Efio-Ita Nyok|15 March 2016|6:41am
The rerun election for Yakurr State Constituency II was conducted on Saturday 12 March 2016 and the PDP won the state legislative seat dusting the APC and LP.
Many reasons have been articulated to rationalise APC's failure at the polls. Negroid Haven thought it wise to shop for APC-CRS best mouthpieces who have taken out time to rationalise why and how APC lost the elections. You are about to read the seminal contributions of Dr. Ifere Paul who recently styled himself vthe Taliban', Joseph Odok the social change agent and Peter Offem Ubi. Suggestions have also been made.
I have captured Paul's position first followed by Odok and then Ubi. The primary aim is to put the lost out in perspective.
*Why and How The APC Lost The Yakurr Constituency II Rerun.
By Ifere Paul
I'll try as much as possible to be neutral in this reporting.
The APC must purge itself of complacency and vindictive politics if they want to survive as a party and to win elections in CRS.There are several factors that led to the failure of APC to pass the litmus test in Cross River State with the Yakurr II rerun. Sad as it may sound, I am happy that the APC can look at it as a lesson and draw inspiration for future elections. Especially, the forth coming Local Government elections.
How did the APC loss the elections?
The APC is not as united as it seems. There are too many divisions with different interest groups. In Yakurr constituency ll, many powerful players are playing without a united voice. The following factors are factors I considered that were responsible for the failure to win big
1. The Moralists:
In the first elections, PDP won the elections through Eteng Jones William. It was a close contest between the Labour Party and APC. At that time, Usani Uguru Usani was the APC State chairman. When the elections were announced, the APC candidate, who was single handedly picked by Usani congratulated the PDP. He did not challenge the elections. It should also be remembered that even the State governorship candidate of the APC congratulated the governorship candidate of the PDP after PDP was declared winner. They refused to challenge any of the elections.
After the CRSHA elections, the Labour Party candidate felt the elections were not properly conducted, hence, he challenged the elections while the PDP candidate was rumored to have bargained for an 8 million naira settlement plan with his PDP contestant. So, due to those factors, many people from the constituency intervened that the APC candidate, who was fielded and financed by Honorable Usani Usani had no moral right to contest a rerun of an election he did not challenge.
A lot of these moralists did not support the APC even though they were with the APC in the first elections. Most of them stayed out of the elections.
2. The Labour Party Decampees:
It is no news that the Labour Party was the most popular in Yakurr LGA because of the influx of the PDP aggrieved candidates. Somehow, the PDP did not allow the catapillars and bulldozers to make any impressive outing in Yakurr. The PDP rigged them out during the elections, and went ahead to boot them out at tribunal courts.
Feeling politically irrelevant after the loss, and coupled with the landslide victory of the APC in the federal level, the aggrieved PDPians now in Labour Party had to move yet again to the APC with their teeming sheeplike followers.
These group of new APC entrants, had nothing to do than to “sidon look”. Most of them have spent so much money moving about different parties. They couldn't bring out their monies to sponsor campaigns for the APC. They do not want to risk it. Their stake in the party has not been guaranteed. Majority of them knew that Usani did not want them in the party in the first place. Now that Usani has made himself inaccessible them, they had nothing to do than to truly “sidon look”. To get involved and finance campaigns, at least one need to know the return on his investment. And the APC candidate, was not that grounded in his own village.
The new decampees to campaign for the Labour Party candidate whom was in their fold before they decamped to APC would amount to anti party charge by their new party….APC. And non of these Labour Party to APC decampees will want to be charge with that. At least not now. Especially that the appointments into federal boards is around the corner. So, other than invest in the campaigns of reruns, they “sidon look” as APC failed.
3. The Candidates:
A large majority of people do not know that all the candidates are related. Eteng Jones Williams of the PDP is a cousin to the other two candidates from Labour Party and APC. While Captain Eno Inah of Labour Party is a direct elder brother of Mr Bassey Inah of APC. A lot of people see them all as brothers who are fighting for the interest of their families but from different political parties. These group of people refused to be swayed by the three brothers political rhetorics of enmity among them. They collected campaign gift and refused to come out and vote. For them, their votes doesn't make a difference, family interest counts.
4. The Minister and His Co Travellers In APC:
The power to be a leader of a party is the power to decide, unite, and set the course of action. Most leaders believe in the winner takes all syndrome. Thereby feeling that they are now the tree that can make a forest. Politics comes with “trades in and trades off”. Most of our APC leaders do not think of functioning in the group. The function mostly outside of it.
From the north to the central and way out to the southern Cross River State, APC leaders are noise makers. They talk more of their individualistic strength. For most of them, their glory most be celebrated.
