SPECIAL Assistant on Media and Chief Press Secretary to Governor Godswill Akpabio of Akwa Ibom State, Usoro Usoro, told ODITA SUNDAY that the state government provided a level-playing atmosphere for all the opposition parties prior to election.During the governorship election, there were skirmishes in some councils. What does this mean for the security in the stateWe had a well laid out security plan. Many people thought Akwa Ibom would be a flash point, which was why the federal and state governments put a solid security measure in place.But the place was relatively peaceful during the elections.What is your assessment of the governorship election in the stateThe election was very peaceful. There were no tensions throughout the election and it goes a long way to show the commitment the state government towards ensuring that peaceful atmosphere thrives in not only Uyo, but also the entire 31 councils in the state.The governor has not only showed his commitment to peace and security, he has also provided an atmosphere for a level-playing field for all the political actors in the state, and he should be commended for that.There were insinuations by the opposition camp of plans to print fake ballot papers for the PDP before the election. What is your reactionWhat we observed is that the opposition elements have been trying to spin all kinds of imaginable allegations, preparing themselves for the courts, because many of them knew that they cannot beat PDP in Akwa Ibom State.There is no doubt that Akwa Ibom is predominantly a PDP state. Our members are too many. There might be a few persons who say they belong to the opposition, but majority of the indigenes of the state belong to PDP, because we are not use to being in the opposition.This so-called opposition knew before now that there was no way they could defeat Governor Godswill Akpabio, because his laudable performance speaks for him.All the ballot papers are there; they could be tendered in court, so I dont think it is possible for an INEC ballot papers to be faked.This is the height of campaign of calumny against our government.What were your fears before the electionsI never had any fears, because from day one, I knew that Akwa Ibom people, the traditional rulers and even our critics would return the governor without much hassles.This is because of his performance, which has been acknowledged across the 31 councils of the state. The villagers and residents of the councils would tell you how elated they feel for the governor.We had no fear at any point in time, because judging by performance, we have performed, and judging also by party might, Akwa Ibom is synonymous with PDP.But as expected in a democracy, you would still see people who would come out to oppose and to contest. We were very comfortable even during the election, because we have done our work and we knew that the majority of the people were for us.What do you think was responsible for the massive turnout of voters in the state, especially in EketIt is simply a testimonial for hardwork. We had a very rigorous campaign, despite the governors popularity. We went to all the local government areas, communities, wards and every unit. We spoke to the people, we made surprise visits to some people in their homes and had a door-to-door campaign everywhere, during which the people told us that their children have benefitted from Akpabios free education scheme and they had no reason not to vote for him.They knew that their votes would count, that was why the voters came out in their numbers to support continuation of good works.
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