Amid the growing concerns and opinions by different stakeholders in the APC to shelve the planned congresses earlier scheduled for today, some states like Akwa Ibom state had gone ahead to hold the congress.
On the Facebook page of an APC chieftain in the state, Barr Imo Akpan, the congress held in the state has turned into a mini-war theater as aggrieved members resorted to violence by burning the party flags and defacing some parts of the state party headquarters in the Ikot Ekpene road party headquarters in the capital city of Uyo, Akwa Ibom state.
According to reports, gates of the party secretariat were sealed while some burning tires were placed at the front of the building and some other strategic locations around the party office.
The cause of this chaos has not been immediately ascertained but from the placards being held by the members, some of them seem aggrieved by the decision of the secretary of the Buni-led caretaker committee, who is also from Akwa Ibom state, Senator Akpan Udoedehe, to go ahead with the congress even when other party members have opposed to it.
One of the placards reads ” Udoedehe will never decide for us in Akwa Ibom State”
Another son of the state, who is also the senior special adviser to the president, Senator Ita Enang had advised the party hierarchy to shelve the idea of holding the congress as the judgment between APC’s Rotimi Akeredolu and Eyitato Jegede of the PDP in Ondo State, had raised some questions about the legality of the Buni-led caretaker committee.
Further information for Akwa Ibom state allege that the congress materials were secretly moved to a secret location in order favor a particular group in the APC who are loyal to a particular politician and when the other group found out, all hell broke loose as chaos ensued.
It has been rumored in some quarters that the secretary of the Buni-led committee, Senator Udoedehe is eyeing the governorship position, a move which he has repeated for about 3 times now.
He had first run in 2010 as a PDP aspirant, then again in 2015 governorship primaries as an APC aspirant where he was defeated by Umana Okon Umana. He threw his hat into the ring again in the 2018 APC Governorship primaries and was defeated yet again by Nsima Ekere.
Party members in the state have interpreted his insistence to hold the congresses as a move to secure the party structure in the state in preparation for his ambition.
At the time of the report, peace is yet to return to the party state secretariat as the place is still under lock and key while the members are still agitating outside the facility.
