Edith CHUKU
The ongoing screening exercise by the All Progressives Congress APC, has become a major setback for most aspirants seeking elective positions in the forthcoming 2027 general elections.
The outcome of the process has been surprising as many aspirants were not cleared by the party, while those from a particular camp seem to be having it all.
For instance, the race for the Cross River Central Senatorial ticket took a dramatic twist on Monday as APC shunned the governor, Senator Bassey Otu’s preferred candidate, Oden Ewa.
Ewa, who is the current commissioner for special duties under the present administration, suffered a last-minute setback in the screening process, despite having the full support of the governor.
Midway into the, the party’s primary election on Monday, they came up with a shocking announcement that Ewa had not been cleared.
Instead, the party cleared the sitting senator representing the district, Senator Eteng Jones Williams, a move that has altered the political calculations within the governor’s camp.
Meanwhile, last night, adversaries of Jones had staged celebrations at his hometown in Mkpani over speculation that he had lost the party’s support and would be edged out of the race.
However, midway into the political contest, the party delivered the unexpected verdict, clearing the sitting senator while leaving Ewa out of the race.
This disqualification shocker isn’t any different with what happened in other states across the federation, especially in Rivers State, where aspirants of the FCT minister were all cleared while those of the sitting governor, Siminalayi Fubara, faced rejection.
