Wild Reactions Trail Ibibio Youth Conscience

-Groups Demand Apology, Orders Police Investigation


Wild reactions have continued to trail the group, Ibibio Youth Conscience, sponsor of an advertorial alleging financial impropriety and cultic involvement by Senator John James Akpanudoedehe while serving as Ministries of the FCT.

In a statement to the Press last week, groups and individuals rose in strong condemnation over the advertorial which charges they described as spurious and baseless intended to soil the good reputation and public support the governorship hopeful has enjoyed. Those who spoke to Global Concord while suspecting the publication as one in the planned serialize campaign of calumny against Senator John James Udoehehe by people desperate to retain power, cautioned groups to rally support for their choice candidates with decorum since according to them:

“this politic of killing aspirants, their image, attacking their supporters and saying baseless things against highly respected individually because of disagreeing on political points is atavistic and not 21st century compliance”. One of the groups who rose against Ibibio Youth Conscience, said to be non existent except as a vacuum for slanging on opposition and perceived enemies of the administration of Godswill Akpabio by paid political snipers, according to Positive Change 2011, is a support group for Senator John James Akpanudoedehe, Senator Udoedehe's Vanguard.
In a statement at the weekend in Uyo, the group, Senator Udoedehe's Vanguard said the content of the publication were not only malicious but capable of igniting violence in the state as such has been solely done to attract hatred on the revered person of the Senator.

Signed by its Co-ordinator, Mr. Henry Udoh and Secretary, Mr. Joe Inyang, the group said: “That group which has only two members must have been paid to instigate violence and cause crisis in Akwa Ibom State.

The content of the advertorial are false in its entirety and baseless as it can not in any way be substantiated. This group of evil messengers must not be left to go free. They must be arrested to tell the public what they know about cultism and kidnapping in Akwa Ibom State. They must be compelled to substantiate the allegations before the Nigerian Police and other security agencies with records and facts
They must provide details on how to rid the state off kidnapping, assassination, arm robbery etc by providing details of “other” cultists, fraudsters and corrupt public officers in Akwa Ibom State and Nigeria because they claim to know all these”.
Speaking further, the vanguard which has Mr. Chris Edet as Deputy Co-ordinator and Mr. Obot Dickson as Youth Leader called for the arrest of the sponsors of the ill intended advertorial by the police till truth is established. Speaking on the character of Senator Edehe, the group which is formed to mobilize support for the governorship aspiration of Senator Edehe said:

“We have worked and walked closely with Senator John James Akpanudoedehe many years before his aspiration to the governorship of this state and known him to be a man of good character
“We have known him while he was the Chairman of Uyo Local Government, while he became Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and received mentorship from President Olusequn Obasanjo and derived political strength and will to stand and oppose evil when others may lack courage to do so.
“We have equally monitored him as a Minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and found no fault of character in him contrary to the allegations of Ibibio Youth Conscience.
“From our knowledge as stated, we have good grounds to refute such allegations and call for members of the public to disregard same and continue in their support to the Senator by voting for him in 2011 as governor of Akwa Ibom State.
“We wish to warn and advice youths not to be used to run down the few icons we have jointly raised. We call for total respect for Obong Victor Attah, Ex-Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Senator John James Akpanudoedehe and other Senior citizens of Ibibio race whose images and political profiles are being endangered by desperate political office seekers.

“We call for respect to constitutional authority and decorum in utterances as we march towards the 2011 electioneering campaigns”, the group solicited.
In a related development, Mr. Nsikak Ben has reacted to the advertorial saying the content with regards to his person is false, malicious, misleading and damaging to the image of his person and called on those behind the said publication to refrain from such attack.
In a sponsored advertorial, Mr. Nsikak Ben said: “my attention has been drawn to advertorials in the “Community Pulse” of 6/3/10 page17, and “Community Shield” of 24/3/10 page 12 captioned “Is Senator John James Akpan Udoedehe a saint”. In particular paragraph three of the advertorials alleged that “As the chairman of Governor Akpabio's Campaign Organization in 2006, Senator John Akpan Udoedehe collected so much money from many people promising them relevance in the emerging government. Worthy of mention is one Mr.Nsikak Ben, who works in the presidency. He collected millions of naira from him promising to make him the Accountant-General of the state. At present the said Mr. Nsikak Ben is the Chief Accountant attached to the Niger Delta Monitoring Team in the Presidency”.
Speaking further he said: “ordinary, I would have ignored and disregarded the said advertorial as the figment of the imagination of professional political jobbers but in our clime, silence is no more golden. It becomes imperative therefore to issue this rejoinder for the sake of the discerning members of the public and in order to put issues in their proper perspective. I want to make it categorically clear that the above allegation so far as it contained in the advertorials under reference is false, misleading, malicious, libelous, damaging, blackmailing and is aimed at scoring a political point; therefore should be disregarded by all right thinking and discerning members of the public.”

Mr. Ben called on the Ibibio Youth Conscience as well as the general public to be embarking on issues that will bring development in the state.
He advised: “one piece of advice, I have for the “IBIBIO YOUTH CONSCIENCE” is to engage and embark on projects and programmes that will unite and unify the state with positive impacts on humanity than fester embers of acrimony, strife and political bigotry.”