Ini Ememobong, commissioner for special duties and Ibom deep seaport, has resigned.
On Friday, Umo Eno, governor of Akwa Ibom, defected from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
He made the switch official after nearly three months of signalling his intention to leave the PDP.
Last month, Eno told his commissioners and other appointees to defect with him when he finally decides to join the APC or resign from his cabinet.
“I am told that some of you say you will not come. You are free not to join me, but you won’t be in my state executive council,” Eno said.
‘I can’t join APC’
In a resignation letter dated June 6 and addressed to Eno, Ememobong said he cannot join the APC.
Ememobong referenced the governor’s directive requiring appointees who refuse to follow him to resign.
“The experience garnered within this period has been very enlightening and I profoundly value the privileged opportunity to have served in your administration,” the letter reads.
“You have directed that any appointee who is unwilling to accompany you to switch from the People’s Democratic Party to the All Progressives Congress, should resign.
“Ipso facto, based on my personal conviction, I will be unable to join the All Progressives Congress. I hereby most respectfully tender my resignation as Honourable Commissioner for Special Duties and Ibom Deep Sea Port and a member of the State Executive Council.”
In a post on Facebook, Ememobong attributed his resolve not to join the APC to his “principles and long-standing opposition” to the party.
Ememobong added that his decision does not affect his relationship with Eno, who calls him brother.
![Rev. Fr. Anthony Odiong, a US-based Nigerian Louisiana Catholic priest, was arrested in Florida on Tuesday for possessing child pornography, according to law authorities. The suspect is reportedly accused of many other cases of sexual assault. The Waco, Texas, Police Department announced in a Facebook post on Tuesday that officers detained Father Anthony Odiong in Ave Maria, Florida, with assistance from the United States Marshals Service. Waco police announced in March that they had received "credible information" about a sexual assault allegedly committed by Odiong in Texas in 2012. “During the subsequent investigation, a case of possession of child pornography was uncovered,” the police said. The priest was apprehended in Florida by the Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force. The Waco Police Department said that he will be extradited to Texas. Odiong had previously served in the Archdiocese of New Orleans before being removed as priest in December of last year due to controversy over homilies in which he claimed, among other things, that the Catholic Church was being taken over by "the gays." At the time, the priest was also accused of abusive behaviour; a Louisiana lady claimed in U.S. bankruptcy court that Odiong had committed both financial and sexual abuse against her. Prior to joining the New Orleans Archdiocese, Odiong served in at least two Texas parishes. On Tuesday, Waco police stated that during their sexual assault investigation, "the presence of other survivors was revealed." “Multiple women have come forward to tell similar experiences as the sexual assault survivor who reported the initial allegation,” the police department said. “Survivors’ experiences ranged from sexual assault and indecent assault, more commonly recognised as groping, and financial abuse, with some survivors experiencing every element of Anthony Odiong’s manipulation.” The police said they “believe there may be more survivors, and we wish to speak with anyone who [has] had similar encounters” with the priest. The Archdiocese of New Orleans issued a brief news release on Tuesday noting Odiong's arrest in Florida. The archdiocese “encourages anyone with any information to contact law enforcement,” the release said.](https://chronicle.ng/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/ezgif-6-4730550ede-450x300.jpg "Odiong: US-based Nigerian Catholic priest convicted over sexual assault")
