By Patrick Obia
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A defeated Central Senatorial District aspirant under the All Progressive Congress, APC, Chief Okoi Obono-Obla says the party in Cross River State is beyond repair.
Obono-Obla made the assertion on his official social media handle where he described the just concluded primary that was held at Ikom Local Government Area, as a “charade and marred by vote-buying perpetuated by desperate aspirants in front of security agents.
“He condemned the APC in Cross River, saying the ruling party “is fractured beyond redemption due to the imposition of candidates during the election process.
“The former presidential aide said the election in which the Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Eteng Williams emerged the winner was characterized by irregularities adding that “the delegates list for the election was altered and doctored by the powers that be to support the ‘anointed aspirant.’
“Aspirants (except the anointed one) did not know who would be the electors at the election until they got to the polling station. It was not surprising that altered and doctored delegate lists by the powers that be to support the ‘anointed aspirant’. Some of us knew before voting that the election would be a shame.”
Cementing his conviction that the election was a shame, Obla said: “Every politically informed person was aware that a particular aspirant was the favorite of the powers that be. The brandishing of the name of one particular as the favored one weeks before the election amounts to intimidation.
“The potentate makes sure that you must have his endorsement before you can aspire to become a candidate. Aspirants that did not have the endorsement of the potentate, had sorts of obstacles thrown along their paths. I was the target from day one. The powers that be were at a crossroads on what to do with me and therefore devised crude and inferior methods to edge me out.
“The APC has completely deviated from the philosophy of its founding fathers. Let us see how the anointed aspirants will deliver the party in Cross River State. As it stands the party is fractured beyond redemption,” Obla said.
Results for the central senatorial election show the current Speaker of the state Assembly, Eteng Williams emerged the winner with 152 votes, Akin Ricketts who currently heads the Board of the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) scored 109 votes, and former DG of the National Center for Women Development, Mary Ekpere polled 35 votes, while Obono Obla polled 19 votes.
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