Why Aggrieved Democrats Count On Senator Albert For Liberation

By Imo Ben

In Akwa Ibom State today, the cry for liberation is loud and clear. Stalwarts of the People's Democratic Party (PDP) – which has been governing Akwa Ibom State since 1999, feel betrayed, used and dumped by its leadership.    

Pointedly, the party’s teeming supporters, members, loyalists and officers almost at all levels, lament of alienation and exhibition of crass impunity by its leader and few hawks in the corridor of power since 2015, when the leadership of Governor Udom Emmanuel birthed. 

Contrary to known protocols as usually observed to ensure cohesion in the party, the current leadership has rather exhibited impunity in choices of appointments into various positions, covering chairmen, councillors and supervisors of local government councils, membership of boards and commissioners with the last straw being the hawkish manner used in producing the governorship candidate as well as candidates for House of Assembly, House of Representatives and Senate of the party.  Besides, the economic policies of the administration and its impact on the electorates have been adjudged as being very abysmal. Poverty is everywhere in the state.

The scenario has fuelled angst against the administration and PDP in the state. Aggrieved party men and women nay electorates are now anxiously clamouring for a way out of the quagmire. And like Moses, who led the Israelites out of bondage in Egypt, the man expected to the play the messianic role is Senator Albert Bassey Akpan (OBA). He is the one earnestly desired to pull them through this unfavourable times through another political platform as the countdown for 2023 general elections is nigh. 

Mass exodus of stakeholders and members of the PDP, which is fast losing steam and on the verge of dearth in the state looms large.  Like the enslaved Israelites who were eventually rescued to a better place by Moses, the people are weary of the dictatorial tendencies exhibited by Udom Emmanuel and his clique in the party, and therefore want Senator OBA to pull them out urgently. They are convinced that he is a dependable politician who can lead them out of the party that has lost its appeal. 

The Akwa Ibom public are comfortable to go where OBA leads them to actualize their dream of better governance in 2023. They are not ready to be party to any deceptive scheme called reconciliation by Udom Emmanuel’s henchmen who are out again to trick vulnerable ones and thereafter bury their political future.

What is the essence of proverbially administering blood tonic to a certified corpse? Will it give the ‘dead’ the life lost? Therefore, the reconciliatory moves by the Peoples Democratic Party is medicine after death because the damage done by the Udom Emmanuel and his desperate succession conspirators against the collective interest of the party and electorates is quite irremediable as election is just by the corner.

The inauguration of a reconciliation committee to plead for forgiveness after stripping aspirants, party stakeholders and members bare of their electoral and constitutional rights to participate in determining who governs them is absurd and unacceptable. Absurd in the sense that upon all the cries, wise counsel and warnings against imposition; the hawks still were adamant and proceeded to conduct the unpopular exercise that has thrown the party in confusion and disintegration. 

They refused to listen to complaints and allow popular votes to determine who emerges, but as tyrants, they intensified their unpopular political schemes to deny party delegates their rights to exercise their franchise. There is no gainsaying the fact that such imperious acts remains shameful, undignified and too repulsive to be tolerated. Worse still, rather than being remorseful, they turn to celebrate the humiliation of disenfranchised aspirants to elective positions and party faithful who looked forward to seeing that democracy was practised by the party.

 

Mr Udom Emmanuel cannot underrate the disenfranchised electorates without attracting appropriate consequences to serve as deterrent to politicians aspiring to be dictators like him in future. The slogan "power to the people" which PDP prides itself with has been abused by one man who has pocketed the people’s power. Accordingly, what attracted massive followership to the party has been taken away. Hence, the revolt against all that was done – inappropriately, illegitimately, undemocratically and oppressively. 

Those short-changed and denied their democratic rights and party faithful are obviously in the majority who are determined to end the political slavery in the party. Majority of the people in the state are with them on this worthy cause to liberate the state. It is wise act that will in future promote participatory internal democracy. And the simple and reasonable thing to do is to shun their ‘medicine after death called reconciliation’ and exit the party to exercise their rights in another party to prove that in true democracy, the majority is the power to determine who governs the state.  

The aggrieved must reject all entreaties. Doing otherwise would mean accepting to bury internal democracy in the state’s PDP forever. Already, there are clear symptoms that the party is ‘dead’ under the supervision of the insensitive governor and the present party’s leadership. By the time members and others take their exit, the party would certainly be extinct. Those aggrieved should shun their meaningless reconciliation because it is a plot to frustrate their demands and sink the interest of the people into oblivion.

Will the reconciliation bring Akan Udofia back to the party? Their undemocratic attitude drove him away to APC. How do they want to reconcile with Senator Bassey Albert – the most popular of all, when their intention has been to sabotage his aspiration in the party? Is it Akan Okon who has dragged the imposed PDP candidate, Umo Eno to court that they will reconcile with to accept the illegality? Will they dump Umo Eno and replace him as the only condition? What about other aspirants who have since crossed over in a revolt manner to other parties? Are they to be ‘bribed’ to forgot their tickets already secured elsewhere and come back to clap for Umo Eno's emergence through crooked scheme? Are they expecting all those in various courts to back down and accept their bitter pills?  Without doubts, the reconciliatory committee has nothing reasonable to achieve but out to buy the consciences of vulnerable members and subjugate them as their ‘zombies or slaves.’

Majority of the aggrieved have contributed immensely to the growth of PDP. Unmindful of their enormous sacrifices, they preferred someone who had confessed that he is the least qualified to be brought through the backdoor to displace them. What manner of reconciliation will address the injustice that threatens to kill the dreams nursed by those who are better off politically than him? 

No doubt that they may have budgeted funds to lure vulnerable ones to fall prey to their schemes, but for those who want freedom and political progress from now on, it is mission impossible. In this wise, they are begging Senator Bassey Albert to lead them out the ‘Egypt’ called PDP to a better place as Israelites sought freedom and got it through Moses.