Former Governor of Cross River State, Ben Ayade, has decried President Bola Tinubu‘s order to withdraw his ambition for the Cross River North Senate seat in the 2027 general elections.
Naijaonpoint reports that Ayade, in a statement issued on Monday, recalled being invited to Abuja for a high-level national consultation with the Presidency.
According to Ayade, President Tinubu, during the meeting, directed him to shelve the senatorial bid, and he yielded to the request with so much pain and agony.
He said, “Recall I was invited to return to Abuja for a high-level national consultation with the Presidency.
“From the sequence of events that followed my return, Mr. President wants me to withhold my Senate ambition. I yield to his request even as I pour tears of ill treatment and agony.”
Speaking further, Ayade highlighted his role as the first Governor on the All Progressives Congress (APC) platform to build the South-South region and delivered nearly 40,000 votes more than the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for Tinubu in the 2023 presidential election.
He stressed, “I trust that Mr. President may not be aware that the people who turned our churches against Ayade and all of us in APC over the Muslim-Muslim ticket and accused us of islamisation of Cross River State are the beneficiaries of his instruction.
“Mr. President may recall that I was the first APC Governor in the whole of South-South Nigeria that built the new APC that we enjoy today.
“I worked assiduously for the party and delivered almost 40,000 votes above PDP in the Presidential election, first in the history of our state.”
Ayade emphasised that despite these efforts, he has been sidelined for over three years without any federal appointment.
He appealed to the President to revisit the directive, arguing that his federal constituency has only enjoyed senatorial representation for eight years, while his main opponent has had 20 years.
