The invasion of the Akwa Ibom State Government House by operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) two weeks ago has continued to receive condemnations and disapprovals by organisations, groups and individuals within and outside the state.

In the latest reaction, the ‘Ati Annang,’ a foremost socio-cultural organisation of the Annang Nation in Akwa Ibom State, described the DSS invasion as: “empty campaign of calumny, an affront to the collective dignity of Akwa Ibom people, act of intimidation, day-light robbery on our house, and politically-motivated, tailored to score cheap and undeserved political points.”

A joint statement signed and issued by its international president, Elder Imoh Emeh and secretary, Barr. Ekaette Henry, on behalf of the international executive council, board of trustees, patrons and the entire members of Ati Annang Foundation, stated that it had “watched with dismay, the orchestrated attempts by the Federal Government of Nigeria under the headship of President Muhammadu Buhari, to malign and or discredit the hard-earned reputation of the Akwa Ibom Government, its leaders and people.”

“The invasion of the Akwa Ibom Government House by officers and men of the DSS has left much to behold. We view this action by the DSS as not only an affront to the collective dignity of Akwa Ibom people, but a sign of re-enacting the long forgotten tyrannical and dictatorial, old-fashioned military hegemony,” the organisation stressed.

It further said: “We are inundated daily with many versions of the day-light robbery on our house (the symbol of our unity) by officers and men of a once respected intelligence organisation in the country, the DSS, an unfortunate and irresponsible exercise that has created palpable tension in the nooks and crannies of the state. It is an act of gangsters, taken too far.

“We learnt that the armed men from the Special Squad of the DSS invaded our Government House in commando-like style, ransacked it, intimidated and harassed occupants, claiming to be searching for bombs and documents. We are seriously taken aback by this development as it has opened a new chapter in our democratic experiment. We are unable to comprehend when the Akwa Ibom Government House became a bomb-manufacturing factory that security operatives will abandon fighting the serious and alarming Boko Haram insurgents in Borno and other states in the North East, for.

“Our deductions from this invasion is that some persons in the country have plotted a sinister plot to kidnap and or assassinate our leader and executive governor of our dear state, His Excellency, Mr. Udom Emmanuel, who we, necessitated by his superlative records, administrative pedigree, performance history and antecedents, willingly gave him the mandate to lead us on April 11, 2015.

“We know as a fact the immunity clause for the governor in the constitution, are still in force and therefore find this act ridiculous and a blatant display of impunity and over zealousness by those who want to do ‘eye services’. This action by the DSS is condemnable for it is anti-democratic, anti-people and with selfish intentions.

“It is with heavy hearts that we condemn this rape on democracy in its entirety, and let us warn that no person (no matter how highly placed in this country), organisation or group, should toil with our dignity and integrity. We will resist vehemently, even with the last blood in our veins, any attempt by the present federal government to desecrate our symbol of unity and dignity.

“We support Mr. President’s desire to fight corruption in the country, but this should be done in accordance with the tenets of the constitution and the rule of law, because if the invasion of the Akwa Ibom Government house with ignominy, by agents of the federal government, is part of fighting corruption, then Nigerians should brace up for tyranny.

“We state here without any fear of contradiction, that as the goose that lays the golden eggs in this country, we will not accede, accept, succumb or tolerate from anybody, group or organisation, any action or inaction capable of maligning our collective dignity.”

The Ati Annang went further: “We crave and want to see a Nigeria that is different from that of 1984, during the military junta when the regime used SSS under Rafindadi to unleash terror on innocent Nigerians. To do otherwise would be tantamount to a violation of the provision of the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, which Mr. President swore to protect. But this dastardly act by his agents, the DSS, has given serious cause of concern and has dealt a serious blow on the person and integrity of Mr. President.”

“We demand with utmost immediacy, an unreserved apology to the government and people of Akwa Ibom State by the federal government of Nigeria over the unwholesome incident. We urge Mr. President to toe the path of honour and integrity by sacking the Director General of the DSS, Alhaji Lawal Daura, since his actions and or inactions, are at variance with the principles of democracy and the rule of law, capable of inviting chaos and anarchy into the polity.

“We advise the federal government, under the headship of President Muhammadu Buhari, to invent ways of fixing the myriads of problems in the country, including the threat by Boko Haram insurgents, poor power supply, constant devaluation of the naira, inflation, poor roads network and poverty in the land, rather than embarking on a vain and ignoble role of hunting perceived enemies and states that did not vote for them,” Ati Annang warned.

PDP and another front-line socio-cultural organisation in the state, the Mboho Mkparawa Ibibio, have equally condemned the DSS invasion of the State Government House, describing it as “uncivilised and a rape on democracy.”

Meanwhile, the state Governor, Deacon Udom Emmanuel, has appealed to Akwa Ibomites in particular and Nigerians generally to remain calm over the perceived assault by agents of the DSS on the invasion of Akwa Ibom State Government House, Uyo.

The governor, who was addressing anxious crowd at the Ibom international Airport, Uyo, on his arrival from Abuja, said that the matter was before President Buhari, adding, “Buhari is the president of Nigeria and not the president of a particular political party. We just have to be calm and see how he will go about the matter.”

News Express recalls that operatives of the DSS, on Thursday, September 3, 2015, invaded the Akwa Ibom State Government Lodge, Uyo, without following due process, during which they broke into rooms and guest houses in the Government House, which has also been described as “a rape on the costly democratic rule the country is experiencing.”

•Photo shows Akwa Ibom State Government House.

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