Date Published: 06/18/11

You Are Chasing Shadows; Ex Akwa Ibom Info Boss Lampoons ACN

The immediate past Commissioner for Information in Akwa Ibom State, Mr. Aniekan Umanah says the Action Congress of Nigeria is chasing shadows in the political space of the state.

He said since ACN thrives on noisemaking, falsehood and propaganda, the party has failed to come to reality with its outright failure in Akwa Ibom.

Mr. Umanah who was a guest at the book launch and birthday celebration of Mr. Sam Omatseye at the Muson Centre in Lagos, told reporters that based on the founded reality on ground, it was obvious that ACN had no political and moral capacity to match the overwhelming structure of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.

Recounting the strength of the PDP in his state, Mr. Umanah said the 31 local governments had PDP chairmen, 326 out of 329 councilors were PDP members, while the entire 13 national assemblymen before the last election were equally card carrying members of the ruling party.

Based on these indices, the ex-information boss wondered what structure ACN would have used in causing an upset for the firmly rooted PDP in the state.

Beyond these, Mr Umanah noted that Akpabio’s performance in providing free and compulsory education,  205 new roads, three flyovers, an airport, 3000 community projects, and other infrastructure earned him the massive endorsement and support from the people of Akwa Ibom, resulting in the 958, 000 votes for the Governor.

He further stated that prior to the elections, all the ethnic groups in Akwa Ibom had endorsed the governor and granted him their consent to return for a second term in office, adding that nothing short of that was expected by the totality of the people in the state.

While positing that comparing PDP with ACN in Akwa Ibom was like comparing light with darkness, he described the victory of Gov Akpabio as the victory for Akwa Ibom people who were inspired by the light glowing from the dynamic leadership prowess of Governor Godswill Akpabio.

“But for the political tactics of desperation and intimidation allegedly masterminded by the ACN, Senator Udoedehe would not have scored up to the 163,000 votes credited to him in the governorship elections, and victory for Governor Akpabio means victory over ethnic bigotry”, said Mr. Umanah.

On the ongoing tribunal sitting in the State, he said there was nothing to fear as the victory of Governor Akpabio in the April 26 elections was comprehensive as it was decisive, adding he was confident that the victory will be upheld by the judicial body by the time it finished her assignment in the state.