We’ll never go back to PDP – Ekere, others

By Clifford Ndujihe & Tom Moses

Akwa Ibom State elders and leaders of thought have dismissed as baseless social media reports and  that some of their members are about to joining or returning to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state. According to a statement by Mr. Iboro Otongaran (director, Media and Publicity, Akwa Ibom APC Governorship Campaign Organisation), the leaders said nothing would make them return to the PDP.

Otuekong Sonny Jackson, who is the political leader of Uyo Senatorial District, described the internet rumour as a joke taken too far and warned that his name should not be associated with the PDP in any circumstance.

Mr Nsima Ekere, former deputy governor of the state, who was also mentioned in the rumoured plan to return to the PDP, said: “With the impunity that hallmarks the affairs of the PDP and the humiliation suffered by the G22, of which I was the leader, at the hand of the former ruling party during the governorship primary in the state, there is no way I can go back to the PDP.”

In like manner, Akwa Ibom State chairman of the APC, Dr Amadu Attai, said there was no basis for any leader of the APC, or any conscientious leader in the state to move to the PDP and dismissed the speculation as fiction. Attai said very soon Udom and Akpabio will be given the Wada treatment, translated to mean they will be booted out the way APC recently dislodged Governor Ibrahim Wada in Kogi State.

This came as the PDP once again raised the alarm that the APC with support from the Presidency was planning to take over Akwa-Ibom State without recourse to people’s will. Chairman of the Akwa-Ibom State Leaders Caucus, Senator Anietie Okon raised the alarm on behalf of the group in a statement entitled: “APC’S mindless plot to take over Akwa Ibom: Again a timely warning.’’

He said that a vast majority of the people of the state had on “April 11, 2015, demonstrated their overwhelming support for the PDP and its candidate, Mr. Udom Gabriel Emmanuel but the Elections Petitions Tribunal, which sitting was moved from the state to Abuja without genuine cause, discountenanced the votes and ordered a re-run in 18 of the 31 local government areas in the state on the tepid excuse that voters were disenfranchised.”

According to Senator Okon, the evil plan against his party, the PDP, was one of the recommendations contained in the APC’s “Penetration Strategy document issued in August, entitled: “Political Penetration of South South/North Central Strategy Plan Draft, August 2015” which was released  almost two months before the tribunal delivered the judgement.

“In respect of Akwa Ibom State, the document, apart from asking for massive shipment of funds to enable the invasion and forceful take over, made specific decisions including the nullification of the governorship election to pave the way for a rerun and where a total nullification proves difficult in view of the strength of the PDP in the state, the nullification of a substantial part of the election in majority of the local government areas should be pursued”, Okon further noted.