Barely a week after declaring interest to contest for governorship position in the state, officers of the Nigeria Police and State Security Service,SSS, on Monday, barricaded section of the Akwa Ibom Government House, Uyo, and sealed off the office of the Secretary to the State Government headed by Okon Umana.
No reason was given for the development, but it may not be unconnected to his declaration to run in 2015.
DailyPost gathered that the Head of Service,HoS, Cecilia Udoessien, earlier in the day, visited the office of the Permanent Secretary to the SSG, and handed him a redeployment letter to resume in another ministry.
Udoessien then locked the Permanent Secretary’s office, ordering all the staff to leave the office.
Umana may also have been asked by the state Governor, Godswill Akpabio, to resign his appointment or face dismissal.
The guber seat has allegedly been zoned to Akwa Ibom South,Eket,, while the SSG is from Akwa Ibom North East (Uyo). The governor is from Ikot Ekpene zone.
His declaration of interest, which has since caused uneasy calm, is seen as a clear disregard for the zoning formula of the party after Uyo and Akwa Ibom North West (Ikot Ekpene)have had their turn.
Before his disclosure, Umana had been offered the position of the Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission ,NDDC, which he accepted after intense pressure.
Sources say the PDP was taken aback that he still went ahead to declare his intention even with the NDDC job on the table.
Declaring his intention last week, the embattled SSG said: “I have decided to make public my intention to run for the office of Governor of Akwa Ibom State in response to the overwhelming pressure from the good people of the three senatorial districts of the state for me to declare my interest in the race.
“I wish to assure our people that I will run for the office of Governor of Akwa Ibom State come 2015.”
When asked why it took him so long to make a pronouncement on the matter, Umana said: “I had to consult widely on the issue. I was also mindful of the fact that I had a job to perform, which I needed to give my all.
“But as you can see, 2015 is just by the corner and I have to begin the normal consultations, while waiting for the official flag-off of campaigns by my party.”
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