A former Governor of Cross River State, Prof Ben Ayade, has lamented that the All Progressives Congress (APC) has not treated him fairly despite being the first governor from the South-South region to lead his State into the ruling party.
Ayade, who spoke in a media interview, said he sacrificed heavily to align Cross River with the APC at a time when it was politically risky to do so, stressing that he bears “scars” from that battle which have yet to heal
Ayade explained that his decision to defect from the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) to the APC in 2021 was guided by foresight and political analysis. “I could see tomorrow,” he declared.
“It was clear that Nigeria was heading towards a phase where the opposition would have little space. The crystal ball was clear.”
According to him, the decision to “socket to the center” was not impulsive but a strategic move to position Cross River for relevance and federal attention. “It required a dialectical analysis of the situation,” he said. “I knew what to do to connect properly to the center.”