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  • APC will win in Akwa Ibom – Akpabio

    The former Senate Minority Leader, Senator Godswill Akpabio, on Monday said that victory for the All Progressives Congress (APC), in elections in Akwa Ibom State was a “done deal”.

    He spoke on the sideline of the inauguration of the APC presidential campaign council by President Buhari at the International Conference Centre, Abuja.

    Akpabio, who is the immediate past governor of Akwa Ibom State, said that apart from the massive infrastructure going on in the state, the APC campaign will be based on the integrity of the President.

    He said, “I thank the APC family for giving us (Akwa Ibom APC) the opportunity to kick-start presidential campaigns in 2019 like what you saw, that shows indeed the future is very bright for the party, the prospects are very strong.

    “We have a lot to campaign with, the social infrastructure, the SEED programme, a lot has been achieved by this President as never done before. In the past, we had so much of recurrent expenses but today, we are now seeing infrastructure on ground like the railways, the roads and other infrastructural programmes of this administration.

    “But over and above that, we have so much confidence in the integrity of Mr. President and I think most of the campaigns in 2019 will be based on integrity. There is need for Nigeria to take its rightful place in the comity of nations. So for me in Akwa Ibom, it’s a done deal.” he said

    The former governor of Delta state, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan has also said that the achievements of President Buhari in the Niger Delta area and Delta state, in particular, would make his re-election in the February presidential election very easy.

    According to him, the efforts of the President Buhari-led government have brought relative peace in the Niger Delta region.

    Read Also: Amaechi: PDP mocks Buhari over leaked tape

    He said “We are sure of delivering because Mr. President has done a lot for Delta state. Don’t forget that Delta state is like the nucleus of the crisis in Niger Delta and of course when Mr. President came in, we had this Niger Delta Avengers that came up in 2016.

    “When Mr. President came in and it took the ingenuity of Mr. President and the Vice President to manage that crisis, the Vice president has to come to the state, the Minister of Petroleum had to come to the state, to the heart of the creeks in Niger Delta to do engagement processes.

    “In fact, the Vice President went round every state in the Niger Delta; it has never been done before. For Delta, in particular, he was there, he went to see traditional rulers, he went to see some of the youths, he went to see those that were involved in the crisis and that helped significantly in managing the crisis.

    “Apart from that, Mr. President also has done a lot in terms of infrastructure and human capital development in Delta state and across the Niger Delta. The railway to Alaja is now functional and of course they have started carrying passengers.

    “As at today, there is a lot of work going on at Escravos bar. That was the entry to the Delta state port that was not passable but by the time they finish with it, it will be passable.

    “Of course, a lot of roads have been done by the NDDC (Niger Delta Development Commission), the number of roads that have been done by the NDDC in the last three years have never been done before.

    “From the human capital development area, we have the N-Power, we have the feeding of our school children, we have the tradermoni and also the empowerment programmes that are being done by the Federal Government. So we have a lot to campaign within Delta state.” he said

  • Akpabio: pray for peaceful polls

    Former Senate Minority leader Godswill Akpabio has urged Christians to pray for peace before, during and after the 2019 elections. He urged Nigerians to use the Christmas season to pray for the country’s leaders.

    A statement from his Media Office, signed by Mr. Jackson Udom, said: “Though the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has been fully mobilised for the elections, the commission still needs the prayers of Nigerians to have a smooth sail in 2019.”

    According to the statement, Akpabio spoke at St. Lucy Catholic Church, Ukana Ikot Ntuen, Essien Udim Local government, during a Christmas Mass.

    Read also: 18 months after, sacked whistle-blower reinstated

    The statement reads: “As we go into next year, we need the prayers of Nigerians for a successful election. Though INEC has been duly, fully and adequately empowered for the exercise, I urge us to pray for the success of the election.

    “Let us not forget our leaders because they need our prayers to lead us right. Let us not allow the importance of his birth of our Lord Jesus Christ, which is love, peace and oneness, to be lost on us as we elect leaders next year.”

  • Akpabio and test of leadership

    In the last 16 years that he has held different political posts – commissioner, governor in Akwa Ibom and currently, senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 56-year old Godswill Obot Akpabio, has carved a niche for himself. The governor’s office in his native Akwa Ibom, which he manned between May 29, 2007 and May 29, 2015, meteorically moved him from relative obscurity to pre-eminence.

