Bayelsa PDP slams multi-billion Naira stadium, calls project misplaced priority
The Bayelsa State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has criticised the state government’s proposed multi billion Naira stadium project at Igbogene in Yenagoa Local Government Area, describing it as a misplaced priority amid worsening economic hardship.
In a statement issued by its Publicity Secretary, Ikaebimo Mark, the opposition party said it was difficult to justify spending such a huge amount on a stadium when many residents are struggling with hunger, unemployment, poverty, poor healthcare, declining educational standards, and limited access to clean drinking water.
The PDP said although it supports sports development and acknowledges the role of sporting infrastructure in modern societies, the project should not take precedence over investments capable of creating jobs, improving livelihoods, and addressing the state’s pressing socio-economic challenges.
According to the party, the government should focus on sectors such as agriculture, which it said has suffered years of underfunding, as well as support for small businesses facing increasingly difficult economic conditions.
The party also rejected Governor Douye Diri’s justification that the stadium would serve as a vehicle for youth empowerment, arguing that genuine empowerment should be measured by improved living conditions and economic opportunities for young people.
“The greatest infrastructure any government can build is the economic well-being of its people. Youth empowerment is not measured by the size of a stadium but by the number of young people gainfully employed, thriving small businesses, skilled entrepreneurs created, investments attracted, and opportunities available for young people to build productive and prosperous lives,” the statement said.
The PDP further questioned the rationale behind constructing another stadium while the existing Samson Siasia Stadium has yet to be fully developed into what it described as a centre for talent discovery, grassroots sports development, sports tourism, and sports-related enterprise.
It challenged the Diri administration to disclose the number of Bayelsa youths allegedly empowered through sports over the past six years, particularly through activities linked to the Samson Siasia Stadium.
The party also demanded full public disclosure of the proposed stadium project, including its procurement process, contract value, funding arrangements, project scope, implementation timeline, and expected economic benefits.
It argued that Bayelsans deserve to know the economic justification for investing in multiple stadium projects at a time the state urgently needs industrial parks, agro-processing centres, technology hubs, vocational training institutes, manufacturing clusters, and investment corridors capable of creating sustainable jobs and wealth.
The PDP urged the state government to prioritise economic recovery by investing in agriculture, industries, skills acquisition, innovation, entrepreneurship, and private sector development.
It also called on the Diri-led administration to launch a comprehensive economic recovery, wealth creation, employment generation, and food security initiative to tackle what it described as the worsening hardship facing residents across the state.
