C'River APC : Group Wants Northerner To Be Party Chairman

The Coalition of All Progressive Congress, APC Support Groups in Cross River State have thrown their weight behind the northern senatorial district of the state in the race to the party championship position.

In a statement signed by the group state chairman, Comrade Iso Bassey Edim, the group noted that the over concentration of leadership positions in the central and southern senatorial districts may result to protest votes from the north in future elections if denied the state party chairmanship position.

Recalled that since the former chairman of the party, Pastor Usani Uguru was appointed by President Muhammadu Buhari as the Niger Delta minster, Mr. John Ochala from the north has been leading the party in Acting capacity.

There have been agitations from some quarters that the substantive chairman should come from the central to complete the tenure of Usani who is also from there.

But the APC support group have insisted that the position was originally zoned to the southern senatorial district but Usani who used the influence of former Rivers State Governor, Rotimi Amaechi clinched the position against the zoning formula.

The statement also maintained that since all the appointments made from the state by President Buhari have gone to the southern and central senatorial districts, equity demands that the north should be allowed to take the chairmanship position.

"We want to use this opportunity to appeal to all the stakeholders of our party to allow the northern senatorial district produce the next substantive chairman of our great party.

"President Buhari has been so magnanimous with Cross River State in terms of appointment but has failed to carry all the zones along. Of all the appointments that have come to Cross River, only the central and south have benefitted.

"Even the Governorship candidate of the party Mr. Odey Ochicha who traversed all the 194 political wards in the state campaigning for APC has seemly been forgotten but his running mate who's from the south has been given appointment.

"The President has appointed a minister, SA, two career ambassadors, NDDC Chairman, Chief of the Naval Staff, Auditor General from the central. The south have ambassadorial appointment, NDDC Commissioner, Head of Service members of board of Basin Authority leaving the north with nothing to show.

"In Keeping to the Tenet and Principles of Justice, Transparency and Equity, our opinion is to shun selfishness and allow Northern Senatorial District to hold the chairmanship of APC till 2018. The zone is part and parcel of Cross River APC. Let's eschew Parochialism in Decision Making", the statement reads.