All Progressives Congress (APC) leaders in Cross River State have pledged their full support for their gubernatorial candidate, Senator Bassey Otu, and have therefore rejected the ethnic map held up by some party members because of an alleged unilateral zoning of the governorship.

A party leader, former Sam Bassey, was quoted in some newspapers as saying that he would support the gubernatorial candidate of the opposition People’s Democratic Party (PDP) because of the decision of the ‘APC to give the gubernatorial ticket to another Efik man after former Governor Donald Duke, not to someone from another Biase/Akamkpa axis ethnic group.

But, in an interview in Calabar, the member representing the Biase State constituency in the House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Ogbor Udop, said Senator Otu would have the support of the majority of party members, and warned against playing the ethnic card in the upcoming elections.

He said that while the famous leader is entitled to his opinion, the pending ethnicity was not necessary as the Federal Constituency of Odukpani/Calabar South, where Otu was from, had yet to name a governor. He added that former Governor Duke was from Bakassi/Akpabuyo/Calabar South Federal Constituency and not Odukpani.

He said: “The people openly voted for Senator Otu in the gubernatorial primary in which our leader, Elder Bassey, was a part. Prince Otu hails from Odukpani Local Government Area which has never produced a governor. Ethnicity shouldn’t be an issue here. Instead, we should be talking about federal ridings.