Tuesday May 20, 2025 |
The Akwa Ibom State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has quietly released two months’ worth of stipends to its ward and chapter executives, just days after sitippe.com.ng exposed rising discontent over months of unpaid entitlements, exclusion from empowerment schemes, and growing distrust within party ranks.
The payment covering January and February 2025 landed in party officials’ Zenith Bank accounts without fanfare or official explanation, a move widely seen as a direct response to the media scrutiny.
“We just got the alerts. No calls, no breakdown, nothing. That report must have hit a nerve,” a chapter chairman from Eket Senatorial District told our reporter under condition of anonymity.
The unexpected disbursement has temporarily calmed tensions at the grassroots, but not without a trace of skepticism. While some officials welcomed the gesture, others described it as a tactical appeasement to muffle dissent amid rising speculation that Governor Umo Eno is preparing to dump the PDP for the All Progressives Congress (APC).
“The payment was meant to buy silence, not loyalty,” one ward youth leader from Ikot Ekpene said. “People are watching the governor closely. If he moves, the base follows.”
While the two-month payment has stalled immediate unrest, insiders say loyalty remains uncertain, especially with three months of arrears still outstanding and grassroots leaders feeling sidelined in recent political negotiations.
“This isn’t about stipends anymore,” a former PDP stakeholder said. “It’s about power, position, and survival in a shifting landscape.”
Should Governor Eno make the rumored switch to the APC, many believe the PDP’s grassroots structure long seen as its political engine could collapse or be severely hollowed out.
