ARGUABLY, Akwa Ibom is a Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) state. All things being equal, anyone who emerges as the PDP governorship candidate can be taken as the governor-in-waiting. It is therefore not surprising that the race for the PDP ticket is intense often leading to high-wire politicking, bickering and controversies.
With PDP governorship primaries fixed for November 29, those jostling for the party’s ticket and expected succession of Governor Godswill Akpabio at the Uyo Hill Top Mansion have upped their consultations.
The aspirants
Those in the race include former Secretary to State Government, Umana Okon Umana; former Finance Commissioner, Albert Akpan and current Secretary to the State Government, Udom Emmanuel. The rest are former deputy governor, Nsima Ekere; Senator Helen Esuene; Senator Udo Udoma; Honourable Okpolum Etteh; Bishop Samuel Akpan; Larry Esin; Benjamin Okoko and Honourable Effiong Abia.
Factors that ‘ll shape primaries
Factors that will shape who among these aspirants picks the PDP ticket and wins the governorship election proper include the zoning formula, charisma and popularity, party platform and voters’ choice.
Udom: From Eket; Esuene: Former First Lady and Umana: Aspirant from Uyo
In the PDP, a major factor at the primaries stage is zoning arrangement. The Akwa Ibom State PDP has zoned the governorship slot to Eket Senatorial district, a move that aspirants from, Uyo and Ikot-Ekpene senatorial districts are kicking against.
The party’s decision to zone the seat to Eket was taken at an enlarged meeting of party leaders last April, shortly after Governor Akpabio’s town hall consultations with party stakeholders, who agreed to the peoples’ demand to zone the position to Eket senatorial district.
In a communiqué issued at the end of the party’s State Executive Committee meeting, held in Uyo and signed by the state chairman of the party, Obong Paul Ekpo, the party resolved to zone the governorship position to Eket Senatorial District “without prejudice to the right of any other person from other senatorial districts to contest for the governorship seat in 2015.”
Will this decision hurt or help the aspirations of the aspirants?
Umana O Umana
Chief Umana, who was SSG until recently was seen as the governor-in-waiting until in 2013 when he fell out with Akpabio. He rejected the position of Chairman of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), a prime slot Governor Akpabio had secured from the Presidency on the ground that it was a ploy to get him out of the governorship race. He is one of those opposed to zoning and wants the best aspirant to be nominated as the PDP flag bearer. He has the support of some PDP stakeholders and elders. He is from Uyo senatorial district, which is counting against his ambition because former Governor Victor Attah is from Uyo.
The governorship hopeful sees himself as the best man for the job. It is to be seen if he would secure the PDP ticket or leave the party to realise his ambition on an opposition platform.
Udom Emmanuel
Emmanuel established himself as a good private sector player. He left his appointment as the Executive Director of Zenith Bank Plc, to join Akpabio’s cabinet as SSG in 2013 following the exit of Umana.
Hailing from Eket where the slot has been zoned to coupled with his rich financial background, Udom Emmanuel is considered to be hugely favoured to pick the PDP ticket. He is from Onna local council in Eket Senatorial District.
Currently, his campaign structure, Akwa-Ibom Consolidation Alliance, is spread across the local councils in the state.
As a technocrat with leadership and managerial skills his supporters said he is the best bet to continue and sustain Governor Akpabio’s uncommon transformation of the state.
However, Emmanuel is being opposed by some leading politicians of the state because he is not a core politician and to them he has played no role in the recent political development of Akwa Ibom and may not ensure the right political atmosphere conducive for rapid development.
His supporters insist that elsewhere in Lagos and Anambra where astute technocrats like Babatunde Fashola, Peter Obi (and now) Willie Obiano were given opportunities to govern, the states are the better for the decisions.
In a chat with reporters recently, Udom Emmanuel said he is under pressure to run because “the people are looking at capacity, integrity, and proven managerial and leadership skills that may harness all the God-given resources of the state. They are also looking for someone to build on what Akpabio has done for the past eight years and see how that person can leverage on those.
Sustainable development
That is why I said that once you see uncommon transformation, the next phase is that of sustainable development, and sustainable development comprises what I call sustaining superior performance and that is what we must uphold or else we can just be here and discover that the street lights are no more functioning, the roads are dirty – it happened in so many places.”
Senator Esuene
The former Minister of Environment and Housing under the Olusegun Obasanjo administration , is the only female aspirant in the race. The senator representing Akwa Ibom South Senatorial District (Eket) is the Chairman Senate Committee On Women Affairs & Youth Development. She is favoured by the party zoning arrangement and some Akwa Ibom stakeholders who still hold her late husband and former administrator of old Cross River State in high esteem.
Tension in Akwa Ibom over PDP primaries
Meanwhile, there is heightened tension and confusion among PDP supporters ahead of the primaries. The leading aspirants such as Udom Emmanuel and Umana have already started thronging the state party secretariat located along Nsikka Eduok Avenue to consult with the party executive as part of preparation for the screening and clearance exercises coming up on October 10. The confusion in the party is linked to the unhealthy rivalry between major PDP stakeholders, elders and Governor Akpabio over the running of the party’s affairs.
However, there were indications on Monday that the national secretariat has begun moves to iron out the differences among the parties.
Indeed, major stakeholders from Akwa Ibom state were in Abuja on Wednesday to meet with the National Chairman Dr Adamu Mu’azu on the lingering issue to avert any unforeseen circumstances that could affect the structure of the party in view of the elections.
At the meeting some PDP stakeholders and elders including former Governor Victor Attah accused Akpabio of side-lining them in the running of the party in the state and trying to impose Udom Emmanuel on them as the governorship candidate.
Expression of displeasure
However, the governor denied the allegations saying he is a democrat, adding that the outcome of the PDP primaries will reflect the will of the people.
Last Monday, some Akwa Ibom PDP stakeholders under the aegis of ‘Elders and leaders of Akwa Ibom PDP’ led by Chief Don Etiebet while addressing newsmen at the NUJ press centre expressed displeasure with the configuration of events in the build up to the 2015 elections.
“You can imagine the impact of the absence or inactiveness or decampment of such individuals like Obong Victor Attah , Obong Rita Akpan, Otuekong Sunny Jackson Udo, Dr. Maurice Ebong, Chief Ufot Ekaette, General Edet Akpan, Senator Effiong Bob and others from the party.
“They are deliberately shut out so that the governor can run the party as his personal property and so the party is not functioning in the state as it should since we the elders of the party have voiced out our grievances against the state of the affairs in the party to allow a level playing field for all aspirants at all levels to contest in the spirit of internal democracy.”
Having initiated the reconcilation process, the PDP hierarchy is expected to ensure that the best person emerged as its standard bearer so that f the PDP will go into the election as a united front.
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