Elders of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Akwa Ibom State have urged President Muhammadu Buhari to jettison any plans to appoint former governor of the state, Godswill Akpabio as a minister.
Ever since Akpabio lost his bid to return to the Senate, he has been tipped for a ministerial appointment in the president’s new cabinet.
But the elders acting under the aegis of Ibom Integrity Initiative described Akpabio, who is the senator representing Akwa Ibom North-West, as “integrity deficient” and unfit to be minister in Buhari’s second term.
In a letter signed by Executive Vice President of the group, Dr. Asuquo Edidem Etim and addressed to the president, the APC elders advised Buhari against denting his image by appointing Akpabio into his cabinet.
The elders, who made the letter available to newsmen over the weekend, added that Akpabio’s appointment would plunge the Akwa Ibom APC into needless crisis.
The letter was copied to the national chairman of the party, Adams Oshiomhole, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) Boss Mustapha and the Chief of Staff to the President, Abba Kyari.
It read in part, “Mr. President, this second mandate affords you the opportunity to select your ministers in a manner that will ensure that they do not become liabilities to your government or dent your impeccable image. Characters with known corruption allegations or propensity for pettiness, mischief, treachery, profligacy and vendetta, should be avoided. Senator Godswill Akpabio, unfortunately, is one of such integrity deficient individuals.
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“Many had thought that his (Akpabio) joining APC would bring cool breeze of good fortunes to the party in the state, but rather his highhanded nature and disrespect for internal democracy in the party and the will of the people to chose their leaders, became a raging storm that uprooted the recognized structures of the party right from the grassroots, as he imposed party leaders from the wards and even unit levels. Leaving many party men and women very bruised, trampled and disgruntled. This sadly affected the chances of our governorship candidate, Obong Nsima Ekere.
“Akwa Ibom has many respectable, level headed personalities that would represent the state with grace at the federal executive, just as our son, Mr. Udoma Udo Udoma, Minister of Economic Planning, has done creditably in the past four years. In terms of loyalty to the party and contributions to its development in the state, we have Party men including Chief Umana Umana and Senator John Udoedehe, among others who had toiled to keep the party afloat over time in the state.”