A pressure group in Cross River State,‘Code 888’, which comprises mostly of youths, has vowed to mobilise over one million votes for the re-election of Governor Ben Ayade in the March 2 polls.
Director General of the group, Mr Maurice Nkong, said this on Friday in Calabar during the flagging off of the Polling Unit 2 Polling Unit (PU2PU) campaign.
Nkong explained that the one million votes would also play a part for the People’s Democratic Party and it presidential candidate to emerge victorious at the polls.
According to him, the objective of the group is to pursue the equitable distribution of power across the 3 Senatorial Districts of the state for political stability.
He added that the essence of the mobilisation was due to Ayade’s massive achievements in the past three and a half years, especially in the areas of industrialisation and job for the youths.
“As we are moving to the field, we have a target for a million vote for Gov. Ayade and every other PDP candidate including the Presidential candidate of the PDP, Atiku Abubakar.
“We are doing Atiku, we are doing Ayade and our target is 1million out of 1.5million votes in Cross River and we have vowed to deliver. (Cross River has 1,527,289 voters for 2019 election, according to INEC). That is why we are going with the polling unit 2 polling unit approach.
“We know that votes cannot be bought with placards on the streets or with billboards, votes can only be bought on the minds of the people and we are packaging the truth together and when we sell the truth, the truth will rise in it.
“So, we are going to every polling unit to tell them what the government has done and why they should vote Ayade and Atiku Abubakar.”
Nkong, who defined the concept of Code 888, said that since 1999, power began in the Southern Senatorial District where Mr Donald Duke did eight years and Sen. Liyel Imoke from Central took the next eight years after Duke.
He added that Ayade, from the Northern Senatorial District, who is pursuing industrialisation agenda in the state in his first tenure, should also be supported to complete his 8 years for equity, fairness and justice.
On his part, Coordinator, PU2PU, Mr Daniel Obo, said they are working to ensure that their vote counts, alleging that the PDP voting strength in Cross River was far better than that of other parties.
“We know that on ‘one man, one vote’ basis, Ayade will win and so we are going to the field to be sure that our vote counts. We are going to the field to be sure that there is no rancour in the course of the elections.
“In the entire voting strength of the State, PDP has the highest voting number and we are going to consolidate on that.
“Ayade has given us an opportunity as youths to be part of his government and we make up 80 per cent of the voters, so we are going out to be sure that this 80 per cent votes appreciate Ayade for getting youths involved in government,’’ he said.
Meanwhile, Senior Special Adviser on Political Matters to Ayade, Dr Peter Ojie, while urging the teeming youths to seize their moments, lauded Code 888 for their orderly organisation and conduct.
Ojie advised them against being used by politicians, saying that the days where young people were used and dumped during elections are gone.