… Ndoma-Egba says No Ejagham agenda in Cross River 2023 guber election, throws weight behind OtuBy Michael Jegede
The All Progressives Congress (APC) standard-bearer for the governorship election in Cross River State holding on March 11, 2023, Senator (Prince) Bassey Otu, has pledged to create a conducive and enabling environment for the people of the state to have the opportunity to flourish in their various business endeavours.
Senator Otu, popularly known as Sweet Prince, made the pledge in a press conference organized to present his ‘People-First Manifesto’ to media professionals at the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Press Centre in Calabar, the Cross River State capital.
The Cross River APC gubernatorial flag bearer was quoted as saying: “We need to change the narrative that our State is a purely civil service State, by repositioning our People to take advantage of our peculiarities in carving a niche for ourselves in a competitive world driven by modern technologies and practices. We will create a niche for our farmers, young entrepreneurs, our children as well as the elderly to work smart and achieve their set goals seamlessly.
“We will create an enabling environment for everyone to have the chance to excel in their areas of endeavour. We have gone to every part of our dear State, and have listened to the concerns of our people.
“Based on these concerns, we know that our people want an enabling environment for businesses to thrive on, our people want value for our agricultural produce, our people want access to markets, our people want qualitative education and healthcare systems, our people want a State where our commerce and industries have a chance to boom, our people want to have the glory and beauty of our State restored, our people want to live a life of dignity and honour.”
Otu, the erstwhile lawmaker whose candidature is believed to have gained wide acceptability across the nooks and crannies of Cross River State, said his administration would work towards ensuring the maximization of the ethnic and cultural diversity of the state to achieve progress and prosperity for Cross Riverians.
“Cross River State is the People’s Paradise, and our People-First Mantra will deepen investments in people. Our State is composed of several ethnic groups, with great beauty in our ethnic diversities, which will be unified, harmonized, and strengthened through genuine love, mutual respect and equal opportunities, spread from Bakassi to Obanliku.
“As a home to about 4 million people, Cross River State is known for Peace and Order, Love and Hospitality, Amazing Cultural Heritage and Great History, Abundance of Food and the home of Nigeria’s most renowned delicacies. We have resolved to sustain these gains and create new frontiers.
“Greatness awaits us as we unfold our agenda for a better Cross River where everyone will live in peace and harmony with man and nature, pursuing legitimate businesses moderated by good Governance. In order to achieve this, I seek to be the next Governor of Cross River State, and I invite you to join Rt. Hon. Peter Odey (Cross River APC Deputy Governorship Candidate) and l on this mission,” Sweet Prince was reported to have said.
Making reference to his days in the Federal Parliament, he remarked: “When I was in the National Assembly as member, representing Calabar Municipality and Odukpani Federal Constituency, and subsequently as Senator, representing Cross River Southern Senatorial District, I ensured the initiation of pro-People bills, I was one of the Representatives who raised the bar and popularized empowerment programs for our people, based on my love and strong desire to see every Cross Riverian live to their full potential. We will run a People-First Government, where all programmes, Projects and Initiatives will be to the benefit of the people and to the Glory of God.”
Speaking at the event, a top chieftain of APC and staunch supporter of Otu’s candidature, Distinguished Senator Victor Ndoma-Egba, SAN, former Senate Leader who represented Cross River Central at the Red Chamber between 2003 and 2015, said: “For those pushing the so-called Ejagham agenda in the 2023 elections in Cross River State, I want to remind them that I, along with so many other illustrious sons and daughters across the three senatorial districts of Cross River State, are proudly and prominent Ejaghams.
“I do not recall when and where we met to demand that it is the turn of Ejagham to produce Governor now. In any case, if indeed there is such an agitation, it is the turn of Ejaghams of Cross River South. And to the best of my knowledge, Sen. Bassey Otu is heavily affiliated with the Ejaghams and he is from Cross River South and he has always displayed liberalism in his dealings with everyone, right from his days in the National Assembly. So those emergency Ejagham agitators are just showing themselves to be smart by half, selfish, divisive and narrow-minded ethnic chauvinists. That is the long and short of the matter.”
Ndoma-Egba is among the major political leaders in Cross River who strongly believed that Otu has what it takes to offer good governance and deliver the true dividends of democracy to the people, while insisting that for the purpose of fairness, equity and justice, it is the turn of Cross River South to produce the governor based on the zoning arrangement that has been strictly followed since 1999.