Expdonaloaded News; Gunmen kidnap Dickson’s aide

LESS than 24 hours after Governor Henry Seriake Dickson declared his in­tention to run for a second term in office, his Special Adviser on Political Mat­ters, Chief Fyneman Wil­son has been kidnapped by five gunmen in the wee hours of Wednesday. Wilson, a close political associate of Dickson, was a former deputy chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state and is also Dickson’s kins­man from Sagbama Local Government Area.
Checks indicated that Wilson was on a visit to Sagbama to see a fam­ily member after the dec­laration ceremony when he was abducted. Sources said Wilson, who normally moves around with security es­corts went on the visit with only his personal assistant identified simply as Mr. Fred. The Police Public Rela­tions Officer, Mr. Anisim Butwats, who confirmed the development said Wil­son was kidnapped at about 4a.m. He assured that the Po­lice were on top of the situ­ation as a combined team of Police, Joint Task Force (JTF) and the Department of State Security ( DSS) were combing the creeks to ensure there release. In a related development, the PDP Youth Vanguard, an arm of the Bayelsa State PDP, has called on security agencies in the state to re­double their efforts at com­bating crime and violence, particularly those contrived for political ends. The body yesterday ac­cused the opposition party in the state, the All Pro­gressives Congress (APC), of being the brain behind Wilson’s kidnap. In a statement in Yena­goa, Publicity Secretary of the youth organisation, James Ere said Wilson’s kidnap was “politically motivated” and urged se­curity organs to step in and arrest the situation immedi­ately.