By Lovina Anthony Some delegates for the May 21, 2022 primary elections of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Akwa Ibom State, have...
By Lovina Anthony
Some delegates for the May 21, 2022 primary elections of the
Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Akwa Ibom State, have raised the alarm over
alleged plot by the party to relocate the venue for the exercise from the usual
Uyo Township Stadium to Army barracks Ibagwa in Abak council area of state.
The delegates described the move as unacceptable, a threat
to democracy as well as a plot by the state government to disenfranchise
perceived dissidents to their preferred aspirant.
Rising from a meeting held at Unique Gardens Ewet Housing
Estate, Uyo on Tuesday, Mr. John Etefit, one of the statutory delegates,
accused the state government of being desirous to impose its anointed aspirant
on the party by forcing members to take the primaries to Ibagwa barracks.
He said, “After fruitless efforts to get most of us to
support the aspiration of Pastor Umo Eno, hit a brick wall, subtle and open
threats have been employed which we resisted and now the idea of taking the
primaries to the barracks birthed.
“We were told by core supporters of the government preferred
aspirant that their final joker is the barracks where only their supporters
will be allowed access and others supporting other aspirants turned back and if
they insist on getting in, then soldiers will be directed to unleash mayhem on
them.”
Another statutory delegate, Mr Asuquo Ekanem, from Oruk Anam
council area, lamented that democracy is fully under threat in the state
alleging that “government is no longer appealing or lobbying us to accept their
aspirant but asking us to wait and see if we will even have access to the
venue, we were informed that we will hear our names mentioned but accreditation
tags will be given to their men on ground and there is nothing we will do about
it.”
Other delegates, who spoke with journalists at the end of
the meeting, appealed to human rights groups, international community and other
related bodies to turn their searchlight to Akwa Ibom state, “as the primaries
may set the once peaceful state on fire and unprecedented carnage”.
Another delegate, Aniefiok Ekefre said, “Any venue outside
the Uyo Township Stadium is not acceptable to us. It must be one man one vote
at the primaries, let the popular and acceptable aspirant emerge. They told us
that their preferred aspirant is the God’s choice for Akwa Ibom people, why
arm-twisting the same people to embrace God’s choice? Akwa Ibom people are now
wiser and ready to change the narratives, there will be no third term by
surrogate and we are not leaving the party for opportunists.”
They further vowed to embark on mass protest and to petition
the national secretariat of the party should the planned relocation of the
governorship primaries to the barracks considered by the state chapter of the
party hold.
However, the PDP state Publicity Secretary, Mr Borono
Bassey, when contacted by our correspondent, said the matter is still in the
realms of speculation.
“We are yet to decide on the venue for the primaries and so
whatever you heard is purely speculation by outsiders at this moment. When the
venue is released, we will communicate to members of the public,” Bassey said.
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