From Okwe Obi, Abuja
Reclaim Cross River (RCR), a support group of the Presidential Candidate of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), in the 2023 poll, Atiku Abubakar, has accused Governor Ben Ayade of tarnishing the legacies of his predecessors, Donald Duke and Liyel Imoke.
Its Founder, John George, in a statement, yesterday, claimed that Cross River State “is only a shell of its old self and a source of derision by all.”
He further said: “Recall that during the tenure of the former governor, Mr. Donald Duke, Cross River was the tourist destination of choice in Nigeria. In fact, visitors came from outside Nigeria to visit the state.
“This legacy was sustained with renewed infrastructural development by Senator Liyel Imoke between 2007 and 2015.
Regrettably, all the gains of the Donald Duke and Liyel Imoke administrations have been squandered and reversed by Senator Ben Ayade’s clueless leadership.
“Today, Cross River state is only a shell of its old self, a source of derision by all. What the state is laughably known for today is the bombast and highfalutin christening of yearly budgets by Governor Ayade.
“To make matters worse, the governor took the ill-advised decision to defect to the All Progressives Congress, a party whose calamitous failure in all spheres is spectacular. Talk of birds of a feather flocking together!
“So our mission is to reclaim and rescue Cross River from the years of the locusts that the Ayade and the APC government represent,” George said.