By Etop Ekanem

THE people of Oron in Akwa Ibom State have called on the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, national leadership to cancel the party’s recent governorship primaries in the state and reconstitute a new panel to repeat the exercise with all aspirants given a level playing field.

The Oron ethnic nationality made the call in Lagos, weekend, during a peaceful protest to the Akwa Ibom State Liaison Office in Lagos following the outcome of the party primaries to submit a protest letter to be transmitted to Governor Godswill Akpabio of the state.

The protesters, who marched through some streets in Victoria Island, Lagos, carried placards with inscriptions such as: “Akpabio remember Oro nation gave you 100 % support,” “Oro Nation has suffered undue oppression,” Oro Nation wants 2015 governorship,” “Akpobio please stop the ethnic crisis in Akwa Ibom State,” “ We say no to imposition,” among others.

In the letter of protest by the President, Oron Union, Lagos Branch, Mrs Felicia Essang-Oludare, the people of Oron, said: “There are verifiable reasons to state that the Oro people have endured extreme marginalisation on the basis of their ethnicity and have suffered extensive deprivation under the present Akwa Ibom State government as constituted.”

They called on the “national leadership to cancel the recently flawed PDP governorship primaries in the state and reconstitute a new panel made up of men and women of integrity who can be trusted to act according to the law to repeat the exercise with all aspirants given a level playing field.

“In the alternative and considering the limitation in time imposed by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, election timetable, a consensus candidate be sourced from the list of Akwa Ibom State aspirants, with special attention to aspirants of Oro extraction.”