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The PDP governorship candidate in Cross River State, Sir Arthur Jarvis Archibong, PhD, has pledged to run an administration of constant presence, vowing that he will not be an absentee governor if elected in 2027.
Addressing a press conference on the “State of Cross River”, Archibong said that after three years of observing the Bassey Otu administration, he has a “moral burden” to speak up because silence would amount to “a betrayal of the people of Cross River State.”
Archibong accused the APC administration of being disconnected from the people, alleging that the Governor spends no more than 10 days in the state each month.
“Available, verifiable records show that there is no month the Governor spends more than ten days in the state. Twenty days, at least, are spent either in Abuja and/or abroad with nothing whatsoever to show for this absence,” he said.
“How can the Governor honestly know the challenges of the citizenry when he is hardly here?”
The PDP candidate also slammed what he called a “Calabar-only government”, saying the administration has isolated Central and Northern Senatorial Districts.
“Calabar is not Cross River State. It is only the state capital. The Governor has chosen to isolate the people of Central and Northern Cross River. He does not understand their challenges,” Archibong stated.
He added that contracts awarded across the state cannot be properly executed without the Chief Executive’s on-the-spot supervision, warning that this has led to “fraudulent evaluation and abandonment of projects.”
Archibong said the clearest proof of failure is the absence of any signature project in almost four years despite federal allocation to the state quadrupling.
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“Instead, all focus has gone to the year-round renovation of structures inherited from past governments. While neighbouring states like Akwa Ibom, Abia and Enugu are developing infrastructure that will change lives for generations, Cross River is left with a trail of fake, incomplete, and abandoned projects,” he said.
He accused the state government of “handcuffing and choking” local government funds in violation of the Supreme Court judgment on LG autonomy.
“This has destroyed rural electrification, feeder roads for our farmers, community health centers and the basic quality of life of our rural dwellers,” he said.
The PDP gubernatorial candidate pledged to serve only four years and also made himself constantly available, travelling outside the state only for critical affairs.
He also promised to run a government where the entire state will be his constituency, unshackle local governments by allowing them financial autonomy, create wealth to sustain the people, and place competence over mediocrity.
However, the Special Adviser and Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Linus Obogo, dismissed the claims of the PDP candidate, saying the governor’s recent exploits are not products of sedentary efforts.
“There’s no doubt that Arthur Jarvis is definitely out of touch with happenings in the state, not to know that just last week, Governor Otu’s administration unveiled a historic Public-Private Partnership (PPP) investment package valued at US$1.075 billion and ₦70 billion following the approval of sixteen transformative projects by the State Executive Council (ExCo).
“The Otu’s administration has also attracted an AFDB facility to the tune of $3.5bn for the Bakassi Deep Seaport. These are not products of sedentary efforts.
“Let him be told that every serious government whose desirous of driving investments into the state would sit in his house or office and expect investors or investments to come rolling in,” he said.
