Former special assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on prosecution, Chief Okoi Obono-Obla has asserted that the ruling party in Cross River State, the All Progressives Congress, APC, has been fractured beyond redemption.
He also stated that the party had completely deviated from the ideals of the founding fathers.
In a public statement, Obono-Obla, who lost out during the Cross River central senatorial APC primaries yesterday, said that the powers that be were at a crossroads on what to do with him and had devised crude and inferior methods to edge him out.
The APC primary election for the Cross River Central Senatorial ticket for next year’s general election was won by the Speaker of the State House of Assembly, Eteng Williams, who polled 152 votes.
He was followed by former chairman of Nigeria Ports Authority, Akin Rickets with 109 votes, while Obono Obla got 19 votes and Mary Ekpere got 35 Votes.
“The APC has completely deviated from the philosophy of its founding fathers. Let us see how the anointed aspirants will deliver the Party in Cross River State. As it stands, the Party is fractured beyond redemption,” he said.
It was reported that there were allegations of doctored delegate lists to favour the “anointed aspirant“.
Obono-Obla said, “Every politically informed person was aware that a particular aspirant was the favorite of the powers that be. The brandishing of the name of one particular aspirant as the favored one weeks before the election amounts to intimidation.
“The potentate makes sure that you must have his endorsement before you can aspire to become a candidate.
“Aspirants that did not have the endorsement of the potentate, had sorts of obstacles thrown along their paths. I was the target from day one.”