…Comrades Ndiyo, Etta distances from Obo’s Alleged Inconsistency
Calabar — Key stakeholders of the National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN), Cross River State chapter, have distanced themselves from Comrade Daniel Obo’s recent comments against Senator Eteng Jonah Williams, describing him as “inconsistent” and unqualified to speak for the state.
Speaking on Saturday in Calabar on the sidelines of an emergency NYCN stakeholders’ meeting, former NYCN State Chairman and current spokesperson to the national president, Ndiyo Ndiyo, dismissed claims that Daniel Obo had been elected South-South Vice President of the Council.
“There is no election in the National Youth Council of Nigeria. We are heading to a congress by September under the leadership of Ambassador Sukubo Sara-Igbe Sukubo,” Ndiyo said.
“There has never been any election or management committee constituted that brought in new leadership. The Ministry of Youth wrote to Sukubo, acknowledging the expiration of tenure by September and advised that due process be followed. A Congress Planning Committee (CPC) and Electoral College have already been set up for that purpose.”
Ndiyo, who traced the NYCN leadership journey from a 2021 Unity Congress in Calabar that brought all factions under Sukubo’s leadership, insisted that no legitimate election had occurred since then.
“The council was harmonized in 2021 at the Dome, Calabar Municipality. All factions — from Shagari to Mustafa to Niyi — came together. That congress gave Ambassador Sukubo a fresh four-year mandate, which expires this September,” he noted.
In a pointed response to Obo’s claim of being elected into a zonal position, Ndiyo said: “There is no office like Vice President of the Youth Council in Cross River State at the moment. Nobody from Cross River has been elected into that office. Anyone contesting must come to the September Congress. You cannot represent Cross River without the State Chairman’s recommendation.”
Taking issue with Obo’s political loyalty, Ndiyo accused him of betraying benefactors and displaying erratic behavior over the years.
“He was once a staunch ally of Senator John Owan-Enoh, then jumped ship to Usani Usani. He later defected to join SDP as a deputy governorship candidate, only to abandon the guber candidate and return to APC midway into the election. This pattern of inconsistency is dangerous,” Ndiyo emphasized.
Also speaking, Hon. Ojie Jacob Etta, immediate past secretary of the NYCN Advisory Council in Cross River state, affirmed support for the current state chairman, Comrade Emmanuel Olayi, and expressed disappointment with Obo.
“Nobody is appointed or elected at the national level without the input of the State Chairman. What you see happening is illegal,” Etta said.
Although Obo hails from the Central Senatorial District like Etta, the latter dissociated himself from Obo’s recent actions.
“We in Central do not take him seriously. He has never won any election, not even his polling unit. His chairmanship of the Youth Council was made possible only through the goodwill of his predecessor,” Etta stated.
Etta went further to question Obo’s political integrity, recalling instances of financial and moral support from Senator Eteng Jonah Williams, which he said Obo later disregarded.
“Senator Eteng supported him during his father’s burial — gave him over a million naira, a cow, even paid his rent. But today, he is biting the fingers that fed him. It’s ungrateful and unfortunate,” he lamented.
The stakeholders reaffirmed their confidence in Senator Eteng’s representation, citing his youth empowerment initiatives, scholarship programs, and political inclusivity across the 66 wards of Cross River Central.
“Senator Eteng has empowered at least 10 youths per ward. What else do you want? He has done incredibly well,” Etta added, calling on Cross River youths to reject political opportunism and remain focused on unity and development.
