The political atmosphere in Cross River North has taken a sharper turn as Senator Jarigbe Agom Jarigbe has issued a strong response to former Governor Ben Ayade, accusing him of distorting facts, misleading the public, and attempting to rewrite the political history of the Northern Senatorial District.
In a statement titled “Senator Ayade Distorts Facts: We Put the Facts Right,” Senator Jarigbe dismissed Ayade’s claims of political strength and commitment to the All Progressives Congress, APC, insisting that the former governor had lost touch with the people of Cross River North.
Jarigbe accused Ayade of hypocrisy, particularly over his alleged claim of love for Muslims. According to him, Ayade once criticized him for wearing Hausa traditional attire and described the outfit as a sign of “split personality.”
“A man who admonished me for dressing in Hausa traditional attire and referred to my Hausa outfit as a display of split personality cannot claim to be a lover of Muslims more than me,” Jarigbe stated.
He further alleged that Ayade had shown resentment towards the Muslim community, adding that Muslims in Cross River North voted massively for him against the former governor.
The senator also challenged Ayade’s political relevance, stressing that while he was still in the PDP, his political structure defeated Ayade in Cross River North.
According to Jarigbe, his camp won the Senate seat, two House of Representatives seats, and four House of Assembly seats, while Ayade, then a sitting governor, only managed to secure the House of Assembly seat in his immediate state constituency.
“We are not political weaklings. We come with votes. We have votes for the party because we have worked for our people,” he declared.
Jarigbe also faulted Ayade’s claim that he worked for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in the 2023 general election. He argued that Ayade contested the APC presidential primary against Tinubu, lost, refused to step down, and later failed to deliver Cross River State to the APC during the presidential election.
“Senator Ayade lied when he said he worked for Mr President in 2023. He took part in the presidential primary election and lost woefully to PBAT. In the general election, he lost Cross River State to the opposition. Why is he lying?” Jarigbe asked.
On Ayade’s movement from the PDP to the APC, Jarigbe claimed that the former governor only defected after losing control of the PDP structure in the state. He said Ayade did not join APC out of genuine love for the party but because he felt politically displaced.
“Let it be on record that Senator Ayade only left PDP for APC after we collected the PDP structure from him. He felt empty, displaced, and dejected. He did not leave for the love of APC,” he said.
The senator further accused the former governor of poor governance, saying Ayade should not be rewarded with another opportunity after, in his words, “emptying the treasury” and denying the people effective representation.
Jarigbe maintained that the people of Cross River North have rejected Ayade and commended the APC leadership for refusing to impose him on the people.
He also took a swipe at Ayade for allegedly making a public post and blocking comments, daring him to open the comment section and allow the public to freely express themselves.
“Senator Ayade just made a post and blocked people from commenting. I dare him to unblock and see the comments from the public,” Jarigbe said.
Speaking on zoning, Senator Jarigbe dismissed claims that the Cross River North senatorial seat had ever been zoned to Ogoja, insisting that he did not become senator through zoning.
“There has never been zoning in the senatorial seat of Cross River North. When was the Senate seat zoned to Ogoja? Did I get to the Senate through zoning? No,” he stated.
Jarigbe advised Ayade to join hands with the leadership of the state and work for the APC, rather than, according to him, building unrealistic political expectations.
He concluded by reaffirming his loyalty to the APC and its leadership, while insisting that no amount of embellishment can turn falsehood into truth.
“No matter how you embellish a lie, it will not become the truth,” Senator Jarigbe declared.
