…THEIR RENEWED FIGHT REVISITED
It may surprise you how time flies and how enemies re-emerges as political allies for uncommon interest. Recall that Senator Godswill Obot Akpabio being of Annang ethnic extraction in Akwa Ibom state at the inception of his 8-years administration as executive governor of Akwa Ibom state nominated his Deputy Governor Obong Nsima Ekere an Ibibio and a renowned Estate Surveyor whose business was popularly known as Ekere & Ekere Associates in Port Harcourt Rivers state. But not quite long in that administration got Obong Nsima Ekere set up for impeachment as he was served Impeachment Notice but smartly he resigned as deputy Governor of AKWA IBOM state while he quietly went back to his real estate business.
But as fate will have it Obong Nsima Ekere through his friend and political ally the Honourable Minister For transportation and former Governor of Rives state, Rt. Honourable Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi got appointed as the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of interventionist agency Niger Delta Development Commission-NDDC. Being a staunch member of All Progressive Congress-APC in Akwa Ibom he assumed leadership of the party in the state irrespective of the fact that there is a serving Minister of national planning Udo Udoma and former APC governorship candidate in 2015 Umana Okon Umana now Managing Director of Onne Free Oil and Gas Trade Zone as he Nsima Ekere’s body language tailored towards contesting election as Akwa Ibom state APC standard bearer in the 2019 Governorship election.
But with the defection to All Progressive Congress-APC of his former boss and ex Governor of Akwa Ibom and former Senate Minority Leader Obong Godswill Obot Akpabio and being officially declared as the leader of APC in Akwa Ibom state Obong Nsima Ekere’s dreams of occupying Hilltop MANSION come May 29th 2019 has now dwindled a bit temporarily pending who Senator Godswill Akpabio will choose to run since the ORO Nation in Akwa Ibom politics are agitating for having one of their own sons or daughter to be elected as Governor of Akwa Ibom state come 2019.
If and only if Senator Godswill Akpabio takes a rethink of the brouhaha that set him and Obong Nsima Ekere apart few years ago, it is a settled matter that Obong Nsima Ekere is walking a tight rope since his political mentor Minister for Transportation Rt. Honourable Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi and Obong Godswill Obot Akpabio have never been friends and political allies even while both served as Governors of Akwa Ibom and that of Rivers State from 2007 to 2015.