…says he is not from oil producing area
By Ene Asuquo
There has been wide spread protest in calabar, Cross River State capital by joint action of APC support groups over the nomination of PDP member, Mr Asu Okang to represent the state as commissioner in the Board of Niger Delta Development Commission.
The different support groups of APC mainly youths took to street protest carrying placard with inscriptions like, “APC C’river say no to Asu Okang” Federal Government, follow NDDC Act”, “we will not work for opposition to eat” “No to imposition of PDP member on us” and several others.
Addressing the protesters at the Party secretariat, the State chairman of All Progressives Congress(APC ) in cross River, Barr Alphonsus Eba who called for caution so that hoodlums will not hijack the peaceful protest however assured them that there is no way monkey will work and Baboon will eat, adding that the State party hierarchy is already taking it protest letter to the president in Abuja
“Let me on behalf of this party and the Governor in the strongest of terms say no to the nomination of not just a member of opposition PDP, but the young man whose business in the last election was to destroy the properties of APC members and supporters in Etung”
While addressing them, Eba said “we put the strength of our arguments by the combined provision of Article 9 sub 3, Article 9 sub 5 and Article 9(33) of the APC constitution that says qualified members of the party shall be considered for appointment”.
“We can assure you that, Asu Okang nomination shall not stand”.
In their separate reactions, one of the leader of the groups, Barr. Ekpenyong Akiba who spoke on behalf of the concern youths of cross River State, said the appointment of Mr Okang is in gross violation of the laws of NDDC
He said for anyone to be appointed as a commissioner in the Board of Niger Delta Development Commission, the person must comply with the provisions of section 2, which says that the person must come from oil producing Area, maintaining that Asu Okang is from Etung local Government Area which is not an oil producing Area, adding that the the only oil producing Area in the state is Bakassi local Government Area
He called on President Bola Tinubu to reverse the appointment of Mr Okang because it is and injustice to not only the people of the oil producing Area in the state but to the entire members of APC in cross River State who worked for the party to come out victorious in the last General Election