    Incontrovertibly, Akpabio has transformed the landscape of Akwa Ibom more than any other governor since the creation of the state in 1987. If, at all, it is possible for the people of Akwa Ibom to forget him, his works on physical infrastructures, such as road constructions and airport project he inherited from his predecessor at drawing board level, and social amenities, particularly, the free education he initiated, have what it takes to shame anyone with amnesia.

    Even with the infrastructural renaissance, this writer would not score him up to average on the overall scale of good governance, as his performance was close to being abysmal in some other salient indices of good governance. However, in a society like ours, where what are given elsewhere are considered messianic gestures, even when a leader with acclaimed messianic touch operates below par, people still pull off their clothes, spray on road for “the messiah” to walk while they sing hosanna to his name.

    In human estimation and as shown by preponderance opinion expressed by many, Akpabio may be considered a successful politician. Granted that he is successful in politics, which, as it is common in the Nigerian society, translates from rising political profile to uncommon opulence, it is doubtful whether Akpabio could be described as a good manager of success of any kind. Managing failure is easier than sustaining success. When success gets into one’s head it puts future prospects in peril.

    At the moment, contrary to so many people’s assumption, Akpabio is plying a perilous political path. He is at the edge of precipice and, if care is not taken, he could tumble irredeemably to political irrelevance. Leaving PDP, a party that catapulted him from nowhere to somewhere, for APC, a party he was vehemence in pouring venoms on, still remains a shock to millions, who judge him on face value and not the depth of his characters.

    If his claims that he is joining APC so he could avail himself with chances of playing national politics is worth working on, then Akpabio has succeeded in advertising himself as Nigeria’s celebrated chameleonic politician. Aside, was Obafemi Awolowo in any political party that controlled the centre before being eternally engrained in the hearts of his admirers and adversaries as an outstanding nationalists and statesman?

    If the rumour making rounds that he joined APC so as to fence off anti-graft agencies from arresting and subsequently prosecuting him over allegation of graft while serving as governor deserves consideration, then Akpabio has launched himself as coward of grandstanding. In deciding matters in 2019 election, Akwa Ibom people may be prompted to take one of Mahatma Gandhi’s inimitable admonitions to heart: “A coward is incapable of exhibiting love; it is the prerogative of the brave.”

    Regarding his dumping of PDP, Akpabio has also been advancing that he made a political mistake in the build up to 2015 electioneering. Except political arithmetic is like mathematical arithmetic, where minus plus minus is equal to plus, then his acclaimed blunder in 2015 plus another blunder in the build up to 2019 elections would result in anything but positive.

    Since his defection to APC, Akpabio has been on overkill in order to live up to presumptuous billings that he is the commander-in-chief of the politics of the South-south and in desperation of earning the trust of those parleying with him with mistrust. He was recently reported to have said that his heart was with then candidate Muhammadu Buhari of APC in 2015 presidential election”. Whereas, then Governor Akpabio had closed Ibom International Airport, forcing Buhari to be on road for about four hours from Margaret Ekpo International Airport in Calabar to Uyo, the Akwa Ibom State capital. In event of Buhari losing 2019 Presidential Election, Akpabio may typically come up again that his “heart” was for Atiku Abubakar, the Presidential Candidate of the PDP.

    Once a person is known to be speaking from both sides of his mouth those listening to him, if any, do not only put their ears on ground but put the rest of their sense organs to full task and the resultant effect is that even when what proceeds from his mouth is coated with goodies no one, except the gullible, takes to his words to the bank. That is a goodwill thrown to the dogs!

    As things stand today in Akwa Ibom North West (IkotEkpene) Senatorial District, in event that the election would have close 45 per cent credibility or a free and fair rigging, where contending parties would slug out for votes without coercive interference of institutional powers, Akpabio stands a brighter chance of losing his second term senatorial election.

    Failure, indeed, would serve Akpabio well. He would get to know and appreciate the realities of life. It would offer him ample opportunity for reconnaissance in order to pick his pieces. He would come to his senses that his action of leaving PDP lonely to APC was a shot on his foot.

    If he wins in an atmosphere of crisis, then the likely quagmire that may follow could slide down the ladder of his history. Surely, no matter what, Akpabio has a strategic place in his history. But the process of one making history is a continuum. And one could make history either as a hero or villain.

