There is tension and confusion in Yenagoa, the Bayelsa state capital following the forceful arrest of the minority leader of the State House of Assembly and member representing Nembe Constituency 2, Chief Edward Irigha-Brigidi.
Chief Edward Irigha-Brigidi was arrested in a gestapo fashion by some policemen purportedly from Azikoro town, a suburb of Yenagoa, the state capital by policemen identified as SWAT operatives from Abuja.
Irigha-Brigidi, a legislator elected on the platform of the All Progressive Congress (APC) was reported to have been arrested following a petition on alleged complicity in the crisis rocking the Nembe-Bassambiri section of Nembe Kingdom. He is currently being detained at the state CID.
A close source told our correspondent that the arrest of Irigha-Brigidi may have been orchestrated by some powerful chieftains of the APC in the state following his alleged decision to stand with the aggrieved youths of Nembe-Bassambiri against some leaders of the party.
The lingering crisis in Nembe-Bassambiri, it was gathered, was responsible for the dismal performance and heavy loss of the party at the last state and national assembly elections in Bayelsa East senatorial district where the former minister of state for petroleum, Chief Timipre Sylva hails from.
Irigha-Brigidi, whose victory was assisted due to his position against alleged oppressive and violent tendencies of some party leaders in Nembe-Bassambiri,was also reported to have shunned the 59th birthday celebration of the party leader in Yenagoa on Friday.
While the top echelons of the Bayelsa state police command keeps mum over the “forceful” arrest, sources claimed that the quick intervention of the state governor, Senator Douye Diri stopped the SWAT team from moving the embattled legislator to Abuja based on instructions.
