…Says Dr Glory Edet Still In The Race
Priscilla Christopher
The immediate past Member representing Ikono State Constituency in the Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Victor Udofia, has expressed his readiness to support any credible candidate vying for Ikono/Ini Federal Constituency election in 2023, irrespective of the candidate’s party affinity.
The former two-term Lawmaker who said this in an exclusive telephone interview with reporters on Tuesday, January 25, 2022, said it was high time people looked beyond party sentiments and select their preferred candidates based on pedigree and antecedents.
Taking a walk down memory lane, Rt. Hon. Udofia posited that Ikono/Ini Federal Constituency has come a full circle and should start agitating for conscientious leaders who would be mindful of the socio-economic development of the area. This he said, was the focus of the just-concluded Ikono/Ini Economic Symposium where stakeholders in the area brainstormed on reviving the rural economy for sustainable development, with focus on exploring the economic potentials and possibilities in Ikono/Ini.
Citing the State Commissioner for Agriculture, Dr. Glory Edet as one of such conscientious leaders, Udofia commended strongly the Commissioner’s ingenuity and zest at bettering the lives of people of the Constituency, while wishing that she would emerge the next Federal Representative of the area.
“If I have my way, I would have given her the seat and say, go and represent us. I am looking at somebody that can say: ‘this is right or this is wrong, let us put this on the table’. I am not looking at Party affiliation. I’m speaking from the entity of a stakeholder in Ikono/Ini. I am still waiting to see where my APC man or woman will say that he/she wants to contest for House of Reps election, and I can also check and look at the pedigree, and if the person is better than the Commissioner, I’ll stand with the person. For instance, if by tomorrow morning, you go an bring an armed robber or a thief or someone with questionable character and you say he’s an APC man and that I should support him to go to the House of Assembly, because of Party Affiliation? I won’t. I don’t remember the Bible saying that we should do what is wrong because we belong to a particular party. If that would make me not to be obedient to the party, so be it, but I have to satisfy my conscience”, he stressed.
Buttressing his stance on Dr. Glory Edet, the APC chieftain maintained that the Commissioner has shown impressionable interest in the affairs of her people and has proven herself worthy of higher trusts. “I have not pitched my tent with her,” Udofia quickly reacted while answering a reporter’s question. “I am only saying that if there’s somebody else that is more qualified than her, from my party or any other party and that has performed more than her, I will support. She (Glory) has done tremendously well in the past few years. She has assisted a lot of widows, paid school fees for people, recommended lots of people for employment into the State Civil Service which I know and won’t mention names. I am not her spokesperson but I am entitled to my opinion. She has done well in my local government (Ikono) and even in my own ward. She pays at least 10 people stipends, including my village in Ibiaku; and she has also established small businesses for the vulnerable”, he highlighted.
Asked if he was aware of reports that Dr. Glory Edet had withdrawn from the race, Rt. Hon. Udofia remarked that he was unaware, and that the story is not true as it did not come from the mouth of the Commissioner.
Speaking on the present state of disarray in the leadership of his Party, in view of the nearby Party Primaries, the APC faithful stated that they were going to put their House in order ahead of the National Conference holding soon. He expressed satisfaction with the Party’s leadership and restated his commitment to the Party.
“I remain a member of the APC. I am not going to any other Party because the APC has not treated me wrongly for now. I am getting jobs from APC government and that’s enough to put food on my table. And as they are giving me jobs, they are empowering me and also empowering people that are around me”, he emphasized.
Bearing his mind on the upheavals caused by the direct primaries, the former Lawmaker averred that both the President and National Assembly are on track.
“The President is saying, ‘let there be options which can be used based on availability of what is on ground’. He said, there can be direct primaries, indirect primaries or consensus. It means that the National Assembly did not put these things into consideration before passing it for the first time. They did not also take what the masses are saying. Maybe the process in which they followed was not actually right otherwise, they would not have come back to reverse themselves. That means they have also recognized that the process they followed and forgetting to put several things into consideration was the reason the President asked them to return it for a small amendment for it to reflect the tenets of democracy,” he said.
Continuing, the former Assemblyman said: “Afterall, there was a public hearing on that Bill and they gathered some information so the President is saying there should be options. He is not challenging the powers of the National Assembly because the powers of NASS cannot be challenged, it is very straight. But the good thing is that both parties have been able to see the areas and the grey hairs to amend. But on the whole, I support Mr President and the NASS for the harmonious working relationship and I give kudos to the two arms of Government.”
