by Okoi Obono-Obla
Former Special Assistant to ex-President Muhammadu Buhari on Prosecution, Chief Okoi Obono-Obla, has launched a scathing attack on the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Cross River State, declaring that the party has “degenerated” into the same crisis-ridden state that destroyed the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) before its 2021 implosion.
In a strongly worded statement, Obono-Obla lamented that the APC in the state has been infected by what he described as “the worst kind of political virus,” leaving it weakened by internal strife, opportunism and deepening divisions.
He warned that the ruling party risks repeating the fate that befell the PDP in Cross River between 1999 and 2021, culminating in a mass exodus that reshaped the state’s political landscape.
According to him, while the APC’s decision to open its doors to defectors was not inherently wrong, poor management of the process has fueled the simmering crisis now threatening the party’s cohesion.
The former presidential aide recalled the sacrifices made by early opposition figures before the APC’s national victory in 2015, alleging that many endured harassment, victimisation and suppression of their democratic rights under the old order.
“Those of us who fought valiantly to bring the party to its shores are now treated with ignominy, contempt and scorn,” he said, claiming that loyal foundation members have been sidelined and marginalised.
Obono-Obla, who said he served as a national officer in one of the legacy parties that merged to form the APC in 2013, expressed shock that he was not recognised as a stakeholder during last week’s APC Local Government Congress in Yakurr.
He noted that he resigned from the National Executive Committee of his former party to facilitate the 2013 merger and also served as Co-Secretary of the umbrella committee that negotiated the APC’s formation.
Describing his exclusion from ward-level consideration in Ijiman Town, Ugep Urban, as a “sad commentary,” Obono-Obla warned that the APC in Cross River now stands at a dangerous crossroads.
He urged the party to urgently rediscover its founding ideals and accord due recognition to loyal members who sacrificed for its emergence, stressing that failure to do so could trigger a repeat of the PDP’s collapse in the state.
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