Police Interrogates Factional A’Ibom APC Chairman On Alleged Forgery

The Police on Monday grilled factional chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Akwa Ibom State, Stephen Ntokekpo.

The development was over a petition filed against him by the chairman of State Congress Committee of the party, Banki Sheriff.

Sheriff accused the factional chairman of forging his signature on the result sheet, which Ntokekpo had been parading as result of the State Congress for which he declared himself winner.

National chairman of APC, Abdullahi Adamu, swore in Ntokekpo as chairman of APC in Akwa Ibom against an Abuja Court of Appeal’s order asking members to maintain status quo.

Ntokekpo was sworn in after he secured a judgement of an Abuja Federal High Court, which sacked Mr. Austin Ekanem and declared him winner of the congress.

Ekanem had been declared as winner of the State Congress after pooling about 1,200 votes.

The Congress was conducted at Sheer Grace Arena, Uyo, Akwa Ibom State by the Banki Sheriff’s seven-man Congress panel dispatched for the exercise in October 2021 by Mai Mala Buni Caretaker Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee.

Leaders of the party have been “up in arms” against Ntokekpo who they said never participated in the Congress.

Alarmed by the petition filed since January, a team of intelligence officers swung into action and questioned Ntokekpo on Monday.

He was released on bail and asked not to go far from Abuja and reports for interrogation whenever the police need him.

“The situation is delicate and complicated for the Akwa Ibom State chapter of the ruling party by the failure of the Adamu NWC to obey court orders and their seeming backing of Mr Ntokekpo after withdrawing an appeal which the Buni Caretaker Committee filed against the judgement of the Federal High Court Abuja,” a member of the party explained.

A statement by Solomon Johnny, publicity secretary of the party in Akwa Ibom State, warned aspirants not to deal with the embattled chairman as he has been rendered unfit in law to handle any party business given the subsisting Court order to maintain the Status quo.

It is not very clear which faction of the party will handle the nomination processes billed to commence in no distant time.

Sheriff, who conducted the Congress, vowed he would ensure the outcome of the congress is not upturned by Ntokekpo.

Reacting, Imo Akpan, a member of APC and ally of the embattled chairman, said claims that the document was forged were false.

He said the embattled factional chairman honoured an invitation from the Police and was later released that day.