C’River: IPAC is an advisory body, not an opposition state chairman

By Kelvin Obambon

State Chairman of the Inter-Party Advisory Council in Cross River, Engr. Edet Okon Effiom has explained that IPAC is in fact an advisory body, as its name implies, and should not be wrongly viewed as a mere opposition mechanism.

This is even more so because according to Engr. Actually, IPAC is an umbrella body for both the ruling and opposition parties in the country, as clearly stated in the instrument establishing the body.

The state chairman made this clarification in a statement on Saturday, May 4, 2024, against the backdrop of misrepresentations on social media, where some individuals claimed that effective opposition was lacking in Cross River State, and indirectly blamed IPAC for not leading the charge .

According to the IPAC head, “The Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC) is the umbrella body of all registered political parties in Nigeria. A platform for the promotion and maintenance of a free, fair, credible, transparent, acceptable, inclusive and peaceful electoral environment in Nigeria.

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“It promotes the conduct of political competitions without rancor and emphasizes the values ​​of tolerance, healthy conduct, a spirit of adaptation and teamwork in planning or organizing political competition with a view to strengthening and deepening the country’s nascent democracy. ”

He continued: “The instrument of authority that established the Inter-Party Advisory Council (IPAC) is the 2006 Code of Conduct for Political Parties, which was amended in 2007, 2011, 2013, 2018, 2019 and 2020 respectively as the political parties of the country evolved. to meet the demands of liberal democracy and good governance.”

Effiom claimed that although IPAC was not primarily established as an opposition vehicle, the Council however frowned upon anyone who mocks the opposition parties in the state.

He stressed that “IPAC Cross River State fully supports the leadership style of His Excellency Senator Prince Bassey Edet Otu. So far, we have not seen any reason to oppose his rule because we have only one Cross River State, which is our primary interest in protecting and ensuring peace and stability necessary for development to flourish.

“Speaking of effective opposition, is it until the opposition parties take up arms against the government before they will recognize its effectiveness? Those who put forward this story were in government before and no one heard them talk about effective opposition at the time. All we need in Cross River State at this time is peace and tranquility to enable the Prince Bassey Otu-led government to achieve its “people first” agenda, which resonates well with us at IPAC.

“While we urge opposition parties to be on guard and call out the government of the day where it goes astray, we equally implore all well-meaning Cross Riverians to support this government to succeed because if the government fails, its failure will affect us all,” he said.