     

    • Ekanem, a journalist sent this piece from Lagos through nsikak4media@gmail.com

  • Akpabio chides Saraki, Dogara

    Senator Godswill Akpabio has described the inability of Senate President Bukola Saraki and Speaker Yakubu Dogara to deliver their speeches during President Muhammadu Buhari’s budget presentation as a sign of weakness. He urged them to resign peacefully.

    Akpabio, in an interview with reporters shortly after Buhari presented the 2019 Appropriation Bill at the National Assembly in Abuja, said: “They really couldn’t talk because they shouldn’t be sitting on those seats since they now belong to a minority party.

    “When I was in the minority party, I was the minority leader; I wasn’t the Senate President.

    “So I will expect that what has happened today should be a wake up call on the Speaker and the Senate President to resign peacefully,” he said.

    Read also: Atiku promises ease of doing business in Southeast

    On the rowdy session, he said such action was a characteristic of a parliament all over the world.

    “But you could also notice that the majority party, the APC, showed its strength. There was a lot of quietness; there was a lot of silence whenever the President was making key points.

    “The rest were just normal nuances of politics,” he said.

  • Akpabio: Emmanuel has not done well

    Senator Godswill Akpabio has criticised Governor Udom Emmanuel for not performing.

    Akpabio said his successor had failed to initiate and complete any project since he handed over to him.

    The senator spoke at the weekend while addressing supporters at his campaign kick off and inauguration of the All Progressives Congress (APC) office in Ukana, Essien Udim Local Government.

    He said he was disappointed in Emmanuel for insulting him despite bringing him from Lagos and making him governor

    He said: “I gave him the platform which he contested the election and became governor, though he was not a member of any political party. Today, he has the temerity to call a conference to insult me. Only God could have made it possible to make someone who was never a party member to become a governor. Only God could have made somebody who has never had a party card or know what is called ward to become a governor.

    “Only God could have made someone who could not have stood election on his own, even as a councillor and win, to be brought from somewhere and made governor. Only God could have made a man who has never helped anyone to become anything to become governor.”

    Akpabio urged the people not to bother about the insults on him but rather respond through the ballot by sending PDP packing in 2019.

    He said Ikot Ekpene remained a hot bed for APC and so the people should ensure they vote for the party.

    The former governor hinted that the Vice President would visit the state to launch the Trader Moni where market women would benefit from the scheme with cash grants by the Federal Government

    According to him, Akwa Ibom appreciate President Muhammadu Buhari’s efforts in infrastructural development, and the appointments the APC administration had offered Akwa Ibom sons and daughters.

    But Commissioner for Information and Strategy Charles Udoh has refuted allegations of non-performance on Emmanuel, saying no first term governor could beat Emmanuel in performance.

    He said: “Despite the challenges of a receding national economy, Governor Emmanuel has recorded landmark achievements.

    “Today, Akwa Ibom is the fastest developing state in Nigeria. With over 12 industries in just three and a half years, upgrade of secondary healthcare across the 10 constituencies, roads and infrastructure, agriculture and food sufficiency, to improvements in education, it has been a harvest of achievements.

    “These would not have been possible if the governor had succumbed to the “blood sucking” antics of the former governor who, despite leaving so many phony uncompleted projects, enjoys all the largesse befitting a former governor and much more.”

  • ‘Akpabio maybe the last Annang governor’

    A chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Mr. Jerry Akpan, has called on leaders of the Annang ethnic group to rise up and stop the current ethnic disharmony between the Annangs and the Ibibios of Akwa Ibom state.

    According to him, the Ibibios view Senator Godswill Akpabio’s defection to the All Progressives Congress (APC) and his efforts at stopping Governor Udom Emmanuel, an Ibibio son, from having a second term, as a betrayal of the Ibibios.

    According to him, the former governor’s action may block the Annangs from ever producing a governor in the lifetime of the state as the Ibibios may use their numerical strength as the largest ethnic group in the state to keep the Annangs away from power.

    Akpan, who served in Akpabio’s administration as special adviser on bureau of political and legislative affairs, and later Commissioner for Economic Development, spoke in Uyo yesterday.

    According to him, Akpabio’s kinsmen have risen against the former Senate Minority Leader because of his action which they see as capable of making them politically irrelevant in the political equation of the state.

    The former political aide said key political stakeholders in Annang land have teamed up to

    ensure that Akpabio does not win his ward and other areas in Ikot-Ekpene for the APC.

