The People’s Democratic Party, (PDP), has urged support groups to sustain the aggressive mobilisation of eligible voters in Cross River State, southern Nigeria ahead of the 2023 general elections.
The Cross River PDP chairman, Mr. Venatius Ikem, who received the leadership of the PDP Liberty Support Group at the party secretariat in Calabar, said that to guarantee landslide victory at the 2023 election, mobilisation of the electorate must be aggressive across the state.
Ikem said with the failures of the national and state governments to address critical development concerns of citizens have presented PDP as a viable alternative to the masses.
The PDP state chairman said, “The present insecurity, untold hardship, economic woes and gradual collapse of key sectors are adding up to the growing indices for a failed state. The exorbitant cost of living under the APC-led government should convince every rational prospective voter that it is high time for them to be voted out of power. In PDP, our antecedents speak volumes of our capacity, competence and noble intentions for our country.
“Our predicament in Cross River is even the worst scenario. The commercial-oriented destruction of our historic ecosystem, massive looting of our treasury, siphoning of the bailouts and Bakasi stabilization funds as well as the deliberate destruction vented on our common heritage and apparatus of government have taken us backyard in a developmental index. Hence, the urgent need to reclaim our beloved state,” Ikem opined.
He advised the group and others to adhere to the law during the door-to-door mobilisation campaign.
Credible leaders
The Director General of Liberty Support Group, Mr. Peter Igbe, in a remark, said that its membership was drawn from various local governments, fields of endeavours and retired, but seasoned technocrats with the objective of mobilizing citizens and wishers to vote for credible leaders during the 2023 general election.
Igbe said, “The deplorable situation in our beloved Cross River informed our formation. Gone are the days we used to introduce ourselves as proudly Cross Riverians, today we are ashamed of our state’s status. The damage on our collective heritage and psyche is simply unprecedented.”
He further said, “We opted to pitch our tent with the PDP after a holistic appraisal of the various governorship candidates on parade across the parties. We have unanimously agreed that Senator Sandy Onor is the best option in all ramifications. Hence, our decision to team up with the PDP to usher in Senator Sandy Onor as the next governor of our state”
The patron of the group, Sir Philip Adie recalled with nostalgia the administration of former PDP governors Donald Duke when citizens enjoyed a supply of potable water, a vibrant tourism industry and a blanket security network as well as a viable civil and public service.
Adie, who expressed his desire for a better Cross River State, pledged to work for the victory of the party at the general elections.
Olusola Akintonde
