Dr. Ekong who served as commissioner for youths and sports
in Godswill Akpabio’s administration said Akpabio’s wife, Unoma holds the
record as the first person to lead a team of officers from DSS to invade the
Akwa Ibom Government House.
“About two years ago, Unoma Akpabio led a team of DSS to
invade a section of the Governors' Office, precisely the SSG's Office, which
sits on the same floor with the Governor's official office, separated by a
space of about 15 meters,” Ekong who currently heads the Department of Economics,
University of Uyo, said in a message he posted on Internet discussion group, Ibom forum.
Think Akwa Ibom!
has found out that the incident recounted by Ekong occurred on July 29, 2013 when
the then Secretary to Akwa Ibom State government, Umana Okon Umana was
forcefully removed from office by Akpabio who was the governor at that time.
Mr. Umana, the All Progressive Congress candidate in the April
11, 2015 Akwa Ibom governorship election, is currently at the election tribunal,
challenging the election of Akpabio’s successor, Udom Emmanuel, as the governor
of Akwa Ibom State.
“He (Umana) was on an official duty in Abuja, the Federal
Capital Territory (FCT) when security operatives stormed his office and ordered
the workers to vacate the premises before sealing it off,” The Nation newspaper had reported the DSS’s raid on Umana’s office.
Ekong added that, “Several items were carted away, doors locked and spurious
announcement made as to the discovery of over $750,000 from a driver (which was
later accepted to be untrue).“What is the difference between the Unoma-led raid and this one, conducted by the same DSS?”
Public opinion remains divided over the DSS’s raid on a
facility – Presidential Lodge – located within the Akwa Ibom Government House, Uyo.
Some people have faulted the raid as being an attack on the immunity of the
Akwa Ibom governor, Mr. Udom Emmanuel, while others say the DSS’s action is in
order if they had security information that illegal arms and foreign currencies
were stockpiled in the facility.
President Muhammadu Buhari’s Senior Special Assistant on
National Assembly Matter, Ita Enang recently defended the DSS as having the legal
right to search anywhere within the country, if they suspected it was
harbouring illegal arms and ammunition.
“Akwa Ibom people must stand up and say the truth that
Government House is not immune to investigation by security agencies,” said Mr.
Enang who is the immediate past senator for Uyo Senatorial District, Akwa Ibom
State.
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