Politics:

2023: ORUK ANAM PEOPLE REAFFIRM COVENANT WITH PDP

The campaign train of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, was in Oruk Anam Local Government Area, to commence a tour of the wards, setting the stage for a re-affirmation of the covenant the people of the area entered into with the PDP more than two decades ago.

The local government structures of the PDP were inaugurated in October 1998 with the looming influence of Atuekong Don Etiebet, a renowned politician from Oruk Anam and one of the founders of the PDP in Akwa Ibom State.

With all the known names in the politics of the area in PDP, there was no doubt that the people were ready and willing to go with their political leaders.

A brief run down of some of the politicians that joined Atuekong Etiebet to make the PDP thick in Oruk Anam, suffices.

Atuekong Etiebet, ward 1; Mr. Nicholas Idungafa, ward 3; Hon. Sunday Okoko, ward 4; Sir Gabriel Ukott, ward 5; Chief Bassey Essien and Chief Udo Edem, an ex-officio, ward 6; Sir Sylvester Ntefreh, the pioneer chapter chairman; Chief Itakk Ekarika and Hon. Soni Udom, ward 7; Hon. Warden Ndok, Sir T. S. Ukoyo: ward 8; Mr. Stephen Mbodi and Mr. Paul Udofia, ward 9; Sir Vitalis Unang and Elder Udo Kierian, ward10; Mr. Udo Reuben Utodio and Cassidy Ubom, ward 11; Dr. Effiong Udongwo and Mabel Udongwo, ward 12 and Hon. Sunday Jack, ward 13.

The structures of the PDP in all the wards having been put in place, it was time to seal the covenant between the people and the party.

The emphatic political statement was made by the people on Saturday, December 5, 1998, as they voted massively for all the candidates of the PDP in the local government election, which was conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.

Sir Vitalis Unang was elected the council chairman. In the general elections held in 1999, the people again voted without any reservation for Chief Olusegun Obasanjo (Presidential Candidate); Engr. Emmanuel Ibokessien (Senatorial District Candidate); Obong Eno Akpan ( House of Representatives Candidate); Obong Victor Attah (Gubernatorial Candidate) and Elder Sunday Okoko (House of Assembly Candidate), all of the PDP.

Having sealed their covenant with the PDP at the polls, the people considered the prompting to dump the party for the All Nigeria Peoples Party, ANPP, by a few of their leaders following the crisis that rocked the party leading to the exit of Atuekong Etiebet as a walk to the political wilderness.

However, the people could not hold back their anger over what they considered an obvious breach of the zoning arrangement between Ukanafun and Oruk Anam Local Government Areas in respect of the federal constituency seat in the National Assembly at the polls in 2003.

A serving member of the House of Representatives, Obong Akpan, who is from Ukanafun had won the primary of the PDP for Ukanafun/Oruk Anam Federal Constituency, and that did not go down well with Oruk Anam people.

In protest, they voted Hon. Ubong Etiebet, cañdidate of the ANPP from Oruk Anam Local Government Area.

Although internal contradictions within the PDP saw the party losing four wards to ANPP in the local government election, the result did not affect the constitution of the leadership of the local government council in line with the provisions of the parliamentary system of government.

Since then, there has been no going back on the terms of the covenant in all the general and council elections.

So, the campaign today, in four wards was simply a re-affirmation of the subsisting covenant.

All the speakers in the four wards visited – 1, 2, 12 and 13 – promised to deliver their wards to the PDP in all the elections.

The PDP candidates, Barr. Emmanuel Enoidem, Hon. Unyime Idem and Hon. Sampson Idiong were accompanied on the tour by the political stakeholders in the area.