From Judex Okoro, Calabar
CROSS River State chapter of the Inter Party Advisory Council (IPAC) has berated the All Progressives Congress (APC) over call for the impeachment of Governor Ben Ayade.
The council described the call as illogical, unthinkable and indirect way of asking for the impeachment of President Muhammadu Buhari by the National Assembly.
APC had called on the House of Assembly to commence impeachment process of the governor citing, among others, insecurity, communal clashes, signing of Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) and travelling as impeachable offences.
IPAC Chairman, Mr. Patrick Ali, in a statement yesterday described the call as ‘reckless, unpatriotic and wicked’, considering that some of the said-offences were not peculiar to the state.
Ali said it was the highest level of hypocrisy for the party to cite insecurity as one of the impeachable offences when it was a known fact that many APC-controlled states, including Benue, Kaduna, Zamfara, Borno, Imo and Yobe were currently facing different security challenges.
Reminding them of the latest killing of over 80 persons by Fulani herdsmen in Benue State, he said APC-led Federal Government under President Muhammadu Buhari was also grappling with renewed insecurity issues.
Some of the security challenges faced by APC at national level, he pointed out, included pipeline vandalism by the Niger Delta Avengers (NDA) in the South South; suicide bombings by members of the Boko Haram in the North- East; killings by Fulani herdsmen, especially in the North-Central, South-West and South- East and protests by the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) which had led to several deaths in the South-East.
“Therefore, APC’s call on the House of Assembly to impeach the governor if he refuses to resign is illogical and unthinkable and can also be seen as an indirect call by the party for the impeachment of the president by the National Assembly despite his efforts to reposition national security just like Governor Ayade is doing.”
On communal clashes, IPAC chairman said: “Communal conflicts in Cross River State are as old as the state and the governor, just like his predecessors, is doing everything within his powers to bring lasting peace among the various warring communities.”
He wondered why APC was complaining of the three signature projects, including the deep seaport, superhighway, establishment of the Green Police and Homeland Security even when President Buhari was in the state to perform the groundbreaking ceremony of the superhighway.
Ali urged Cross River people to eschew malice, hatred, party politics and ethnicity, and join hands with the governor to deliver on his campaign promises to the people.