Akwa Ibom: PDP should show restraint ― Eyiboh

CHIEFTAIN of Akwa Ibom State chapter of All Progressives Congress (APC), Hon Eseme Eyiboh has called on the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) not to further stoke unnecessary tension in the state legislature.

Eyiboh, a former chairman, Committee on Information, House of Representatives, made the call on Tuesday at a press conference in Lagos, lamenting the recourse to lawlessness in the state House of Assembly.

Eyiboh, who dismissed insinuations that ongoing act of terrorism in the State had to do with Federal might, said already the crisis had led to emergence of two speakers, with one leading eight members, while the other is leading the five members that were expelled for reason that they cross-carpeted to the opposition APC from PDP.

He described the expulsion of five lawmakers by the PDP leadership as a violation of existing laws, affirming that only nine members out of the 26- member parliament sat to effect the expulsion of the five APC members.

“Last year, the only APC member in the State House of Assembly defected to the PDP and nothing happened and no seat was declared vacant. But just recently, five members of the PDP defected to the APC and attempt was made to declare their seats vacant,” he said, declaring that the latest move on the part of the State Assembly was nothing but a double standard.

This was just as he said that the exercise was even done against the procedure as it was carried out without the mace and other needed legislative requirements.

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He, therefore, appealed to Governor Emmanuel and the PDP leadership in the state not to further stoke crisis in the state even as he claimed that the governor had not done enough to deserve a second term.

Speaking further, Eyiboh said the state governor, Emmanuel, will lose the next election in the state to APC for reasons that he had not performed to a standard like any of his predecessors and also due to the recent upsurge in acts of terrorism in the State.

APC is fielding Nsima Ekere, a former managing director and chief executive officer (CEO) of Niger- Delta Development Commission (NDDC) as its governorship candidate.

“Reasons that Akwa- Ibom cannot re-elect Udom are: There has been an upsurge in terrorism in the State which they claimed was state-sponsored from Abuja, it is not so, it is a lie.

“Second term is a privilege not a constitutional right if your people say they don’t want you there. There are legacies that former Governor Victor Attah had put in place and there are legacies that Governor Godswill Akpabio also left, not so with Udom,” he said.

Eyiboh, who said the State, which was once PDP dominated had now fallen into the hands of APC, further urged Governor Emmanuel and the PDP leadership in the state “to show responsibility and leadership within the little period they had left to remain in office.”

“We don’t want PDP in Akwa- Ibom and they are going and we are appealing to them to respect the will of the people,” the former lawmaker said.

It would be recalled that former Governor Akpabio, a former Senate Minority Leader, who was known as political godfather to the incumbent, recently dumped the PDP for APC, with a lot of his supporters and loyalists.