*Insist on justice, equity
By; PATRICK TITUS, Uyo
Ahead of this weekend’s Presidential and National Assembly polls, pressure groups in Akwa Ibom North West Senatorial District (Ikot Ekpene), Akwa Ibom State have come together pushing for justice and equity in the rotation of the senatorial seat.
At their respective positions reached after meetings in the area, the groups pushed for a former House of Representatives member. Rt. Hon. Emmanuel Ekon of Young Progressives Party (YPP) by endorsing his candidature for the coveted seat, against his opponents in All Progressives Congress (APC) and the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state.
While immediate past Minister of Niger Delta Affairs Ministry, Senator Godswill Akpabio holds APC ticket, the immediate past National Legal Adviser of PDP, Barr Emmanuel Enoidem floats his party’s ticket for the slot.
Akwa Ibom North-West Senatorial District has 10 Local Government Areas carved into four of Federal Constituencies of Abak, Ikono/Ini, Ikot Ekpene and Ukanafun/Oruk Anam.
Stressing their position, the groups recalled saying, “Across all the four Federal Constituencies, only Abak Federal Constituency never had any opportunity since 1960 to occupy the Senatorial slot, but others like Ukanafun/Oruk Anam, had it with Senator Itak Ekarika and Chief Senas Ukpanah. Senator Akpabio had it for Ikot Ekpene in 2015, and left it for his kinsman, Senator Chris Ekpenyong, who is about serving out his tenure later this year.
“Before now, Senator Aloysius Etok, had taken the slot for eight years for Ikono/Ini, leaving only the Abak Federal Constituency to wallow in grave state of deprivation and wanton lack of physical development and human capital developments for all these years.” Angry youths and students of Annang extraction lamented during a protest march in Ikot Ekpene at the weekend.
Comrade Akwaowo Akpan’, a student activist, who led the agitations for the evolution of the slot to the Abak Federal Constituency told the electorate ahead of the polls to vote for Rt. Hon Ekon.
“Be ready with your Permanent Voter’s Cards (PVCs) because we are looking for a younger and experienced candidate from Abak Federal Constituency to lead us because we know that the older ones can only think of the next election and not the next generation.” He stressed.
At the extraordinary General Meeting, a youth group under the aegis of Future Leaders Forum of Ikot Ekpene Senatorial District (FLFIKSD), held at Four Points by Sheraton Hotel, Ikot Ekpene, endorsed the shift in slot from Ikot Ekpene, describing Akpabio as a “Meddlesome interloper, trying to usurp and alter the popular wishes of the people of Akwa Ibom North-West.”
Chaired by the President-General, Comrade Aniekan Udo Mbre, the forum which drew participants across the zone, however charged electorate not to be carried away by the sentiment of voting for a political party, but individuals, pointing out that Ekon’s antecedents as a former Natural Assembly member for years at the Green Chamber, where he provided effective representation in the zone, recommends him for the mission to the Red Chamber.
“Ekon represents the best choice because Akpabio, is already out of the picture due to the fact that zoning is not in his favour. Ekon, for eight years at the Green Chamber has touched so many lives and provided social infrastructure in education, scholarships, skill training in the oil and gas industry, building of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) across schools and Local Government Areas of the state.” Mbre recalled.
Describing Enoidem, as a green horn, the group in a communique pointed out that “it’s not the time for someone who has never contested any elections before to be sent to such a hallowed chamber like the Senate to be swallowed up by experienced and seasoned lawmakers, who are more conversant and grounded in the politics of the national legislature.”
In the same vein, lecturers under the auspices of the National Association of Annang Lecturers in Tertiary Institutions (NAALTIN), called for a united action to enthrone a leader with patriotic drive towards liberating the zone from years of marginalization.
The Association President, Prof. Stanley Akpan’, charged eligible voters to shun the allures of money and ensure their votes count for Ekon and YPP, at the polls.
He said, “Rt Hon. Ekon, is great and better candidate the others including Akpabio and Enoidem, because the former House of Representatives member for Abak Federal Constituency, had the experience and records of effective representation. He was the Chairman of the Local Content Committee, and for four years we saw empowerment, jobs and skill acquisition for youths and infrastructural development.” He noted.