The elections rerun in Yakurr constituency 2 has proven this theory right.
Hon Hilliard Eta, National Chairman APC South-South did not see the the election rerun as an whole APC fight. At the decamping ground, this most powerful leader of the APC South-South only wanted to remind Oyegun how powerful he is in the party. I remembered several times he called himself the “Lion” of the party. Lions do not allow tigers to lead in the fight against the cats. Hon Hilliard Eta should always use his powers to direct the elections in Cross River State. He should be able to tell the party to unite, front candidates that themselves arw popular, and easily marketable. Hon Hilliard Eta should play the role of the APC coordinator, working with the State acting chairman to turn around the fortunes of his party.
Chief Okoi Obono-Obla is a Party chieftain of the APC. There's no doubt that Obla is very close to the the machinery of the National Leadership of the APC. How has he used his powers to bring glory to the APC? I know how much fight Chief Obla fought to bring Jedy Agba and his Co from Obudu, Clement Ebri, Senator Victor Ndoma-Egba, etc. Is it enough to talk to leaders of opposition into the APC and not be able to influence them to contribute to the election rerun in Yakurr Constituency 2 of Cross River State? As an APC leader in Yakurr, why was he not present to mobilize support for his party's rerun? It is true that those opposition leaders that were brought by Obla has contributed to the party's financial strength. They paid of the outstanding salaries of staff at the Secretariat in Calabar, and sponsored the recent APC rally in Calabar. According to information available to me, one of the recent decampees released over 2million naira and 250bags of rice for the Yakurr Constituency 2 election reruns. The inability of Usani and Obla to work together as leaders of the party in Yakurr Chapter of the APC is undeniably a very important aspect that may cost the APC future elections in that region. It is therefore salient that these two great sons put aside whatever differences they may have had and work together. Obla has consistently used his writings and his activist disposition to oppose the PDP State government to expose waste in government, corruption and impunity in the State. His television appearances are self fiananced and have caused a lot of damage to the PDP. Honorable Minister Usani Usani needs the internet savvy brains like Obla to propagate APC ideologies online.
For Hon (Pst) Usani Uguru Usani, Honorable Minister of the Niger Delta Affairs, the onus to deliver this election was enormous. It was a task not just for one man to deliver. Perhaps the honorable minister gave himself to much of the responsibility without delegating some aspects to other leaders. I know the Usani Usani ability to perform magic in elections in those days. But those days are long gone. Now, elections are not conducted like before. There has to be a collection of different interest group into one. With the type of media frenzy propaganda that could be used against electioneering campaigns in a split second, Honorable Minister Usani Usani should always make sure that there are no units against collective interest. He should always make sure everyone plays along group strategies.
Past electoral competitions, trophies, and glories brought into consideration as a yardstick to lead, only weakens group interest and dynamics. Honorable Minister Usani Usani was not receptive of the idea that most PDP and Labour Party members should decamp to the APC. Well, that is not important now. The fact is, they decamped and are now part of the APC. The ability of Hon Minister Usani Usani to seamlessly work his way and influence the new members also determines collectively would speak volumes. Rather than going to the elections as a competition to prove a point to individual in his own party, Usani should rather proof a point to the PDP.
It is also worth mentioning here that those new members who gave the millions and bags of rice and salt, were part of the people he didn't want. As some have been able to contribute financially, others should not be ousted because they couldn't offer cash. Hon Usani Usani should understand that back in the 1990's, he had no cash but brains. Chief Clement Ebri tapped that brain to make Usani relevant in Yakurr politics. A Chinese proverb of the Tan Dynasty did say that “A king has to remember the people who pushed him to the throne. But not how they pushed him”. The constant rivalry between the Yakurr sons and daughters should as a matter of urgency, be stopped. The Yakurr Nation has been relegated to the background because of the infighting tendencies inherited from the years of the NRC and SDP.
The Obono-Oblas, Utum Etengs, Akin Rickets, the Usanis, and the Clements should forget the past and stop finger pointing for the travails of the Yakurr Nation. If not for anything, Honorable Usani Usani should know that he is a Nigerian leader now. One who needs to forgive and forget the past. One who will take everyone along, irrespective of party difference, or ideological leaning. Such characteristics display should start right at home in the APC.
This article is not intended to spite, or take a swipe at the people mentioned here. It should be taken as a mark of my love to see these personalities work together. More than anything, I desire to see a strong and vibrant opposition in CRS.
