Umo Eno, the governor of Akwa Ibom State, has ordered all of his commissioners and appointees to either quit their jobs or defect to the All Progressives Congress (APC) with him.
The governor claimed that despite his love for the PDP, the party’s continuous internal strife prevents him from ensuring a smooth election triumph.
Governor Eno confirmed the instruction during Thursday’s State Executive Council, which has been the subject of weeks’ worth of social media rumours.
“It’s no more news that I’m changing party; if you don’t know that by now, I don’t know what else you know,” Governor Eno said.
Although they are not required to join him in the APC, he informed the commissioners and appointees that they cannot continue serving in his cabinet while belonging to another party.
“So, we want our commissioners and members of Excos, appointees; I am told that some of you are saying that you will not come. you are free, absolutely free, not to join me, but you won’t be in my state executive council.
“So, you better just be prepared to resign the day I announce that I’m moving because you are an appointee and your loyalty is to me. You can’t be in my cabinet and play anti-party; it’s not a threat; it is what it is. I won’t beg you to come; you should normally not even expect it,” he told the appointees.
The governor said that although he loves the PDP, he cannot guarantee a seamless election victory for the party due to its ongoing internal crisis.
“I love the PDP; I want to stay in the PDP, but clearly, I don’t have a road map to guarantee that I’ll be able to have a smooth sail in the elections, not because we won’t win elections. In this state today, with the work that all of us have done, even if we contest on a zero party, we will win this election. There’s no doubt about it. We’ve worked very hard, but we know that at the national level our party is not coming together.
Governor Eno said that the controversy and the legal battle that have surrounded some critical leadership positions in the party require caution. He said, “Every day, secretary this and that, and so you take your form, they send it to INEC, and then you run all the elections; you perhaps win the elections, and just on technical grounds, because the wrong person signed your form, you lose everything.”
