Amidst controversy over the concession of Essien Udim local government area to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), at the centre to the Senate President Godswill Akpabio’s Essien Udim local government area, at the just concluded council poll on Saturday, protest has engulfed the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) hierarchy in the state.
The Returning Officer (RO) for Essien Udim LGA, Professor Ating, had overwhelmingly declared the candidate of the PDP, Engr. Enobong Patrick, as having won the poll with a wide margin against the APC candidate, Ntiedo Usoro, but the score was later altered by State Independent Electoral Commission (SIEC) Chairman, Elder Aniedi Ikoiwak, in favour of the APC candidate, forcing the protest.
“I was duly elected and publicly declared by the RO as having won the election, but I am so surprised to see a different result in favour of the opposition APC candidate,” he lamented.
But the Governor, Pastor Umo Eno, while swearing – in the winners across the 31 LGAs including the PDP, 30, and APC, one, urged the aggrieved PDP protesters to accept the final result, explaining the fact that the interest of unity, peace and development of the state surmounts every other personal interest.
Swearing in the winners at the Banquet hall of the Government House, Uyo, the state capital on Monday, the governor specifically urged the Essien Udim chairman, to see his position as completely apolitical with no passion for either APC, or PDP, but as “Chairman of Essien Udim LG with particular interest in spreading the dividends of democracy to the people.”
He, enjoined the elected chairmen to look beyond party politics by working across party lines to reposition their councils in line with the government policies and programmes as encapsulated in the administration’s ‘ARISE Agenda’ blueprint.