The Cross River state government’s plan to privatise 46 industries has met stiff resistance as the main opposition party, the People’s Democratic party (PDP), said it would mobilize the people against it.
The newly sworn in chairman of the party, Vena Ikem, said this Wednesday shortly after his inauguration alongside 38 others to pilot the affairs of the party.
Recall that the government, through its privatization council chairman, John Odo, had Tuesday set up a 7-man technical committee to ensure that 46 industries were privatised.
But the new PDP chairman said Governor Ayade should prepare for a showdown as Cross Rivers people would rise against the plan. He accused the governor of seeking to use cronies to buy back the said industries.
He said: “We are going to mobilise the people against the plan of Governor Ayade to privatise to himself all industries even though none of them is working.
“He used the state resources and deceived the people that he was building this and that now few months for him to leave, he wants to sell them to himself. We will not allow that.
“We are sounding a note of warning that we are watching him closely and we will mobilise every resources at our disposal to stop any attempt to privatise any industry, working or not working.”
Ikem, who incidentally is from the same Obudu local government area of the state like Gov Ayade, vowed to give the state government a good run for its money in 2023 to ensure the PDP takes back Government House.
Promising to eschew imposition, the new chairman said, “We will do everything to further democratise the party so that no candidate is imposed on the people and we will provide a level playing field for everyone.”
Earlier, former governor Donald Duke advised the state executive committee of the PDP to grow the party, adding that the Ogoja/Yala by-election for the vacant House of Representatives would be the litmus test for the Ikem-led executive committee.
