Akpabio gets more desperate * Victimizes Essien Udim PDP chair, imposes Village headship on Sunny Ibanga

*Ikot Ekpene PDP Chairman kick, petitions NWC,   says I am still Chairman of Chapter Chairmen     

      
Signs that the Governor Godswill Akpabio had perfected and now executing victimization against those he feel are not in support of his plans to foist his preferred candidate on the people ahead of the November 29th PDP primaries has continued to unfold with the recent suspension of the PDP Chapter Chairman for Essien Udim Local Government Area and the foisting of a village headship of Utu Ikot Ekpenyong on the Chapter Chairman of the Ikot Ekpene PDP.

It could be recalled that the Essien Udim Chapter Chairman of the PDP had come under the fire of the Akpabio flames when he made revelations that the attack on Helen Esuene at Essien Udim was sponsored by the Akpabios. Without setting up a committee to investigate the chapter Chairman and his claims, the Governor acting on the advice of some of his cronies is said to have swing into action and then slam a suspension on the Chapter Chairman Elder Friday Udo.

The said party Chairman Reports say was earlier detained by security operatives. But in a statement by his aide, the Essien Udim Chapter Chairman insisted that he remains the PDP numero uno of Essien Udim Local Government Area. The chapter Chairman maintained through his aide that he was going to petition his suspension to the National Working Committee of the Party in Abuja. He said, he had to make the revelation so that the accusation that he attempted to whisk away funds from Esuene can be discarded by unsuspecting members of the public.

The case of Sunny Ibanga was quite funny as our reporter gathered that Ibanga is a victim of Akpabio’s high handedness. Investigations by our reporter revealed that Sunny Ibanga who had earlier kicked against the Party in Ikot Ekpene senatorial district adopting Udom as the sole candidate against the party at the National level is paying for his loyalty to the PDP.

THE INK understands that acting in a manner to frustrate Ibanga, the state Governor had hurriedly signed a letter confirming Chief Sunny Ibanga as the Village head of Utu Ikot Ekpenyong.

But Ibanga spoke Weekend to THE INK reporter in his Utu Ikot Ekpenyong, Ikot Ekpene residence. He said, he remains the PDP chapter Chairman for Ikot Ekpene LGA and that he is not the village head of Utu Ikot Ekpenyong.

He further buttressed his position in a press release personally signed and made available to THE INK newspaper. Chief Sunny Ibanga maintained that, “assuming without conceding the alleged appointment and/or recognition has been made, I hold the opinion that it is my absolute prerogative as the appointee to accept or refuse any appointment given to me and in the circumstances I elect to continue to execute the office of the Chapter Chairman of our great party in Ikot Ekpene LGA. I see the purported appointment as a village head as ill timed, mischievous and made in absolute bad faith. I call on the National Chairman of our great party to prevail on the Akwa Ibom Chapter of the Party under the leadership of Obong Paul Ekpo not to do anything that will undermine the Party and cripple our electoral fortunes at the forthcoming polls.

Let me re-emphasize here that the announcement was made in bad faith and timed to destabilize the party and cause general dissatisfaction among party faithful. I have drawn the attention of the National Chairman of our great Party to this nefarious attempt to undermine the electoral strength of the party in Ikot Ekpene and indeed in Akwa Ibom State. I call on all Party members to ignore, disregard and discountenance the purported relinquishment of my position as a Chapter Chairman. I call on all Party faithful to remain steadfast in their support of Mr. President’s second term ambition, and the administration of Chief Godswill Obot Akpabio (CON)”.