it as “just as corrupt as the system they claim to oppose.”
Speaking with The PUNCH, Eradiri detailed his experiences and explained his decision to leave the party.
“I thought that Nigerians truly meant this their so-called cry of bad leadership, that we need good governance and all that. It’s just a farce.
“Nigerians are not serious. They are just looking for who will give them money,” he lamented.
He detailed his frustrations during the campaign, highlighting that money, rather than genuine leadership, determined electoral outcomes.
“On Election Day, they were after money. They were looking for who will bring money. I know what I went through from primaries to winning my election in the party to the demands here and there. But, I didn’t have that kind of money, I couldn’t afford it. And on Election Day, they had already negotiated with the system and collected money; people were even fighting over money they took from selling me. In my village, money was deployed in millions. It was ‘see and buy.’ The election was a disgrace. INEC sending emissaries; they had agents that were around politicians – ‘you bring this, we do it this way,” Eradiri said.
Eradiri also criticised the Labour Party’s internal operations. “From day one, the injustice started against me to try to stop me from the process.”
He said even though N100 million was reportedly sent by the national headquarters of the party to the state for the election, the state executives said N50 million.
He alleged that the national chairman of the party promised to act on the matter but never did.
He said, “They were punching each other. The state said they sent N50m to Abuja. When they went for the sharing, the people said, ‘The money they agreed to give us is N100m, why are you bringing N50m?’
“I called the national chairman. He said they were just accusing him and he was going to take action. But, until this minute, he has not taken action. But, when it happened in Rivers State, he was quick to suspend the exco; when it happened in Imo State, he was quick to suspend them while the same thing happened in Bayelsa and they accused you of taking half of the money, and till today, you didn’t take any action.
“And, of course, the revelation from Abuja over the years has shown that they are as rotten as the same system they claim to be fighting. I paid N25m for my form, the same form that people bought N15m.
“They said they were going to return the N10m to me. Till today, I’ve not seen the money. I’ve written several letters asking them to return it to me. From day one, the injustice started against me to try to stop me from the process.”
He noted the party’s failure in Bayelsa, attributing it to compromised leadership.
“So, it’s very clear that Labour Party in Bayelsa State is an extension of the Government House of Bayelsa State,” he said.
“The chairman is an appointee of government. So, from day one, we expected that we were obviously going to fail,” he added.
The former candidate reflected on his struggles to fund his campaign independently.
“Peter Obi sent me N20 million. I suppose it was his personal contribution. Party money?
“A party that gave me conditions? They went to the government and the entire party said they were supporting the governor. Why? I didn’t have the money to give them,” he said.
Despite these challenges, Eradiri expressed pride in maintaining his integrity. “I had all the offers, all the pressures, all the calls, but I said I wanted to see the end of it. I’m not for sale. I’m a man who stands by conviction,” he said.
Reflecting on Bayelsa’s socio-economic challenges, Eradiri criticised the neglect of its resources. “Bayelsa is too rich to be in this quagmire.
What are we doing with the resources that we have?” he questioned, urging a shift from reliance on oil to harnessing the region’s natural wealth.
Eradiri concluded that politics in Bayelsa is dominated by money and negotiation. “Politics in Bayelsa is all about negotiation, ‘Come, let’s go and negotiate and take something,’” he said.
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