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By Joe Effiong
Counsel to Governor Udom Emmanuel of Akwa Ibom State in the case against Miss Blessing Ossom Edet, Mr. Emmanuel Ikpo, has alleged that the accused was on the run until she was brought back to Nigeria through the help of Interpol.
Blessing, a former All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate for Nsit Atai state constituency of Akwa Ibom in the 2019 election, has always been a pain in Emmanuel’s neck.
In 2019, she had taken to her social media platform to blast Emmanuel for allegedly being stingy, arguing that, if his predecessor, Senator Godswill Akpabio, had been that stingy, Emmnauel wouldn’t have been governor of the state.
She had also accused politicians in the state of sleeping with married women who go to them for money, contracts or any other form of assistance. She also alleged that many children in Akwa Ibom were not fathered by the man marrying their mother but by politicians who sleep with their mothers.
She, however, said the promiscuousness of some married women was because of hardship, warning that, if the governor continued with his stinginess, the promiscuity would eventually be displayed at Ibom Plaza and it would eventually involve the governor’s family members.
According to her, in the video, which is still trending till date, “Sex used to be by choice and not by force. All the local government chairmen and House of Assembly members who have been sleeping with married women, I have your names.
“I am warning you people. If you want to help somebody, help. You mustn’t sleep with married women before you give them money.
“I know after this video, Udom’s boys would come and insult me. I dont care; I won’t even answer them.”
As she had predicted, one of the governor’s aides, Emmanuel Uwalaka, otherwise called Emma Solution, immediately came out to defend his boss, alleging that Blessing climbed her political ladder by selling her body to top politicians and threatened to name names, if she made any more attempt to bring the governor into disrepute.
Blessing broke her vow never to respond to any such reaction by brutally puncturing Uwalaka’s defence and launching more attacks, not only on his person and his family, she even cast doubts on the paternity of his children. She mentioned the name of the former vice chairman of Uyo as the father of those children.
Emma Solution had to beat a retreat, even as Blessing threatened to list the names of women that had allegedly been involved with the boss.
Blessing seemed to fear no foe, even in her erstwhile party, as she promised to confront them for making her spend her hard-earned money on an election that the leaders of the party were not actually prepared for.
It is not yet clear whether she has made good her threat to publish the names of women allegedly involved with Emmanuel, which might have led to her being arraigned on six-count charge.
Emmanuel’s counsel said: “Blessing has been on the run since she knew that she had committed criminal defamation against the governor.
“She had her restaurant in Abuja. But she closed it and ran to Dubai to open it there. We had to petition Interpol, which led to her being brought back to Nigeria to face her charges.”
A former commissioner’s name is being mention as the reason for count three in the charge sheet. She had since resigned from Akwa Ibom State executive council to pursue her House of Representatives ambition, which is, however, hanging in the balance following the inconclusive election in her constituency. A supplementary is being awaited.
There were allegations in the state that the former commissioner was trying to sideline the wife of the governor, Mrs. Martha Emmanuel, up the point that the duo clashed at last year’s International Women’s Day celebration at Ibom Hall, Uyo.
It was alleged that the former commissioner usurped the position of the First Lady at the event, forcing the First Lady to order her to be bundled out of the venue.
It is not known whether Blessing put her name among the married women/politicians Udom have been allegedly involved with.
