By Kelvin Obambon
As permutations for 2023 politics are being considered, stakeholders in Cross River Southern Senatorial Zone are advocating the interest and advancement of the zone.
The stakeholders who came together under the Cross River Southern Senatorial Zone Stakeholders Forum, say that rotation of the governorship position has been a convention in the state, and as such cannot be set aside for whatever reason.
Speaking at the inaugural meeting held at the Transcorp Hotels, Calabar, on Thursday, Co-convener of the Forum, Senator Bassey Ewa, observed that the rotation arrangement has engendered relative peace, equity and fairness in Cross River over the last two decades.
Senator Ewa who participated virtually, expressed optimism that the Forum could play a decisive role in the ultimate survival of the Southern Senatorial District, noting that the Zone “faces a number of severe challenges which include extreme poverty, drug peddling and abuse, looting of our common wealth, kidnapping, banditry and armed robbery.”
Lamenting the widespread insecurity in Nigeria and Cross River in particular, the Co-convener declared that “Nobody is safe. You can’t sleep at night. I’m sure some of you have experienced that. And on top of all these, there are people plotting to do grave injustice to the Southern Senatorial District. No one knows what would happen in 2023. We do not know whether elections would hold given the level of insecurity and acrimony following the demand for restructuring, devolution of power, and equity and justice. The signs are ominous. I pray to God for his intervention.
“Cross River has been a peaceful state until recently. Since 1999 we have managed the rotational arrangement which has ensured fairness, equity and peace in the governance of the state. From 1999 to 2007 the governor of the state was from the Southern Senatorial Zone. Between 2007 and 2015, the governor was from the Central Senatorial Zone. From 2015 going to 2023, we have a governor from the Northern Senatorial Zone. Respecting that rotational arrangement and for fairness, which zone should produce the next governor if elections hold in 2023?
“Some people from other zones who believe they have party connections and power are already looking for spurious arguments to scuttle the rotational arrangement and justify their ambitions to become governor. I heard some are even evoking ethnic sentiments by calling on the Ejagham to draw support from some of our brothers in the south. For me, this is not the time for Ejagham politics. It is the time for the South Senatorial Zone of Cross River State to come together solidly as one and produce a good governor who will repair the damage that is being inflicted upon us. We have lost everything, including the clean and green, the many visitors that used to come… Everything is falling apart.”
Ewa opined that for the zone to achieve its set goals, people must avoid the ‘pull him down syndrome’ and also jettison the politics of stomach infrastructure, calling on all hands to be on deck to rescue the state from total collapse. He equally urged the zone to boycott any political party that does not respect the equitable and fair zoning arrangement that is currently in place.
In his remarks, Elder Chief Ogban Ebock, who is also the Co-convener of the Forum and Chairman of the inaugural meeting, stressed that the Cross River Southern Senatorial Zone Stakeholders Forum is a non partisan platform that aggregates and articulates interest of the zone by constantly engaging and interfacing with political actors from all divides.
He said “The first thing we should consider is the unity of the south. At a critical moment like this, all the vices would be put in place to break our rank, to weaken us. The challenges we have may not be peculiar to us. But we could in this forum device a method of making sure that this Southern Senatorial District comes back to its lost glory. Time has come for us not to seat back and think that only those elected will do the magic.
“The Southern Senatorial District is the biggest. Because of our size and population, we have a voice. We have power, we have capacity. But how much of these have we applied? What have we done to improve the situation of our young people in the streets? If they did not attack you in the EndSARS protests, don’t be too happy with yourself because tomorrow may be your own turn. So we now have a responsibility in this Forum to do things that will ensure that we don’t have that experience in Calabar or any other environment.”
Chief Ebock averred that stakeholders in the zone also share in the blame for the failure of governance because of their reluctance to hold elected officials to account. He expressed fear that should the state be allowed to follow the current trajectory, everyone would suffer the consequences in no too distant future.
The Co-convener appealed to people of the zone to always take active part in the political process, even as he reminded the gathering that the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has embarked on the creation of some additional polling units across the country, and that they should take advantage of the exercise to consolidate on their political relevance.
On his part, former governor of Cross River, Mr Donald Duke, said elected officials, especially National Assembly members in the Senatorial Zone, should give account of their stewardship to enable the electorates review their performance, so as to decide whether or not they deserved the people’s continuous support.
Duke who hinged the current dilemma in Cross River on lack of accountability and responsible leadership, said until those who hold the people’s mandate in trust are summoned to present their scorecards, the challenges facing the state and the nation would persist.
While calling on the electorates to mobilize and vote out any elected officer who snubbed the invitation to present his or her scorecard, the former governor stressed that people should start insisting on merit before entrusting their mandates on anyone vying for political position.
Duke said although he accords priority to merit as one of the criteria for electing people into positions, he would uphold zoning because it is the only way of ensuring peace, equity and fairness in the system.
The meeting was attended by former deputy governor of Cross River State, Barr. Efiok Cobham, Arch. Bassey Eyo Ndem, Ntufam Ignatius Iyamba, Prof. Ani Offiong Ani, Dr Iyam Ugot and Elder Gershom Davis.
Also in attendance were Hon. Matthew Olory, Hon. Ogbor Ogbor, Hon. Effa Esua, Hon. Denis Nkiri, Hon. Charles Eko, and many other stakeholders in Southern Senatorial District.