    He said: “As at yesterday, somebody called me and I asked him to come tomorrow. He swore that Akpabio will not win his ward. I told him not to say that.

    “Do you know what is happening in Akpabio’s ward? Those who left PDP because of Akpabio are returning to PDP. If you put your ears on the ground you will agree with me. Are you saying that Chief Afangideh, at 96, is playing games with us? Are you saying that Prince Akpabio and Emem Akpabio are playing with us? This man we gave ticket to Eseh, do you think he is playing?

    “It is going to be very tough for Akpabio. The deputy governor spoke in Ukanafun few days ago that the time for them to rise up is now otherwise Akpabio would be the last Annang person to be governor in Akwa Ibom State.

    “Ibibios are more in number than the Annangs. The deputy governor, who is from Annang, reminded them at the meeting in Ukanafun that they are only eight local government areas in this state, and if the Ibibios team up against them, they will never occupy the governorship seat in this state again.”

    Akpan said Governor Emmanuel was not worried about the chances of winning a second term as PDP is a religion in the state, adding that

    the PDP has ‘strong men’ in every unit and ward across the state capable of ensuring victory for the party next year.

     

     

  • Akpabio preaches tolerance as defection hits PDP

    Former Senate Minority leader Godswill Akpabio has called on Nigerians to avoid negative political antics as 2019 elections approach.

    According to him, there can be no progress without peace among people of diverse political leanings.

    Akpabio spoke at the reception for defectors from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC) at Odot,Nsit Atai Local Government.

    He condemned the destruction of campaign billboards in the state, and lauded members of APC for not following suit.

    Akpabio’s Media Office quoted the former governor: “If you look outside this venue, you’ll see posters of the outgoing Governor, Udom Emmanuel; they are not torn, it shows that APC is a peaceful party.

    ‘’While coming down here, on Airport Road, you’ll notice that billboards of APC are all torn. We are for peace; Nsit Atai is for peace. Let me assure you that they can only tear your posters and billboards but they cannot tear your votes in 2019.”

    He said APC would record a landslide victory in Akwa Ibom as reward for the goodwill done the state by President Muhammadu Buhari.

    The senator said Akwa Ibom had benefited from the Federal Government through employment, projects, and social intervention programmes, such as N-Power. PDP did nothing for the state in 16 years.”

  • Akpabio: defectors planning to truncate Buhari’s govt

    Former Senate Minority Leader Senator Godswill Akpabio yesterday warned that there are forces trying to truncate the President Muhammadu Buhari administration, even before the 2019 presidential election.

    Akpabio said the development is the plan of majority of those that recently defected to the People’s Democratic Party (PDP).

    The senator, who vowed to make sure that Buhari is re-elected into office in 2019 through a free, fair and credible election, attributed his decision to leave the PDP for the All Progressives Congress (APC) on the basis of national interest.

    The former governor of Akwa Ibom during an interview with reporters in Abuja on the state of the nation, said his projection is that in spite of the political rigmarole, aliment and re-aliment, 2019 victory belong to the APC “and most especially President Muhammadu Buhari will be retuned for the second term in office”.

    He said: “I am saying so because God loves Nigeria. This is a man, who has tried for so many years to be President of this country under democratic dispensation. At a time he said he was no longer interested. But from nowhere again, a lot of people came together from People’s Democratic Party (PDP), some from Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), some from his party, the Congress for Progressive Change (CPC), and they went back to appeal to him to come.

    “He came in spite of his resistance and then confusion entered into the PDP family and God is a master planner and from here and there, Buhari emerged president of Nigeria. Atiku and others will be defeated in 2019.

    “When he emerged President, the incumbent President, then Goodluck Jonathan, did not wait for the final result of the election. He called Buhari and congratulated him. And Nigeria had a very smooth and peaceful transition.

    “I believe that in 2015, we all had our chooses but God had his way. And also when God has a hand in something, I do not think he is the master of uncompleted projects. I believe that God completes projects.

    “This is not a decision of man, it was the decision of God and I believe God will give him strength and you can see the calibre of political personages that he has continue to attract despite the rigmarole by some members of the same political party, the APC.”

    On why he defected to the ruling party, Akpabio said: “I left PDP for national interest. And I keep re-emphasising that word, in the national interest. Because I believe that the nation has to survive first before we can have election. But if you saw what was going on in the country, there were forces to truncate the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari, even before the election.

