From Judex Okoro, Calabar
A chieftain of All Progressives Congress, APC, and a Senatorial aspirant during the 2019 election under the people’s Democratic party, PDP, Chief Chris Agara, has said the mass defections to APC is to enable the party take over Cross River completely in 2023.
Ayade had defected to the ruling APC on Thursday, May 2021 having fallen out with his former party, PDP, over the control of the party structures.
And since there have been gale of defections as a good number of his political appointees have headed back to their wards to register with APC.
Agara, who stated this shortly after he dumped PDP officially and defected to the ruling APC at his ward at Nta/ Nselle ,Ikom local government area at the weekend, said the disunity in the PDP and disrespect for Governor Ben Ayade was part of the reason he and thousands of his supporters decided to moved to the APC.
Explaining that the movement was in the interest of his people as they needed to connect to the centre, Agara said they are not coming to fight or struggle position with APC people but to join forces and have a stronger and more formidable front to take over the state completely come 2023 and beyond
His said:” I and others defect to APC because the only thing that is permanent in life is change. Our movement is born out of the desire to connect our people to the centre.
“Since inception of this democratic dispensation Cross River has never been disconnected from the centre and this is what necessitated the need for this change.
“The disunity in the PDP and disrespect for Governor Ben Ayade was part of the reason why we moved to the APC and we are moving with him to join forces to build the state.
“Already ,the benefits have started manifesting as we have a road that has now been awarded by the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development which would go a long way alleviate the suffering of our people .
“We are not coming to fight or struggle position with you, rather we are coming to join forces and have a stronger and more formidable front to take over the state completely come 2023 and beyond because this is the beginning of good things to come to our people.
” I want to thank those who held forth in the APC before we came in I thank you for your doggedness and resilience in the fight to keep the party running , because if not for your resolve their won’t be this change we are experiencing today,” he stated.