The sudden and unexpected departure of former governor Godswill Akpabio from the PDP to the APC in August actually gave vent to the fact that Akwa Ibom would become the epicenter of political ‘war.’
Since his famous ‘uncommon defection,’ like Angel Gabriel, who said he would bring many Israelites back to God, a lot of his faithful and supporters accompanied him to the APC fold.
At his defection, people were wont to describe Akpabio’s action as ‘decamping,’ but characteristically, had dismissed his migration into the APC as a mere ‘defection.’
“When you migrate alone, that can be called defection or decamping. But, when you move with a lot of people, that is called movement,” Akpabio was quoted as having told his hordes of supporters.
Initially, those who left the PDP with him included two commissioners in charge of Culture and Tourism; Victor Antai and Mr Ibanga Akpabio, his half brother at the Labour and Productivity Ministry.
At the party hierarchy, the Deputy PDP chairman, Mr Godwin Affangideh, left, while some members of the state and National Assemblies also took a leave from the PDP.
Emmanuel Ekon, member of the House of Representatives for Abak Federal Constituency, currently running his second term and Honourable Emmanuel Akpan, his colleague from Ikot Ekpene Federal Constituency, also left to pitch tent with Akpabio in APC.
The duo joined Honourable Emmnanuel Ukoette (Ukanafun\Oruk Anam) Federal Constituency and Senator Nelson Effiong, Eket Senatorial District, who had earlier dumped the PDP platform to the APC at the centre.
Since the defection of Akpabio and his army of followers, no fewer than eight personal aides of Governor Udom Emmanuel have dumped their portfolios and the PDP – to embrace the broom party.
At the defection of Akpabio in August, major stakeholders of the PDP had expressed shock, apparently in view of the fact that the defection, which they described as “cheeky,” did not follow the due process of consultations and negotiations with the stakeholders and constituents.
And because of the change of status quo that the APC takeover of the state would bring to the already established zoning system, the stakeholders were quick to rise and urged Udom to prepare for ‘war.’
The stakeholders include the former Military Administrator of the state, Air Commodore Idongesit Nkanga (retd); Senators Anietie Okon; Efiong Bob and Emmanuel Ibokessien, as well as notable political leaders across the 31 local government areas of the state.
At the forum held at the Banquet Hall of the Government House, Nkanga, who doubles as the Director-General of the Governor Emmanuel’s Divine Mandate Campaign group for his 2019 re-election, was quoted as urging the governor thus:
“You must prepare for ‘war’ because we are going into the battle of the survival of the fittest.”
And few days later, Akpabio was quick to respond: “the invasion of Akwa Ibom by the APC will be similar to the invasion of Poland by Adolf Hitler, where Warsaw (capital of Poland) saw war.”
Although observers have chosen to embellish the remarks by Otuekong Nkanga, that Udom should “prepare for war,” Akpabio’s reaction has continued to dominate the political space, with major political developments linked to Akpabio’s counter remarks.
Ahead of the polls, tempers have continued to rise as the state with about six million people ha become balkanised into two major political camps of the two major political parties, PDP and APC.
However, the tempo of the political confrontations between the two camps heightened following the emergence of the governorship candidate of the APC, Obong Nsima Ekere, who has assumed the political acronym of ONE.
The ONE political acronym, according to Otuekong Sunny Jackson, the APC political leader in Etinan, stemmed from the fact that “Obong Nsima Ekere (ONE), is not coming to alter the existing zoning arrangement because he (Nsima) is coming to run for only one term and leave for the Uyo Senatorial District, whose turn is next to rule the state in 2019.”
Ekere, currently still holding sway at the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), even after campaigns have started, had during Akpabio’s defection ceremony declared that “I will run on only one condition: Only One term.
But the Speaker of the House of Assembly, Right Honourable Onofiok Luke and other PDP leaders and stakeholders have been disputing that declaration, arguing that the former deputy governor to former governor Godswill Akpabio (2011 to 2013), would not honour his words.
According to Speaker Luke, Ekere would be swallowed by the power and influence of the office to begin to eat his words and indulge in his quest for another term, in line with the usually refrain in Akwa Ibom parlance: “kiet enem ntom, iba?” (If ‘one’ is this sweet, what of two?).
