C/River 2023: Our votes won’t be sacrificed on altar of ethnicity – PDP chieftain

The Mbube community in Ogoja Local Government Area of Cross River said that they would not sacrifice merit and competence for politics of ethnicity in the forthcoming governorship election in the state.

This position is contained in a statement by the community’s spokesperson and chieftain of the PDP in Cross River, Mr James Achara.

He said the need to make this clarification was because some persons in the clan had decided to put their personal interest above that of the collective interest of the generality of all.

Achara asked the few clamouring for concession on votes to be cast on the basis of ethnicity, to tell the people why they failed to attract any dividends of democracy to the area through the contacts they had in government.

He said that the people had resolved to cast their votes for whose who showed interest in the welfare of the people, even if it meant to sacrifice their own.

“In Mbube, competence and performance have never been sacrificed on the grounds of mere ethnic sentiment since the journey of democratic dispensation in 1999 and 2023 will not be different from the Cross River State APC Deputy Governorship Candidate, Peter Odey,” he stated.

The PDP chieftain, however, pointed out that canvassers of the ethnic sentiment forgot to do same for their own who ran the Senate seat with the incumbent governor of the state.

According to him, “When a competent and performing Ogoja son contested the Senate seat two weeks ago, how many of them came out to whip this cry of ethnicity?

“Where were all these people crying fowl today when these illustrious sons of Mbube/Ogoja were contesting for political offices that they now want the situation of Peter Odey who is yet to prove his ability to deliver.

“The good people of Mbube will prioritise competence and performance against politics of ethnicity.

Achara, however, appealed to the people to come out en-masse to cast their votes, adding that any plan to use violence will be foiled.