APC consensus arrangements in Cross River collapses

All seems not to be well with the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Cross River State a few days after its consensus meeting in Abuja that produced Senator Bassey Otu and others as consensus candidates.

The party had, at a stakeholders meeting presided over by the Governor, Ben Ayade, in Abuja on May 9 and 10, produced Senator Bassey Otu as its consensus candidate for the 2023 governorship race in the state.

But two out of the 17 aspirants at the meeting have since rejected the position. A businessman and friend to the governor, Chief Chris Agara, and former senator, John Owan-Enoh, who had bought their forms, later rejected the consensus.

They have been screened and cleared to contest the primaries. In this regard, going by the electoral act, the consensus has failed and Otu, the preferred aspirant, will have to face Agara and Owan-Enoh in the primaries.

Similarly, the party, in another meeting, has gone ahead to allocate other positions through consensus and the position for Senate was taken away from the Akamkpa/Biase area, probably as compensation to the former governorship aspirant, Mr. Asuquo Ekpenyong, from Odukpani Council where Otu is also from. This did not go down well with the Akamkpa/Biase people, who have not produced a governor or senator in the past.

Some argue that in the interest of equity and fairness, the Senate seat should go to the people of Akamkpa/Biase, who now complained of being short-changed in the micro zoning arrangements.

The Technical Assistant to the Vice President on New Media, Mr. Philip Obin, has cried out for justice for Akamkpa/Biase, saying: “I support Senator Bassey Otu (Odukpani) for governor, but is it too much to ask that the southern senatorial seat be zoned to Akamkpa/Biase? Akamkpa and Biase are bleeding politically and crying for help. The orphaned councils urgently need a liberator. Who will bell the cat?”

Similarly, the people of Bakassi and Akpabuyo in Bakassi/Akpabuyo/Calabar South Federal Constituencies are not happy with the consensus arrangement. Mr. Etim Ene from Bakassi said: “Calabar South has taken the position for 20 years; so, it would have been proper for APC to zone it to either Bakassi or Akpabuyo instead of Calabar South. If the right thing is not done, we will prefer to give our votes to Mr. Essien Ayi of the PDP, who is the incumbent.”

Meanwhile, the Agara campaign organisations in statement by its Director General, Mr. Richard Ogbeche, rejected the APC consensus saying: “We will like to remind the pseudo democrats in the room that Section 84 (9) of the Electoral Act, 2022 provides that consensus may be used after cleared aspirants have emerged.”