By Charles Igbo
Governor Emmanuel Udom, PDP, of Akwa Ibom State should assemble those who hired the mammoth crowd he addressed at a PDP rally and give them the acidic side of his tongue.
The Governor was thoroughly embarrassed by the slap on the face which greeted him at the Campaign Rally. It is a surprise he was not frozen in shock, or collapsed by the disgrace.
It is either the crowd was made up of a bunch of illiterates who hardly understood what the Governor was asking them, or they deliberately wanted to embarrass the Governor.
Whatever, it was a hostile crowd.
Dressed in his full PDP ”regalia”, and a cowboy hat to boot, the Governor reeled out the usual – what the Party has done for them, and what the Party plans to do for them, and why they should vote PDP from top to bottom.
Nobody knows what pushed him to ask the questions he asked. But, having had their attention for about 15 minutes, and feeling comfortable, he wanted to end the rally on a high note.
Big mistake.
He had the wrong crowd. The mammoth crowd did not boo at him. Perhaps that would have been better. The thousands of people gathered decided to tell him, with one voice, that he just wasted his time speaking to them. And they did so in an unmistakable manner.
As Emmanuel finished speaking, he asked them questions to which he expected positive answers.
He asked them to raise their PVCs if they had them on them. A few raised theirs.
Then, Emmanuel: “Will you vote for Atiku( the PDP Presidential Candidate)?
In response, the crowd roared “No.”
Perhaps, he thought they did not hear him. So, he asked again: “Will you vote for PDP?” Again a resounding “No”
“Will you vote for prosperity”, again “No”
“Will you vote for Health?” Same answer. And it was the same answer they gave to three more questions the Governor asked them, including if they would vote for security.
It has been established that Party stalwarts, especially, Local Government and/or Chairmen hire crowds to such events.
If that was the case here, PDP should ask those given the money to return every kobo of the millions of Naira. The embarrassment was too much. “They can’t be paid”, noted a Party stalwart, “for embarrassing the Governor.”
