Godswil Akpabio, the latest bride of the All Progressives Congress (APC), says he dumped the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) because it lacked a “reward system”.
PDP gave Akpabio the platform to become a three-time Commissioner in Akwa Ibom State, a two-time Governor of the state, and a Senator, eventually rising to become the Senate Minority Leader.
However, he left on Wednesday, saying those who toiled to build the party were not rewarded, rather those who destroyed it and returned for selfish political reasons.SEE ALSO
“The problem with my erstwhile party, the PDP, is that they didn’t have a reward system. For some of us who had stayed with the party, toiled with the party, built the party, there was no reward system at all,” Akpabio said on Channels TV’s Politics today.
“I can’t imagine people who destroyed the party in 2015 to come back to the party, then you roll out the drums, so much pomp and pageantry, and then you now celebrate them as heroes of democracy and not destroyers of the PDP.
“The most shocking thing is that one of them was named the National Leader of the party, when there’s a former President of the country in the party, in the person of Dr. Goodluck Jonathan, when there’s a former Vice President of the country, in the person of Alhaji Atiku Abubaka, when there’s a former Vice President of the country, in the person of Alhaji Namadi Sambo.
“All these people are fit to become leaders of the party. The longest-serving Senate President, Senator David Mark, is also in that party, and he was not referred to as leader of the party.
“My colleague the Senate President who unfortunately was one of those who joined to destroy the PDP in 2015 just attended the NEC meeting and out of excitement the same National Chairman rolled out the drums and announced him National Leader of the party.
“Having been the Senate Minority Leader, and by implication the Chairman of the PDP caucus in the National Assembly, I thought there was no more room for me, since we now have a National Leader who has just defected. And PDP has had that kind of reputation in the past.”
