By Asuquo Cletus
The Cross River State Government has denied reports alleging that Governor Bassey Otu plans to distribute Sport Utility Vehicles (SUVs) to newly elected chapter chairmen of the All Progressives Congress across the 18 local government areas of the state.
The government described the claim, which circulated on a Calabar-based blog, as false and misleading.
In a statement issued on Friday, the Chief Press Secretary and Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to the governor, Linus Obogo, said the report suggesting that the governor was considering a vehicle empowerment scheme for the party chairmen was entirely unfounded.
Obogo said the publication was “nothing more than a sensational fabrication detached from reality,” stressing that the governor was neither contemplating nor considering any plan to distribute vehicles to the party officials.
“For the avoidance of doubt, His Excellency is neither contemplating nor considering any vehicle empowerment initiative for the new APC chapter chairmen. The claim is entirely spurious and belongs squarely in the realm of conjectural fiction,” the statement read.
He urged members of the public to disregard the report, describing it as a “hallucinatory tale lacking both factual foundation and official sanction.”
According to him, the governor’s focus remains on policies that will benefit the wider population of the state rather than partisan interests.
Obogo, however, disclosed that the government was set to roll out a broad employment initiative aimed at creating opportunities for residents of the state irrespective of political affiliation.
He said the programme, currently being finalised, would provide employment opportunities for Cross Riverians from different backgrounds in line with the administration’s inclusive governance philosophy.
The governor’s aide added that the administration remained committed to governing for all citizens of Cross River State, noting that governance under Otu was designed to transcend political and sectional lines.
He therefore urged the public to dismiss the claim about the alleged distribution of SUVs to party chairmen, insisting that it was entirely false.
