By | ETIM ETIM
Senate President Godswill Akpabio arrived in Uyo on Sunday afternoon. In the evening, Governor Umo Eno, accompanied by the two senators and 10 House of Representatives members from Akwa Ibom State, visited him.
Party officials were not invited to the meeting. According to the writer, the meeting lasted until about 2am.
The development later triggered speculation across the state. Some callers claimed that Senator Akpabio and Governor Eno had agreed that all three senators would return to the Senate, while all but one House of Representatives member would also return. The reported exception was Oppolumpm Ette.
The writer said he contacted Dr Ita Udosen, South-South Zonal Secretary, who said he was also unaware of the meeting and had only received calls about it.
The writer then sent Governor Eno a WhatsApp message, drawing his attention to the rumours and the concern among party members.
Governor Eno denied the claims.
“No, my brother, that is not true,” the governor said.
According to Governor Eno, the visit was a formal consultation with the Senate President over his intention to seek re-election.
“We went to formally consult the Senate President on our intentions to run for re-election, in my own case, for second term. You know, I had consulted far and wide in the state, but I had not yet consulted our leader, the Senate President. So, as he came in on Sunday, we went to consult him. I went with the senators and House of Reps members,” Eno said.
The governor also restated that aspirants seeking nomination should consult party members and work at the grassroots.
“In terms of people seeking to contest, I maintain my earlier statement that those who have interest in seeking nomination should also consult party members. They should go to the field and work. I am not the one to choose. Party members will choose their candidates in a free and fair primaries. As for me, I am going to Abuja now to get my nomination forms,” he said.
The writer noted that the list of potential contestants was growing and that the primaries would likely be competitive. He said some members believe they had worked for the APC for years and deserve tickets, while incumbents believe their performance should earn them a return.
He added that politics requires the management of competing interests.
The article also claimed that the window for decamping had closed, saying the previous week was the deadline for political parties to submit their electronic membership registers to INEC. On that basis, it argued that those who fail in the primaries may not be able to move easily to other parties.
