APC Stakeholders Fume Over Otu's 26 Commissioner Nominees, Say List Not Reflection Of Monkey-Work Monkey-Chop Mantra

By Dominic OKOH

Barley twenty-four hours after Governor Bassey Otu released the 26-man list of commissioner- nominees, stakeholders of the All Progressives Congress (APC) have expressed reservations over some names sent to the House of Assembly for confirmation.

The stakeholders cutting across both legacy and new APC members as well as the youths are piqued at the caliber of people that made the list even as Otu had given the impression that the new cabinet would be a blend of politicians and seasoned technocrats as well as representing a cross-segment of the society.

According to them, the list is a sharp contrast to the Transition Committee's recommendations that it should be core politicians and party men and women who had worked hard for the success of APC in the state.

They maintained that many of the commissioner- nominees were not on the list sent from various wards by the party leadership in line with Governor's directive.

The Beagle News recalled that Otu had earlier directed party leadership to send 20 names from each ward for onward consideration for various political appointments at national, state, and local government levels.

They wondered why the stakeholders should be made to go through the rigors of compiling names only for the Governor to ditch the list and went for people that had nothing to do with the list.

A stakeholder from Yakurr local government area, who simply gave his name as Emmanuel Okoi, said: "I am very angry that no notable person from Yakurr made the list even when we staked out our lives for Otu and abandoned our son, Prof. Sandy Onor of the PDP.

"It is unbelievable that the Governor nominated unknown personages who did not even play active roles during campaigns to be commissioners representing Yakurr.

"I can tell you that the situation, especially in Yakurr is very tense since they released that list. It does not reflect the monkey-work-monkey mantra preached by Otu."

Also expressing disappointment over the list, another stakeholder from Calabar Municipality, Inok Okon, said: "We are shocked at what we saw. None of us was consulted for our input to the list. It seems the Governor just sat with his inner Caucus and wrote the list without recourse to the party. Perhaps, he wants to build his team.

"Again, his promise of a mix-bag of technocrats and the political class is not reflected on the list. I can tell you we feel betrayed."

Equally expressing dismay at the list, Agba Agba, from the north said: "Some of the names on the list were not seen in the filed during campaigns except there are other criteria used in selecting them.

"I have not seen any big name or people who played significant roles during the electioneering. Maybe the Governor needs to explain to us why he did what he did. It is wrong calculations for some to work others would just use connections to get appointments. Imagine some names from Yala and Obanliku."

Other stakeholders, who spoke off record, condemned the list in totality, saying they were taken aback when they saw it on Social Media.

Some of them maintained that they were not in any way consulted about the list, wondering why Otu should enter their territory and pick nominees without their consent.

They noted that the list of nominees is a signal of what they should expect and vowed to also fight back at the appropriate time.