Nsima Ekere and 2019: Global Pilot's Global Nonsense

Our attention has been drawn to a spurious story on the front page of an Uyo-based rag sheet claiming to be a
newspaper by name, "Global Pilot".

In the said publication dated Monday, 10th July, 2017, the reporter, apparently on an inspired mission to maliciously traduce Obong Nsima Ekere, the Managing Director of The Niger Delta Development Commission NDDC deliberately threw caution to the wind and seriously indulged himself and the fantasy of his sponsors by wantonly trading in misinformation, half truths, subterfuge and outright falsehood.

This shameless writer bogusly claims to have been a part of a group of reporters who had audience with Obong Nsikak Ekere in Uyo last weekend where Ekere, to use the writer's own words, " succumbed to pressure from within and outside the State by throwing in the towel and bidding farewell to the 2019 Governorship race in Akwa Ibom State."
This misnomer of a newspaper with a rather presumptuous and bogus name, "Global Pilot" ( for there is nothing global about it except perhaps, in infamy) did
not stop at that. Rather to confirm the hatchetman's motive behind the entire cheap effort, then proceeded to
wantonly engage in the usual fake journalist's pastime, attribution of nearly every news claim to anonymous sources.

And at this point we seek the indulgence of our readers to recall a didactic quote on this anonymous sources attribution vice among our many of our journalists by one of Africa's most notable journalists who publishes the London-based NEWS AFRICA magazine, Mr Moffat Ekoriko recently on his Facebook page to wit,
"If news stories wholly based on anonymous sources do not destroy Nigerian Journalism, I do not know what
would." We dare say here that Ekoriko must have had GLOBAL PILOT in mind, when he wrote the above lines.

We say so because apart from an initial attribution of the introductory paragraph to a press briefing by Ekere,
the rest of this reporter's claims were all credited to ghost "sources". For instance, the writer claims sources linked the so-called Ekere's "u-turn to poor press
appraisal of his seven-month old performance" at NDDC.

He also bigmouthedly claims that Akwa Ibom politicians have been endorsing Governor Udom Emmanuel in droves and in the process, spurning Ekere's widespread consultations and contracts. This sick mind of a reporter further opined ( we say opined because what
came out looked more of a personal opinion than a journalistic report) that Ekere attempted to bribe his party for an endorsement.

All these written with ease and facility without any pretense to respect for his reader by way of linking any of the claims to one known credible source.

Yet still, the same unknown sources told him of some strains in relationship between the Acting President and the Honourable Minister of transport all of which in his warped opinion, would return to strike down Ekere's 2019 political fortunes. At a certain point the duplicitous writer completely went berserk with his pen.

And made claims upon claims against Ekere, all oscillating between the ridiculous and the fraudulent, some too trivial and unconnected to deserve any mention here.

Now, Our Take:
a) The claim that Obong Ekere has announced a withdrawal or disclaimed his gubernatorial ambition is totally false. He has never made any declaration to contest the 2019 governorship election. We challenge anyone to come up with a counter claim backed with credible evidence.

On the contrary, it is in the public
domain that we his longstanding supporters who sincerely believe in his intellectual capacity, professional experience and political cum public service track record have occupied the public space for sometime now trying to mobilize and convince others to join us and pressure him to accept to contest the coming 2019 governorship election in Akwa Ibom State.

And it is our believe that ultimately, we shall succeed. So Ekere could not have come to the public to claim or disclaim what he has never said.

When this hack writer seeks to distort the context of Obong Ekere's quote that, " I don't want to talk about that 2019
again", we say yes!, because he Ekere is tired almost to exasperation of repeatedly being asked about this issue of purported ambition for 2019 by both journalists and non- journalists alike, even when he is yet to make a decision on it.

b) Talking about poor press appraisal of Ekere's seven months at NDDC's job is no surprise to us. For one the likes of GLOBAL PILOT are legion in Akwa Ibom State, solely set up for the purpose of defending the status quo and ever ready to cannibalise the image of anyone that their barely disguised patrons perceive rightly or wrongly can mount a credible challenge to their political survival in 2019.

Otherwise, how will anyone explain this
insensate claim against a man who in less than seven months in office is already overhauling the once tepid system of NDDC and positioning it strongly for a robust return to its core mandate. This is beside the massive intervention to breath life into sundry dead infrastructure across the region of which Akwa Ibom State is a prime beneficiary.

c)Yes! We, Ekere's supporters are in the field consulting, and we are not doing so in the dark. And Again, we say yes! Ekere as the Chief Executive at NDDC will have the opportunity to approve contracts, when the time comes.

And such, in his usual insistence on due process will go to only qualified contractors across the entire region and our people in Akwa Ibom will for certain, be among the beneficiaries.

If that is what is giving this reporter's
paymasters nightmares, then they should go and hug transformers.

On the so-called endorsement of Udom by politicians, we say goodluck to you.

The people who have been living witnesses to the daily traffic of decampees from PDP to APC all over the State and up to the hallowed chambers of the Senate and House of Representatives where hitherto PDP elected members from Akwa Ibom State are voting with their feet against
their former party will remain the best judges.

d) On the recent hypocritical and senseless attack of Obong Ekere by Governor Wike of Rivers State , we can
only say that, by you struggling to import and fit it into this episode in spite of their remote relationship can only confirm our suspicion of Esau's skin and Jacob's voice.

You know this is the era of political battles outsourcing in a typical "my-brother-you- talk- so-people-will-
believe-fashion." After all, if Udom was the one attacking Ekere, it would have easily resonated as a routine rivalry of competing political interest with the
people.

e)It is only in the reporters warped mind and the jaundiced imagination of his paymasters that there exists a quarrel between Minister Amaechi and our Acting President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo.

At this juncture, let us conclude by noting that, we surely expect more of this low quality attacks as we slowly progress towards 2019.

Like we his supporters have always said, Ekere is the man to beat, if only he accepts to run. The only known means of winning election by PDP over the years is by wanton manipulation of the
electoral body, INEC and the mindless unleashing of state terror on innocent voters during elections to have their
way.

However, happily in this change era, that possibility is rapidly growing abstract and the fear from that reality is what is manifesting in the form of these dim-witted fictional claims against Ekere.

OBONG INIOBONG JOHN,
EDUEK OFFOT UKWA,
DIRECTOR MEDIA, AKWA IBOM APC YOUTH CONGRESS,
DG,ONE FRONTIERS.