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From Joe Effiong, Uyo
The former minister for lands, housing and urban development, Chief Nduese Essien, has advised veteran politician Senator John Akpanudoedeghe to consider retiting from active politicking and use his experience to become a kingmaker.
Essien who said this when Akpanudoedeghe, who is the NNPP gubernatorial candidate in Akwa Ibom State. consulted him in his country in Eket, opined that having acquired many political and academic experiences, the candidate should begin to wind down from being a candidate but helping to groom younger politicians.
“As a politician and with a sound intellectual base of a PhD, you are indeed eminently qualified to be governor. However, at a stage, you should consider stepping aside to be a kingmaker, playing an advisory role which is most needed in the fast deteriorating democratic practice base on party politics”
Essien who is a former two-term member of the House of Representatives, however, commended senator Akpanudoedehe for showing how politics should be played by visiting stakeholders who do not belong to his political party to inform of his desire to contest as governor of the State in 2023.
He expressed the wish that other candidates would do same saying, “This is good politics and the right way to play it. Politics is not supposed to be played in rigidly compartmentalised platforms devoid of entry and exit of members.
“Once a nomination has been won within the party, the candidates are free to canvass for support across the board because if elected you will become the Governor of the entire state and not of the political party. I commend your determination and persistence to be governor of the state since 2011.”
He listed some outstanding expected demands of Eket people from the next administration in the state to include the establishment of Akwa Ibom Oil Mineral Producing Areas Development Commissíon, Delineation of local government area boundaries, resuscitation, and development of Qua River Hotels in Eket, and establishment of a befitting low-density housing estate, among few others.
Chief Nduese Essien however expressed concern that major political parties in Nigeria are on the verge of collapse.
According to him, in 1999 people won elections on merit as the military supervised it, and allowed rules and regulations systems to operate, unlike today when parties no longer abide by their principles but have been allowed to operate on the whims and caprices of emergent owners.
He described as sad the current situation where each party now has an owner, and the owner decides who does what and who goes where stressing that the country could not continue like that.
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“Let me use this opportunity to alert all of us that the major political parties are on the verge of collapse throughout the country. The gradual persistent erosion of political cultures in the parties since 2003 has led them to the situation they have found themselves today.
“Parties no longer abide by their principles, rules and regulations, but have been allowed to operate on the whims and caprices of the emergent owners. The organs of authority direction and coordination have become extinct.
“This is responsible for the multifarious harvest of court cases after each primaries election and the calamities which often befall these parties. Political parties were not run the way they are being run now in 1999 when we came out to contest elections. Whoever won elections then, won it on merit.
“But from 2003 few people will just sit somewhere, write names and announce. Indiscipline, disorder and outright impunity have a terminal point. This terminal point has been reached by major parties, thus enabling the small parties without structures to cause them a stir and the current panic for relevance and positions.
“There is a revolution in the offing-a spontaneous protest against the numerous wrong ways of doing things. The current situation is a call to return to the basics and the time is now. The big parties may have to give way in 2023 for a restart of our democratic experience,” Chief Essien said.
Senator John Akpanudoedehe had earlier noted that he joined the NNPP platform to actualise his visions for Akwa Ibom, noting that he decided to Chief Essien because of his relevance in Akwa Ibom politics and as the political leader of Eket Senatorial district.
He assured that if voted into office, Akwa Ibom Oil Mineral Producing Areas Development Commissíon would be established without delay, and appealed to Chief Essien to support him to win in Eket.
“The PDP government has not been fair to Eket. There is a lot of votes in Eket. Vote for me and I will complete all projects that Udom will abandon in Eket. I will empower our people to develop themselves so that we can build a peaceful state. You cannot be talking about maintaining peace when people are hungry.”
Senator John Akpanudoedeghe had earlier noted that he joined the NNPP platform to actualise his visions for Akwa Ibom, noting that he decided to Chief Essien because of his relevance in Akwa Ibom politics and as the political leader of Eket Senatorial district.
He assured that if voted into office, Akwa Ibom Oil Mineral Producing Areas Development Commissíon would be established without delay, and appealed to Chief Essien to support him to win in Eket.
“The PDP government has not been fair to Eket. There are a lot of votes in Eket. Vote for me and I will complete all projects that Udom will abandon in Eket. I will empower our people to develop themselves, so that we can build a peaceful state. You cannot be talking about maintaining peace when people are hungry.”
