President Muhammadu Buhari has been warned not to appoint Senator Godswill Akpabio, former Minority Leader at the Senate, a minister as he begins his second term later in the week.
The advise is coming from elders of the All Progressive Congress (APC) in Akwa Ibom State.
Mr Akpabio, a former governor of the state, who joined the APC last year with the aim of delivering the state to the ruling party at the center failed to achieve his plans. Not only did fail in that aspect, he also lost his re-election bid to return to the Senate.
In a letter written to the Nigerian leader, the elders described Akpabio as a corrupt person unfit to hold public office.
“Mr. President, this second mandate affords you the opportunity to select your ministers in a manner that will ensure that they do not become liabilities to your government or dent your impeccable image,” the protest epistle signed by Asuquo Etim, president of the group, read.
“Characters with known corruption allegations or propensity for pettiness, mischief, treachery, profligacy and vendetta, should be avoided. Senator Godswill Akpabio, unfortunately, is one of such integrity deficient individuals.
“Many had thought that his (Akpabio) joining APC would bring cool breeze of good fortunes to the party in the state, but rather his highhanded nature and disrespect for internal democracy in the party and the will of the people to chose their leaders, became a raging storm that uprooted the recognized structures of the party right from the grassroots, as he imposed party leaders from the wards and even unit levels. Leaving many party men and women very bruised, trampled and disgruntled. This sadly affected the chances of our governorship candidate, Obong Nsima Ekere.
“Akwa Ibom has many respectable, level headed personalities that would represent the state with grace at the federal executive, just as our son, Mr. Udoma Udo Udoma, Minister of Economic Planning, has done creditably in the past four years.
“In terms of loyalty to the party and contributions to its development in the state, we have Party men including Chief Umana Umana and Senator John Udoedehe, among others who had toiled to keep the party afloat over time in the state,” the letter copied also to the national chairman of the party, Adams Oshiomhole, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) Boss Mustapha, and the Chief of Staff to the President, Abba Kyari, partly read.