Towards this end, pressures have been mounting for the PDP forces to be galvanised across the state to scuttle Ekere’s quest to seize the power baton from the Governor Emmanuel in 2019.
But apparently worried by what they described as ‘federal might’, which may be deployed to take over the state, the PDP has been protesting what they see as the bare-face demonstration of raw power in the state immediately after the conclusion of nominations.
It started with the petition to President Muhammadu Buhari by the APC chairman in the state, Mr Ini Okpoido, who alleged that “PDP thugs were in the habit of defacing and destroying Ekere and APC campaign billboards in the state.”
Consequently, key officers of the Udom campaign organisation, including Otuekong Nkanga, Speaker Luke, state PDP char, Paul Ekpo; the Commissioner for Environment, Dr Iniobong Essien and the chairman of Uyo Local Government Area, Imo Okon and others were summoned to Abuja by the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Ibrahim Idris.
“The speed at which President Buhari minuted to the petition to the IGP for action,” according to Luke, was a pointer to the grand design to take over the state by force, warning that “we will resist it because we can never be cowed.”
The siege by the security agencies of the House of Assembly, following the declaration of the seats of five former PDP members, who defected to the APC vacant, according to Governor Udom’s Aide on Youths Matters, Comrade Aniefiok Iwaudofia, has further accentuated what he described as “mischievous plot by the Federal Government to take over Akwa Ibom.”
“All the youth would resist such overtures because Governor Emmanuel, since he became the governor, has totally changed the development framework of the state and given the youths a big sense of belonging through industrialisation, job creation, infrastructure and empowerment,” he told a press conference at the weekend.
Although the occupation forces left the Assembly complex following several outcry, two factional leaders still lay claim to the Speakership position with Luke leading the majority of the PDP lawmakers, while Honourable Nse Ntuen, Akpabio’s maternal cousin, representing Essien Udim state constituency, leads the APC faction, as Speaker.
The APC State Working Committee (SWC) has given Ntuen, the necessary backing to hold a parallel session, to elect other principal officers and formalized the “impeachment” of Speaker Luke, but the sealing off of the complex prevented the five APC lawmakers from gaining entrance into the legislative chambers, on Wednesday.
It was learnt there has been series of horse-trading heavily backed by Akpabio, the APC leadership in the state and Abuja, with cash and other political perks dangling before some more PDP lawmakers to join the five in order to have the quorum for the action.
The five affected legislators include Honourable Idongesit Ituen (Itu), Victor Udofia (Ikono), Nse Ntuen (Essien Udim), Gabariel Toby (Etim Ekpo\Ika) and the factional ‘Speaker’ Ntuen (Essien Udim).
Investigation by Sunday Tribune revealed that the Monday’s crisis at the Assembly, where thugs invaded the chambers, was to preclude the House from sitting to effect the declaration of the seat of the lawmakers vacant, as a Federal High Court was scheduled to rule on the stay-of-execution case brought before it by Ituen.
The event in which bonfires and other violent conducts were displayed at the premises, according to the PDP state chairman, Obong Paul Ekpo, was instigated by Mr Ituen and other leaders of the APC, “in their grand design to make Akwa Ibom ungovernable for the state of emergency to be declared.”
Ekpo, who addressed press conference on the matter at the weekend, also disclosed that “there is a secret plot of the APC to assassinate known PDP members in order to create a climate of insecurity and confusion in order to take over the state.”
He warned that “the people of the state would resist such action because everyone is ready for the elections to return the governor and other PDP candidates in 2019,” noting that the APC ploy was borne out of fear going by the performance of the administration in the last three years which would recommend the governor for re-election.
He urged the international community to keep close watch of Akwa Ibom as the APC was hell bent to seize the state by force as it happened in Ekiti and Osun.
However, in the midst of all the political melodrama, political observers have pointed at what they called “political solution” to the settlement of the imbroglio, arguing that Speaker Luke erred when he cited section 109 of the Constitution, as empowering him to declare the seats vacant, even “when there is no such precedents since the flurry of defections started at the National Assembly, with Senators Bukola Saraki, Akpabio and the rest.”
The House was adjourned by Speaker Luke to resume on Tuesday, November 27. Therefore, the true picture of this political chess game would become clearer when the House resumes normal legislative plenary next week. Until then, the people watch.
and then