Senate confirms known APC member, 6 others as INEC RECs

 

Senate confirms known APC member, 6 others as INEC RECs

 

The Senate has confirmed the appointment of Mr Etekamba Umoren, a known member of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) representing Akwa Ibom State.

 

Mr Umoren is a member of the APC and a long-time ally of the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio.

 

He served as the Chief of Staff at the Akwa Ibom State Government House when Mr Akpabio governed the state between 2007 and 2014.

Mr Akpabio also nominated him to serve as the Secretary to the State Government (SSG) under his successor, Udom Emmanuel, then an ally of Mr Akpabio. Mr Umoren was only sacked in 2018 following a fallout between Messrs Akpabio and Emmanuel, which also led to the removal of other key allies in the state executive council.

 

In August 2018, during a welcome rally for Mr Akpabio in Uyo, Mr Umoren and other sacked members of Mr Emmanuel’s state executive council embraced the All Progressives Congress (APC).

 

In what could best be described as an induction into the party, Mr Umoren accepted a broom, an emblem of the APC, from Mr Akpabio on stage and chanted APC through the speakers.

 

“Akwa Ibom, you are in safe hands,” he told the audience as he shook the broom vigorously.

 

Other nominees confirmed by the Senate include; Mr Isha Ehimeakne (Edo); Barr. Oluwatoyin Babalola (Ekiti0; Mr Abubakar Ahmed (Gombe0; Shehu Wahab (Kwara); Aminu Idris (Nasarawa) and Mohammed Abubakar Sadiq (Niger).

 

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had sent 10 nominees for screening to the Senate last week. Three nominees were not present for screening. No reason was given for their absence at the screening.