*Yakurr II State Constituency Rerun Election, an Improvement of Opposition Politics in CRS
By Joseph Odok
As a keen observer of Cross River State politics, I think there is a strong boost of opposition politics in Cross River State. Never in history has the opposition been taken serious in Cross River State believed to be 100% PDP before now. Today the opposition has installed great fears and possible obliteration of PDP in most local governments in Cross River State
But not for failure of harmonization of interests by some opposition stakeholders in Labour Party and APC, the opposition parties in Yakurr would have disgraced PDP and completely announced their death in Yakurr Local Government Area. For record purpose, all of labour party in Cross River State has been collapsed to a great extent to APC though harmonization of interests is still a challenge.
It is regrettable that some stakeholders in APC led by Chief Clement Ebri fronted the Labour Party candidate and took to emotions rather than fronting party interest. However their mistakes, their argument was sound and based on principles of equity. These stakeholders saw reason to support the labour party candidate because they felt he was more popular and he was favourably disposed to decamp to APC after winning the elections. Their argument was also rooted in the fact that the labour party candidate was the petitioner that solely funded the petition that eventually led to the nullification of the elections previously won by the PDP candidate. Be that as it may they further reasoned, based on emotions that the Labour Party candidate was the elder brother to the APC candidate and in accordance with African culture, it would have been wise for the younger brother to give in to his elder brother who had previously spent so much monies in contesting election without winning any.
This line of reasoning did not go down well with the APC Minister for Niger Delta Affairs Pst. Usani Uguru Usani who rather felt the need to build APC in Yakurr II State Constituency especially as an expression of his unalloyed loyalty to the party. In his reasoning and the reasoning of most APC party men, party interest should always be placed over and above any interest and where sentiment play, party interest should rise supreme. Based on this reasoning Pst. Usani came all out in support of the APC candidate. He fought the battle and came very close to winning.
Should Pst. Usani Uguru Usani be blamed? Or should Chief Clement Ebri be accused of playing anti party by supporting a Labour Party candidate instead of a candidate of his new party APC? In my judgement, Pst. Usani Uguru Usani played a good one. If he had supported the labour party candidate, he would have been seen to be playing anti party and the same Cross Riverians that had pressured him to support the labour party candidate would have been the first to petition him to the president for playing anti party activities. Pst. Usani Uguru Usani decision is highly commendable and applauded by most APC party men. He achieved great feat by coming second and close to the polls despite the fact that his APC candidate was greatly unpopular. I stand not to see him as a failure nor do I stand to brand Chief Clement Ebri as playing anti party, I rather call for greater harmonization amongst APC stakeholders. Casting blames will not save us but building bridges over and above our differences will.
Be that as it is, APC failed to deliver Yakurr II State Constituency Rerun election and PDP won. This, in clear terms is failure if looked critically. The failure of opposition party to clinch the seat despite its stronghold in Yakurr is a slap on the management of the party by stakeholders. It behooves on stakeholders to unite. The Yakurr II State Constituency Rerun Election has openly exposed the divisions that exist amongst APC stakeholders in the state. It is now time to build not to look for blames. United we shall claim Cross River State but divided we shall be always defeated.
*The Absence of Effective Leadership in the state APC can be Blamed for this Failure -Peter Offem Ubi
Much is written about the lost of APC in the rerun elections of March 12th 2016 for the Cross River State House of Assembly. The fact remains that bi-elections or rerun elections are never so popular anywhere. The usual media drive and normal campaigning for votes is less concentrated. Turnout at best stands at 32% of the voting population which is a low number.
Though failures to secure this elections for APC or even the Labour Party candidate who challenged the impunity of rigging to a stand in the first elections could've been avoided had the opposition political party's weren't sold out to the state PDP. The APC national, the state chapter of APC, and relevant APC stakeholders in CRS didn't give full support. The absence of effective leadership in the state APC can be blamed for this failure because the leadership failed in consolidating all various interest groups into one unit.
I remember in America when Dr. Howard Dean was the DNC Chairman, the one goal he had towards winning the national elections was to first win pockets of local and state elections. Having control at the local levels makes wining easy at the state and national level.
The state APC acting chairman in CRS should had made it a point to secure this election and follow through with the local government chairmanship elections to come, so the governorship elections in 2019 will be easy. Unless the ego driving divide and uniting the various interest groups is done, there is no telling how APC secures future elections in CRS.
*Addendum
The bottom line is that leadership failure at the level of the party preceded the failure of the APC CRS at the Yakurr State Constituency II Rerun Election. The failure of being unable to unite a forge a common interest underlies the bane of APC's failure.
Efio-Ita Nyok
Is a Blogger & the Editor of Negroid Haven