    “But these actions were also capable of bringing democracy to an end. The intension then was to crash the government before even the election. Major forces, including state governors of the APC extraction were defecting to the PDP. And this was capable of destroying the polity.

    “So, there was the need for us the people who have stake in the country to come out and stabilise the polity before the election. That was why I defected to APC in the national interest.

    And I said I will like to join the conspiracy where we conspire to end Boko Haram, to bring peace to the Southeast region and put an end to IPOB, to see to an end of militancy and vandalisation of pipeline, to bring employment to Nigerians and not to converge to bring down any government.”

     

     

     

     

  • Akpabio to Saraki: Senate leadership must change

    The calm that reigned in the Senate since its return from recess last week was shattered yesterday.

    Senator Godswill Akpabio called for the reconstitution and restructuring of the upper chamber — in line with the numerical strength of parties. “The majority must always preside over the minority,” he said.

    He threatened to stop contributing in plenary unless his desired change is carried out.

    Akpabio (Akwa Ibom North West) spoke at a news conference after yesterday’s plenary during which he was temporarily barred from making contributions by Senate President Bukola Saraki.

    Akpabio, who defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC) and resigned as the minority leader, said the Senate president should follow suit after Saraki’s defection to the PDP from APC.

    He added that while the minority should have its say, the majority should have its way for peace to prevail.

    The Senate, he insisted, must be properly constituted and senators must sit according to political parties.

    “You cannot have 10 senators presiding over the affairs of 80 senators and expect peace to reign,” Akpabio said.

    He went on: “On the other side, having me move from the PDP to the APC, I think it is a jolly good movement and I am excited that I have a much greater opportunity to relate directly with the government and not my voice to be heard from a partisan point of view.

    “Being part of the ruling party now, whatever advice or contributions I will make will not be looked at with suspicion. They will now know that I am saying it from a patriotic point of view and for the fact that I want things to work better.

    “I moved in national interest. I saw a kind of slight towards disorder, where many of my colleagues saw defection as a weapon against the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari.

    “I don’t believe that we should bring a government into being without supporting that government to succeed. If the administration slides and Nigeria slides into anarchy, it is our children that will suffer. I moved to stabilise the polity.

    “I moved from PDP to APC, to make sure that this government works before election. It should not be all about election; it should be first about Nigeria. Let others also move in national interest.

    “I did not just move like that, I was a (Minority) Leader in the Senate. I resigned my position in order to show that, yes, I meant business. Let others who also have positions in the Senate who wish to also cross carpet from one political party to another also resign their positions and take a cue from what Godswill Akpabio did.

    “There is the need for us to restructure the Senate. Behind where I sat today, my very good friend, distinguished Senator Shittu; it was after the little noise in the Senate that he told me that he was now in the PDP and I said ‘why are you sitting here?’

    “Don’t you think there is the need for us to restructure the Senate? PDP will sit on a side, APGA will sit where they are supposed to, and the ruling party, which still forms the majority, will still sit where they are supposed to sit.

    ”The leadership should be restructured in a way that the majority can have their way and the minority will have their say. That is the practice all over modern democracies.

    “You cannot have a political party with 10 members, another with 80 members, and the 10 members will now produce the leadership.

    “Does it happen anywhere in the world? Nigeria is not different. We are running a democracy. That is what I meant when I said I would speak when the Senate is well restructured and reconstituted.”

    During plenary, there was commotion for over 30 minutes.

    It all started with a Point of Order raised by Senator Bassey Albert Akpan.

    Akpan (PDP, Akwa Ibom North East) raised Order 43, which deals with personal explanation under which a senator is allowed to speak about himself and his constituents.

    The Akwa Ibom North East lawmaker informed his colleagues about a looming crisis in Akwa Ibom State.

    He claimed that the APC in the state was plotting to unleash mayhem that would possibly lead to the cancellation of the governorship election in 2019.

    He alleged that the APC wanted to instigate the cancellation of the governorship election to deploy “federal might” to cause a change of leadership in the state.

    Saraki ruled that the information given by Akpan was “well noted”.

    Akpabio, who appeared to be agitated by Akpan’s information, was angling to respond

    Saraki asked Akpabio to go to his seat before he could be recognised to speak.

    The Senate President said Akpabio could not speak from a seat that is not his.

    Saraki added that there was no microphone where Akpabio sat.

    Saraki said: “Nobody is trying to prevent Senator Akpabio from speaking.

