by Thomas Essien
The APC in Akwa Ibom State was perceived by the people as a political party that could bring change to salvage the political, economic, and social maladies that the administration of Godswill Akpabio and Umana Okon Umana would leave behind at the end of its term.
The structure of the party was designed to provide a formidable opposition to the ruling party of PDP in Akwa Ibom State during the 2015 general. Sometime in March of 2015, APC conducted an election to nominate delegates it anticipated would sustain the structure of the party in preparation for the election of 2015. The outcome of the election produced Chapter Chairpersons, Ward Leaders, and others that the party considered were credible and influential enough to defeat PDP in majority of the political domain.
But all the arrangements and all the structures that APC had put in place changed and was completely dismantled when Umana Okon Umana left PDP and defected to APC in the early days of April (the Election took place on April 11) of 2015. APC has never been the same since.
On the day of the governorship primary, Umana Okon Umana took over the party, named his own choice of delegates, and influenced APC national representatives, who were at the scene, to come to terms with the way he perceived the party. He declared himself the winner and was quick to mount the podium to declare that he was representing APC for the governorship race.
The next move by Umana Okon Umana was to join hands with Dr. Amadu Atai—the AKS APC Chairman at the time—to remove all (or at least 23) of the Chapter Chairpersons, who were dully elected by APC, and replaced them with those Umana considered were his loyalists. There were protests. As far as the 2015 general election was concerned, it was also the beginning of the end of APC in Akwa Ibom State.
The problem was compounded by the fact that majority of those who contested for Senate, Local Government, and House of Assembly were those who were not well-prepared structurally and financially to withstand the campaign rigor and maneuverings of the financially well-endowed and adequately prepared members of the PDP.
Some of the APC contestants were ardent members of PDP, who had to cross-over to APC, registered their candidacy before expiration of the dateline to do so, just few days before the election actually took place. As a result, they were poorly organized, with little support within the APC structure with which they claimed to have represented.
While all these scrambling to be elected was going on, Umana Okon Umana was busy telling lies to everyone that he had bought the party from Senator Udoedehe for N500 million (until he was busted for lying) and also telling lies to the National Working Committee of APC that he was loaded with money to sponsor everyone in APC, including that of the Presidency.
By the time the lies of Umana Okon Umana became known, it was too late for APC to go back to the original structure, which could have helped the party to gain some grounds in Akwa Ibom State; the election had been conducted, the winners announced by INEC. All the APC contestants had lost the election. The only option left for them was the Election Tribunal.
Now the Election Tribunal has delivered its rulings, which have confirmed what everyone knew immediately after the election of April 11, 2015. The outcome of the rulings is a reflection of the poorly organized, poorly financed, and poorly structured APC in Akwa Ibom State under the leadership of Umana Okon Umana and Dr. Amadu Atai.
The only case remaining now at the Tribunal is that of the governorship race. With the already released ruling by the Tribunal as a measurement gauge, there is no doubt that Umana Okon Umana, as expected, is going to become the next fall guy; a loser. His loss will conclude the political dearth of APC in Akwa Ibom State politics.
After all the nonsense and all the ill-luck that Umana Okon Umana has wrought on APC in Akwa Ibom State, it is very likely that some level-headed original members of the party may regroup, expel Umana Okon Umana and Amadu Atai from the party, in order to move the party forward and towards a political direction that will enable it to represent the interest of the people in a way that may conform to the goals and objectives of APC.
Thompson Essien is social and political critic who described himself as ‘The Voice of the Poor Masses’ and ‘a native of Ibibio Nation from Ubium Republic’. He writes from Portland, Oregon, United States of America.
The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author.
