To ensure that members of Akwa Ibom Progressive Commercial Tricyclist, Taxi and motorcyclist Association (APCOTMA) are not used as thugs in the 2015 general elections in the state, the state executives has embarked on a sensitization and enlightenment tour of all the 31 local government areas of the state.
Speaking with our correspondent shortly after taking the tour to about fifteen local government areas, the president of the association, Elder Udo Johnson Okpong said that the tour to the 31 chapters of the association in the state was to ensure that politicians eyeing various positions in the 2015 election do not used its member for anti-social activities to gain their selfish interest.
According to him “we want a situation where APCOTMA will join hands with the good people of Akwa Ibom State to ensure that the good leadership style of Governor Godswill Akpabio continues after 2015. We don’t want anybody who will ask our members to carry guns to fight our fellow men because of elections”.
Elder Okpong lamented that they were suffering seriously in the hands of the local government chairman who are in the habit of employing the services of agents for the selling of emblems and tickets which he said the contractors sell the emblem at the cost of N150 which ends only within the said local government area and cannot be used in the next local government council area.
The association president appealed to the state government through the commissioner in charge of the ministry of transport to call local government council to order by taking over the sale of emblem and tickets so as to allow a smooth operation of APCOTMA in the state. He recalled that in 2009, Governor Akpabio called the chairman to order on the same issue in a letter which was signed by the commissioner for works and transport which he said did not help transporters in the state.
Furthermore, he appealed to the governor to whom he described as the promise keeper to redeem his 1 billion naira revolving loan for registered member who had earlier on surrender their motorcycles to the state government during its band so as to alleviate their suffering and advised members who had been mounting pressure on the executive to be patience and trust in the leadership of governor Godswill Akpabio.
On his part, the secretary general, Elder Ubong Etim said that much pressure had been mounted on them by the members of the association on the promised of N1 billion revolving loan and appealed to the governor to come to their aid on the matter. He also condemned in strong terms the action of the local government chairman whom he said has exposed their members to untold hardship and serious embarrassment from the agents.
In their separate reactions, the association chapter chairman for Mkpat Enin, Comrade Ubong Sunday, Ikot Abasi, Patrick Effiong and that of Itu local government area among others all commended the state executive for embarking on the tour and joined them to appealed to the state government to release the N1 billion revolving loan.
So far, the local government visited include, Eket, Ikot Abasi, Mkpat Enin, Itu, Obot Akara, Ini, Ikono, Oruk Anam, Ikot Ekpene, Esit Eket, Nsit Atai, Uyo, Ibiono Ibom, Uruan, among others across the three senatorial districts in the state.
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