In a statement in Calabar, Ibok wondered if most of the defectors
would have considered joining APC if the 2015 presidential elections
was won by the PDP. He also wondered if those defecting will remain in APC if their political ambitions is not realised or the appointment they hope to get from the centre is not given to them.
He is equally irked at the manner the APC is celebrating and welcoming the defectors to their fold considering the fact that they are the same people they have called all kinds of unprintable names before and after elections, stressing that if they are any set of people the APC ought to attend to in terms of appointments and empowerment, is the original APC members who kept faith with the party in the face of nothing.
Ibok who also doubles as the Special Adviser to the CRS governor on
Inter Party Affairs, described the defectors as fair weather
politicians whose stock in trade is what they can get out of a party
rather than what they can do, to make the party more formidable urging the leadership of the APC to be very careful with the defectors even as he hopes that those of them moving to APC today will not dump the party if the party loses power in future.
Again, the chairman described most of the defectors especially those
from Cross River State as the same people who milked the state dry in
the past 16 years in the various positions of responsibility they
occupied and that what they are merely looking for is another
opportunity and platform to continue to unleash their wicked
tendencies as the defectors seem to have forgotten in a hurry how
their new found party rose to power through sheer hard work,
perseverance, patience and commitment.
He used the opportunity to remind those picking holes in his
appointment as Special Adviser to Gov. Ayade on Inter Party Affairs
that his appointment resulted from the desire of Ayade to run an all
inclusive government where members of the opposition can also play a
prominent role. His appointment has maintains, has not and will not in any way strip the LP of its position as the most credible alternative political platform.
Ibok submits finally that the role of the opposition is to offer
constructive criticism of government programmes and projects when they are not people-oriented, proffer solutions as well as commend
government when it gets it right. “The role of the opposition is
basically to checkmate government in order to help her deliver on her
campaign promises, a role the LP in the state will continue to play”,
he concluded.
