2023: ‘We must speak the truth’… Sen Gershom Bassey addresses Venatius Ikem directly

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The leading opposition political party in Cross River and Nigeria, People’s Democratic Party (PDP), has been tasked to align itself with the truth especially the truth surrounding the decision of the state chapter of the party’s caucus in 2015 NEGROIDHAVEN can report authoritatively.

The lawmaker representing Cross River South at the 9th Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Gershom Bassey, made this call on Saturday when he celebrated the Yuletide with Party’s hierarchy and faithfuls in Calabar the state capital metropolis.

According to Sen. Bassey, within the PDP fold and beginning from 1999 through 2015, there has been a strict compliance to the culture of rotation of political power around the three senatorial districts especially the office of Governor of the state.

Gershom who insisted that the PDP in Cross River must speak the truth reminded the party state EXCO of the extant state caucus resolution in favour of rotation of power to the South after the expiration of the 2015 to 2023 turn in favour of the northern senatorial district.

His words, ‘Mr Chairman in 1999 we elected Donald Duke a PDP man as governor of Cross River state in the People’s Democratic Party, he beat his opponent… may his soul rest in peace Hon. Mark Ugbo; in 2003 we re-elected Donald Duke to go for a second term as governor. We did not elect another governor from the south. Did we? After Donald Duke finished we went to the Central, and we elected Sen. Liyel Imoke as our governor. Liyel did his first term, he did well and we re-elected him for a second term. He finished in 2015. After Liyel, did anybody contest from the Central Senatorial District in PDP? We said it is the time of the north. After Liyel concluded in 2015, PDP did not just go to the North, we zoned the governorship to the north.

‘Chairman, you were in the caucus meeting. But, there was a proviso, that after 8 years of the North, we are doing back to south. Has that motion been overturned? Are we not still in the PDP? We must speak the truth.

‘So, in 2015 nobody from central contested the election. Not one soul. Not one person from the south contested that election in the PDP because we zoned that election. It was only people from the North who contested. So, the ball is in your court. There is a state caucus resolution on ground. What are you going to do about it? We must speak the truth,’ his statement reads in part.

While responding to Bassey’s remarks, Venatius Ikem observed that ‘I love to stand by the truth like you have said, there is no doubt. And I have no doubt about the history of the party you have raised. You know I am a living history of the party. I have no doubt on my mind that this EXCO will stand by the truth and we will do the truth. I will not want to define the truth as you are defining it, but I know that the truth is sacrosanct, PDP!’