By Nsan Ndoma-Neji, Calabar
Ahead of forthcoming 2023 general election, which would be conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in Cross River State, Chief Sam Bassey, and some community leaders in the state have declared their intention to support the Cross River State Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, governorship candidate, Prof. Sandy Onor
The ruling APC chietftan and hundreds of his followers averred that the decision to stand behind the PDP governorship candidate, even when they are still card carrying members of the APC does not amount to anti-party activity.
Bassey stressed that rather the zoning principle, which was adopted by the state chapter of APC in the the conduct of the just-concluded primary election is in itself anti-Akamkpa/Biase federal constituency, where he and his stanch supporters hail from.
Recall that for some months now, bigwigs of the APC in the South senatorial district have been decamping to the opposition PDP, in support of the party’s govwrnorship candidate.
Among the political stalwarts who had defected to the PDP from the APC are: Bobby Ekpenyong, Domnic Kidzu, Austine Ibok, all former aides of the state Governor Ben Ayade, and Chief Ogban Ebock among others.
In an interactive session with journalists in Calabar at the weekend, the decampees, who are staunch members of the APC Legacy Group, claimed that a time has come where the political class and their parties have to demonstrate equity, fairness and justice in sharing political offices.
The APC chieftain maintained that using zoning or rotational formula to marginalise and deny other minority segments of the state is not in line with the spirit of brotherhood.
Berating the proponents of back-to-South zoning formula, the one time senatorial aspirant stated that the proponents of the back-to-South agitation are the ones who want to perpetually continue to dominate the other section that makes up Cross River South senatorial district; even as he admitted that every senatorial zone has credible people and resources to govern the state.
Bassey stressed that the back-to-South agenda, which threw up both the APC governorship and senatorial candidates, who are not only of Efik extraction, but also from same local government area, to the exclusion of Akamkpa and Biase local government areas is an attempt to continue to marginalise the non-Efik speaking people of the South senatorial district..
Bassey said, “I am vehemently opposed to this kind of arrangement, where some people will remain underdogs and cannot occupy certain offices.
“Against this background, I and some community leaders and hundreds of our followers in Akamkpa/Biase federal constituency have endorsed and adopted the PDP governorship candidate, Prof. Sandy Onor, ahead of 2023 polls.
“I believe that Senator Onor can help us, we have discussed. He is very approachable and has a listening ear. We would try our best to mobilise for his election.”
