The All Progressives Congress (APC) in Akwa Ibom says Etekamba Umoren, the state’s resident electoral commissioner (REC), is not partisan.
Umoren, an ally to Senate President Godswill Akpabio, was among 10 Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) RECs appointed by President Bola Tinubu and confirmed by the upper legislative chamber.
In 2015, Umoren, ex-secretary to the state government (SSG) of Akwa Ibom, was indicted for alleged financial malpractice when Akpabio was grilled by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
When the former SSG was appointed by Tinubu as Akwa Ibom REC, there were concerns that he was partisan following a photograph that surfaced online where he was seen in an APC campaign regalia.
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Addressing a press conference in Abuja on Sunday, Eseme Eyiboh, a chieftain of the party in the state, said wearing APC’s regalia is not enough to say Umoren is a member of the party.
“Etekamba Umoren is a bureaucrat. He served in Akwa Ibom state as a permanent secretary. He is a career civil servant. He was chief of staff and then SSG – not to serve a political party but a government,” he said.
“I have also seen that he wore the uniform of APC. The law is very strict and there are a plethora of supreme court cases on who is a member of a political party.
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“The member of a political party must be not just a card-carrying member, he must be in financial standing with that political party. He must be among the registered members and prescription has nothing to do with uniform or mode of dressing.
“For you to take ordinary mode of dressing – the member of an organisation is not determined by their clothing but by membership of that organisation. Every organisation has its criteria for its membership.
“It is not true, it is speculating that Etekamba Umoren is a member of the APC. That is not correct.”
Eyiboh added that it is possible that the photograph in circulation was generated by artificial intelligence.
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