The All Progressives Congress Media Network has absolved the Senate President, Senator Godswill Akpabio, of smear campaigns in the media against former Governor Udom Emmanuel.
It faulted the allegation of the Peoples Democratic Party that Akpabio is the sponsor of the media report of Emmanuel’s arrest by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) last week.
The national publicity secretary of the PDP, Debo Ologunagba, had in a press release on Friday accused the Senate President of orchestrating smear media campaigns against the immediate past governor of the state in respect of his invitation by the anti-graft agency.
The Director General of the APC Media Network, Otuekong Iniobong John, in a press statement on Saturday said that Akpabio has no hand in Emmanuel’s invitation by the EFCC and the media frenzy that followed.
The statement read in parts:
“The All Progressives Congress Media Network has been compelled to address the defamatory allegations made by the factional National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Debo Ologunagba, against the Senate President, Senator Godswill Akpabio.
“We note that the factional National Publicity Secretary of the PDP failed to deny the fact that former Governor Udom Emmanuel was indeed invited by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
“Mr. Emmanuel himself has acknowledged honouring the EFCC’s invitation, albeit without clarifying the purpose behind it.
“The primary mandate of the EFCC is to investigate and prosecute economic and financial crimes in the country. Therefore, the reports regarding Mr. Emmanuel’s invitation by the EFCC cannot be attributed to a smear campaign orchestrated by Senator Akpabio or any other individual.
“We categorically assert that Senator Godswill Akpabio, the President of the Senate, has no business disseminating the news of the arrest/invitation of the former Governor Udom Emmanuel.
“As the Senate President, he is focused on overseeing the operations of the National Assembly and has no interest in engaging in trivial matters.”
The APC group said that it was sure that the national spokesperson for the PDP was acting on the script of the Akwa Ibom state government.
The statement further said:
“It is unfortunate that the factional National Publicity Secretary of the PDP could condescend to making baseless and malicious statements. But we know that the press release by the factional National Publicity Secretary of the PDP was conceived and sponsored by the PDP government in Akwa Ibom State.
“Some tribal bigots in the state have been propagating false propaganda that Senator Akpabio was behind the petition against ex-governor Udom Emmanuel. However, a PDP elder, Rt. Hon. Chief Ndueso Essien, has stated that Senator Akpabio was not involved in the petition.
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“We challenge the PDP’s factional National Publicity Secretary to deny the fact that Mr. Udom Emmanuel was actually invited/arrested by the EFCC before accusing others of being behind the spreading of the news.
“We also ask if Senator Godswill Akpabio was the mastermind behind the arrest of former Governors Yahaya Bello and Ifeanyi Okowa, among others who have been investigated and prosecuted by the EFCC. This highlights the naivety, cluelessness, and pettiness of the factional National Publicity Secretary of the PDP.
“The APC Media Network condemns the PDP’s shameless attempt to manipulate public opinion and tarnish Senator Akpabio’s reputation. Their desperate efforts to discredit him will not distract from their own glaring failures.
“We urge the public to see through this cheap propaganda and hold the PDP accountable for their actions.”
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