A group, under the aegis of Akwa Ibom Progressives Watch (AKIPW), has written to the national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, renouncing the proposed defection of Senate Minority Leader and former two terms winner of Akwa Ibom State, Senator Godswill Akpabio.

In the letter titled IMPENDING DANGERS OF SENATOR GODSWILL AKPABIO’S DEFECTION TO APC, and signed by the chairman, Innocent Sylvanus ​Ubong Victor, the group, which described Akpabio as a ‘spoiler; wherever he goes, said that such an element is not needed in a party where integrity is a way of life.

Below is the full text of the letter:

His Excellency,
Adams Oshiomhole
National Chairman
All Progressives Congress

IMPENDING DANGERS OF SENATOR GODSWILL AKPABIO’S DEFECTION TO APC

We in the Akwa Ibom Progressives Watch (AKIPW) have noted with deep concern the broad chorus of disapproval and complete despondency amongst different strata of members of our party, the All Progressives Congress in Akwa Ibom state over the defection of the former Governor of Akwa Ibom State and Senate Minority Leader, Senator Godswill Akpabio to the APC.

Our group is an integrity watch team whose support for the APC is driven by the party’s change agenda, the fight against corruption as well as the near immaculate personality of the leader of the Party, President Muhammadu Buhari. We metamorphosed from Ibom Transparency Watch under the defunct Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN), working assiduously in the last seven years to entrench in the party sterling values, such as integrity, justice, accountability and transparency, which are lacking in our political system. Hence, we have been on the watch so that such persons with tendencies which violate these values are not found tip-toeing around our party.

For this reason, we feel sad, so are most members of the APC in Akwa Ibom State who looked up to our party as institution that will evict moral pervers as Senator Godswill Akpabio from position of authority, by the admission of Senator Godswill Akpabio into our party.

Senator Akpabio’s records of service show he is a spoiler everywhere he goes. In his first organisation of employment, EMIS Telecoms Nigeria Limited, Akpabio was Personal Assistant to the CEO of the company, Chief E. Okonkwo; suddenly he manipulated his boss and threw himself up as the company’s secretary. During his stint in that position, the company was defrauded to the tune of N4billion. Records suggest Akpabio was party to the fraud and must have benefited from the loot.

Your Excellency, you must be aware that Akpabio polarized ethnicity to its zenith in his bid to annihilate the Ibibio majority, and destroy the Oro ethnic nationality, when he was governor of Akwa Ibom State. In that mindless voyage, more than 80 prominent sons and daughters of the state were either kidnapped or killed; many were compelled to go on exile. Under Akpabio’s watch, an elder statesman, Gen. Edet Akpan Rtd., former DG of NYSC was kidnapped from a church. Four persons were killed during that operation. The wife of a BoT member of our party, Mrs. Sam Enwang, was kidnapped; the wife of Senator Aloysius Etok, who is now a stakeholder of our party was also kidnapped; Chief Senas Ukpanah was killed; a former deputy speaker of our state House of Assembly and member of the APC, Obong Okon Uwah was killed; mother of Mr. Udonwa, a governorship aspirant was kidnapped, killed and her naked corpse was dumped on the road, forcing the deceased’s son to dump his governorship ambition; a foremost traditional father, Edidem Ime Robert from Nsit Ubium was assassinated; an entrepreneur, Elder Paul Inyang was killed; three brothers called the Mbota brothers were killed; three brother to the televangelist Mrs. Helen Ukpabio were killed. The list of assassinations under Akpabio’s atrocious regime is endless.

Your Excellency, you may wish to call for report on Akpabio’s wild intolerance for our party members in Akwa Ibom State during his reign as governor. It is on record that Akpabio’s men masterminded the awful murder of 11 supporters of the defunct ACN in 2011 that were on a campaign visit to Ikot Ekpene. We have not forgotten how Akpabio sought to exterminate, Senator John Udoedehe, who was the governorship candidate of the ACN in 2011, over trump up charges.

You must have heard of the bare-face manipulation of the 2015 election in Akwa Ibom State against our party, by Senator Godswill Akpabio; or how Akpabio bragged on a state radio that he cross off the name of the winner of the PDP primary in Ikot Ekpene senatorial district in 2011 and replaced it with the name of Senator Aloysius Etok.

Senator Akpabio who is now seeking asylum in the APC called our leader, President Muhammadu Buhari, very unprintable names during the 2015 electioneering. He ordered the immediate closure of the Ibom Airport on the day the Buhari, who was then the presidential flag – bearer of our party visited Akwa Ibom State. After our President won the 2015 election despite all their antics, Akpabio encouraged former President Goodluck Jonathan to challenge Buhari’s election victory in court.

Senator Akpabio breeds impunity wherever he goes. We strongly think he played significant role in the fall of his first love, the PDP. Akpabio’s schemes factionised the Nigerian Governors Forum, (NGF), and ultimately led to the creation of PDP Governors Forum as well as the eventual defection of five PDP governors to the APC. We have not forgotten how Senator Akpabio superintended over the NGF election where 17 votes were greater than 19.

Your Excellency, based on Akpabio’s antecedent and his dislike for our party, we strongly feel that the senate minority leader is joining the APC for many nocuous reasons. One, Akpabio is seeking an escape from prosecution for the crimes – particularly, financial, and human rights abuses – his regime committed. Two, he wants to give the party a bad image in the eyes of members of the public who looked up to the APC as the only institution that would evict Akpabio from position of authority and bring justice to those whose rights were unjustly stymied by the preponderance of his absolute powers. With his defection, members of the party and the public in extension are inured to think that the APC is a cover for plunderers of public assets. Three, Senator Akpabio wants to use our party to advance his selfish and insatiable quest for power. Four, Akpabio is on a mission to destroy APC for his man Mr. Udom Emmanuel to win a reelection in 2019. Five, Akpabio defection to the APC will provoke massive exodus of foundation members of the party to other political parties. Six, Senator Akpabio wants to catch in on the seeming feud between Mr. Chibuike Amaechi and Adams Oshiomhole to finish his oil well battle with the former Rivers state governor.

Consequently, in our honest consideration, Senator Akpabio does not deserve a welcome to APC because his despicable political idiosyncrasies dealign to the values our great party holds. In as much as much we appreciate defections like last month’s event where a former national lawmaker, Mr. Bassey Etim, defected with over 6000 people. Etim said he defected because of Senator Akpabio’s impunity which stopped his swearing in as Senator. Etim claimed that on the day he was to be sworn-in following a federal high court’s ruling; Senator Akpabio walked into the office of the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, knelt down and begged him not to proceed with the swearing in.

Sir, we urge your leadership to look meticulously into the impending dangers of Senator Godswill Akpabio’s defection to our party. Also, the leadership of the party should resist the enticement of building our party structure around an individual.

We look forward to your prompt action.

Thank you for your time, Your Excellency.

We are:
Innocent Sylvanus ​Ubong Victor
Chairman