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Confusion surrounded the status of Bayelsa State Deputy Governor Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo on Thursday after the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) issued a statement announcing his death, even as the state government said it had not confirmed the report.
Ewhrudjakpo collapsed earlier in the day and was rushed to the Federal Medical Centre in Yenagoa, where sources said he was in critical condition.
On Thursday evening, PDP spokesperson Ini Ememobong said the party received “with deep shock” news of the deputy governor’s passing, describing him as a principled politician and a loyal party member.
“The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has received with deep shock the news of the passing of the Deputy Governor of Bayelsa State… who reportedly collapsed and died earlier today,” the statement said. The PDP’s National Working Committee expressed “profound grief” and extended condolences to the government and people of Bayelsa.
Read Also: Bayelsa deputy governor Ewhrudjakpo dies after collapsing
Despite the statement from the party on whose platform Ewhrudjakpo was elected, the Bayelsa State Government has not formally confirmed his death. When contacted by TheCable, Daniel Alabrah, chief press secretary to Governor Douye Diri, said an announcement would be issued only when the deputy governor’s death was confirmed.
Diri defected from the PDP to the All Progressives Congress on 4 November, nearly a month after leaving the party, while Ewhrudjakpo remained in the opposition party.
As of Thursday night, uncertainty persisted over Ewhrudjakpo’s condition, with no official statement from the state government.