    “All I said is that Senator Akpabio should go and sit where there is a microphone and he will be allowed to speak.

     

    “It has never happened in this chamber that a senator is allowed to speak where there is no microphone.”

    Senate Leader Ahmed Lawan reminded Saraki that there was no formal sitting arrangement in the chamber.

    He said that Akpabio had the right to speak from where he was since the leadership of the chamber had failed to ensure a formal sitting arrangement.

    Lawan noted that he had raised the issue of a formal sitting arrangement with the Senate President without the expected result.

    The Senate Leader, who insisted that the chamber must be guided by its rules, added that “we must have a sitting arrangement”.

    Lawan said there had been movements across party lines, with the possibility that more people would still move as they deemed fit.

    Saraki said the Clerk to the Senate, Nelson Ayewo, was directed to allocate seats to senators.

    The Senate President said he believed that the new sitting arrangement would be completed next week.

    As the exchange of words between Saraki and Lawan continued, Akpabio was visibly angry  where he sat.

    He insisted on being allowed to speak. Saraki stood his ground that Akpabio should go to his seat before he could be allowed to speak.

    Senator Dino Melaye attempted to shout Akpabio down.

    Akpabio got irritated and was also shouting on top of his voice. There was confusion as other senators joined the fray.

    Attempts to calm frayed nerves failed.

    Lawan moved to confer with Saraki, apparently on the way forward.

    Saraki explained that his position was that Akpabio should go to a seat with a microphone.

    He said Lawan was not fair to him by insinuating that he did not want Akpabio to speak.

    Lawan said the APC must not be discriminated against on the floor of the Senate.

    Deputy Senate President Ike Ekweremadu raised Order 11(1)(2).

    Ekweremadu said every senator had the right to speak for himself and the people he represents.

    Senators Mohammed Ali Ndume (APC) and Kabiru Marafa (APC) began to shout on top of their voices.

    Ekweremadu was forced to sit down.

    Akpabio took the floor and said the seat on which he sat was allocated to him by the Senate Clerk.

    He added that the embarrassment he received was uncalled for.

    Saraki disagreed and asked the Clerk to confirm if he allocated the seat to Akpabio.

    The Clerk said when Akpabio requested to sit on the seat, he informed him that there was no microphone on the seat.

    Ayewo said Akpabio insisted on sitting there.

    He said he had no choice than to allow Akpabio to sit where he wanted.

    After Ayewo’s explanation, Saraki gave Akpabio the floor to speak.

    The former governor of Akwa Ibom State promptly demanded an apology “for the unwarranted embarrassment I received today”.

    He added that even the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) apologised to Nigerians.

    Akpabio concluded: “Until the Senate sitting arrangement is properly constituted, I rest my case.”

  • Akpabio, Ekere chosen as consensus candidates

    Senator Godswill Akpabio and Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) Managing Director Nsima Ekere have been adopted as consensus candidates by stakeholders of All Progressives Congress in Akwa Ibom State.

    Akpabio was picked by stakeholders of Ikot Ekpene senatorial district as sole candidate for area; Ekere was chosen as candidate for governor.

    The former Senate Minority leader and NDDC MD’s adoption resulted from a midnight meeting, which lasted for four hours.

    One of the top contenders for the Ikot Ekpene senatorial seat, Inibehe Okori reportedly stepped down for Akpabio at the meeting.

    The two aspirants will be officially presented to the people at a later date.

    Addressing party faithful after the meeting, leader of the party Otuekong Don Etiebet said the decision was reached for the good of all.

    According to Etiebet, “we leaders have decided tonight that Obong Nsima Ekere be our governor in 2019. We have also decided to endorse Godwill Akpabio to represent Ikot Ekpene senatorial district.

    “After individual experimentation, we have decided to work to take the  decision for the common good of the people of Akwa Ibom State.

    “We are going to work for our collective interest, we recognised the importance of contributory arrangements that between us the leaders, all of us are known in the country and that if we go to Abuja, we can get something working together”.

    State party Chairman Ini Okopido expressed satisfaction that the leaders were able to bring out amicable resolutions binding all parties.

    “I thank God that we have arrived at definite decisions one of which is to support Obong Nisma Ekere, for the governorship position of the state, support Godswill Akpabio, because when the national leaders our party came here they respected him and we have decided to respect so that he would not be like the proverbial prophet who is not respected in his home town” Okopido stated.