TheHILL. | POLITICS | April 14, 2021.
A formidable political group; Akwa Ibom Democratic Forum (ADF), says there are a good number of fifth columnist in the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Akwa Ibom, whose intents are to play the insider role of destroying the party.
According to the group, “unless there is a conscious effort to rid the party of these saboteurs and rein in amenable ones, APC may never rise from this doldrum and prostrate state to win election in Akwa Ibom State.”
The organization in a press statement titled; “Akwa Ibom APC on a tipping point“, jointly signed by her Director-General; Rt. Honourable (Obongemem) Ekperikpe Ekpo and Secretary-General; Dr Tony Usoro, and made available to TheHILL, stated unequivocally that, the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Godswill Akpabio, remains the only confirmed and affirmed leader of APC in Akwa Ibom State.
Read the press statement here:
AKWA IBOM APC ON A TIPPING POINT
Akwa Ibom Democratic Forum(ADF) has watched with consternation the obnoxious and needless exertions by members of the All Progressive Congress (APC) Caretaker Committee in the state which sadly appears to be teleguided by certain influential forces driven by selfish impulses within the party and some external influence.
As responsible members of ADF with the interest of APC at heart, we have taken a cursory and keen look at the activities of these two categories of persons and come to the painful conclusion that APC in the state is facing a real and present danger of disintegration if these pretending members are not identified and their excesses nipped in the bud.
The genesis of the current undercurrent in APC in the state is a sad reminder of the serial sabotage that pervaded the party as a norm in 2019 and led to the party recording the avoidable loss of elections in the state that fateful year with all the advantages including monumental failure of Akwa Ibom State Government as evidenced in the non performance across different sectors of the economy.
ADF further wishes to allege without equivocation that they are a good number of fifth columnist in the APC whose intents are to play the insider role of destroying the party and unless there is a conscious effort to rid the party of these saboteurs and rein in amenable ones, APC may never rise from this doldrum and prostrate state to win election in Akwa Ibom State.
The matter that has generated the lingering furore is laughable. Sometime in 2018, Senator Godswill Akpabio who decided to “move” to APC invested his passion and zeal to change the fortunes of the party. He upped the ante for the party from a paltry 5 percent voting strength for APC in 2015 to more than 31 percent in 2019 despite the insider sabotage that was prevalent. But preceding the above was the proclamation by the then National Chairman of APC on behalf of the NWC that Akpabio is the leader of the party in the state. Non of them was disgruntled or controverted the proclamation by the then National Chairman of the Party. When Akpabio pulled an uncommon feat by taking stakeholders of the party in the State to the Villa to meet Mr President, they hailed and celebrated him as their leader. What has changed since then? They are trending pictures of how all the known chieftains of the party in unanimity lifted Akpabio’s hand as their leader. We recall that he was not even a Minister then . But they all saw the capacity in him and decided that he should lead them. At what point or time did he lose the attributes to warrant his so-called rejection ? Was his purported removal as leader made formal or just the warp conjecturing of a few persons who do not like him and who are pursuing selfish agenda?
ADF is miffed by the indiscretion and open hate that has been patently displayed against Senator Akpabio by some stakeholders, leading to a complete loss of focus by the acting State Chairman and members of his Caretaker Committee. Since its advent on December 11, 2020, the APC has been mired in crisis of confidence with the Chairman openly taking sides instead of investing efforts in building the party. This kind of attitude constitutes a failure of leadership and it is detrimental in every ramification to the party. As allies, we frown at any action that puts our party in peril and urge those steering the affairs of the party to demonstrate personal moral ardour that can overcome inducement.
Recent actions of the Acting Chairman and members of the State Working Committee of the party can not pass the test of morality and the considerations of justice, equity and fair-play. The fly by night argument on the legality and competence of Group Captain Sam Enwang to convoke a meeting of stakeholders as a National Caucus member and the declaration of that meeting of March 28 and its outcome as illegitimate are actions that suggest that the entire party structure has been compromised, induced and turned into an appendage of a particular individual.
The other Stakeholders’ Meeting of April 11, 2021 had all the trappings of a dubious ploy to take the wind out of the sail of the previous meeting of March 28. And to give devious vent to that intention, they selected people that support only specific fixations to speak, ignoring others including the convener of the previous meeting who was courageous enough to attend the meeting perhaps to be given opportunity to state his case . If that meeting was concerned with issues of fairness, Enwang, a former governor would have been allowed the fair hearing to defend his action.
The most surprising to ADF is that even though the meeting ended in stillbirth with majority of the people staging a walk out, the State Working Committee in a show of moral depravity and dubiety published a communique which in all intents and purposes is expected to be resolution reached at a meeting by the majority . But this particular communique appeared to have been written even before the meeting was held. Nothing can be more unbecoming of a party which canvases and preaches progressive values. ADF wants to put on record that the purported communique was dubiously concocted to serve a devious cause and as a group, we reject the communique and its content in all its entirety as it is baseless, misleading, and unfounded.
We wish to restate that the Minister of Niger Delta Affairs, Senator Godswill Akpabio, a former two term governor, a former Senate Minority Leader and the highest political office holder remains the only confirmed and affirmed leader of APC in Akwa Ibom State.
ADF wishes to state that going by convention and standard practice, the position of leader of the party is never conceded to the party chairman. The chairman remains the number ONE PARTY MAN in the State but not the party leader which is the nomenclature ascribed to governor in a state where the party has the governor or the highest political office holder where it does not have a governor.
As a group, we shall continue to support the party, but insist that those manning the affairs of our great party must not subordinate it to the apron string of individuals and that way sacrifice democratic ethos at the detriment of building enduring democratic structure that would deliver good governance through dependable leadership.
Long live APC!
Long live Akwa Ibom State!!
Long live the Federal Republic of Nigeria!!!
Signed:
Rt. Honourable (Obongemem) Ekperikpe Ekpo
Director- General.
Dr Tony Usoro
Secretary-General.
