Akwa Ibom: Akpabio orders probe of APC candidate’s assassination

Governor Godswill Akpabio of Akwa Ibom State has ordered a full-scale probe into the death of a former Deputy Speaker of the House of Assembly, Obong Okon Uwah, charging security operatives to ensure that those behind the act be brought to book.
In a statement by the Commissioner for Information and Communications, Mr. Aniekan Umanah, at an interactive session with journalists in his office, Akpabio condemned, in strong terms, the unfortunate incident, regretting “that in spite of the accord signed on peaceful and violence-free elections by political parties, some miscreants have decided to trample on the law.”
The governor, who emphasised that nobody’s political ambition was worth the blood of any citizen, saying “violence and political thuggery would not be tolerated, advised against politicising the death of the former lawmaker and All Progressives Congress (APC) House of Assembly candidate, as doing so could jeopardise the investigation by the police.
The Information Commissioner, while fielding questions from reporters, sympathised with the family of the late politician, alongside the people of Ukanafun local government area, on the death of their illustrious son and dismissed alleged claims by the APC that the death was master-minded by the ruling Peoples Democratic (PDP) as baseless, unfounded and mere propaganda.
He urged opposition politicians not to seek political capital from the corpse of a senior citizen of the state.
At the event, which was also attended by two prominent indigenes of Ukanafun, the Commissioner for Lands and Town Planning, Obong Eno Akpan and the Council Chairman, Apostle Sylvester Udokang, Umanah described the ruling PDP as a peaceful party, whose members were committed to the peaceful development and progress of the country.
On their parts, Akpan and Udokang, while also condemning the unfortunate incident, appealed to journalists and members of the public to provide the police with necessary assistance that could help in unraveling those behind the incident.