The family of Ubokobong Ime Udoworen, a Youth Leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the Ikot Ekpene Senatorial District (Akwa Ibom North-West) and Special Assistant to Senate President Chief Godswill Akpabio, has petitioned the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun, demanding justice.
Udoworen was severely attacked by hoodlums, allegedly sponsored by party leaders who accused him of diverting Christmas/New Year gifts meant for the party’s youth wing in the zone.
LEADERSHIP learned that the Senate President’s aide, from Nto Okon village in Ukanafun Local Government Area, was targeted in a spontaneous mob action following the distribution of largesse, including bags of rice and cash, across the 10 LGAs of the Senatorial District.
APC Publicity Secretary Barr. OtoAbasi Udo confirmed the incident, saying Udoworen was “mercilessly beaten.” However, he could not ascertain Udoworen’s whereabouts or the state of his remains in the nine days following the incident.
According to his parents, Udoworen was brutally attacked, and his lifeless body was dragged into a car and taken to an unknown destination on January 19, 2024.
“I demand to see my son dead or alive so I can bury him,” his father, Obong Ime Udooworen, a retired police chief and former Chairman of Ukanafun LGA, lamented.
Surv. Akanimo Udom, speaking on behalf of the family at a press conference, said efforts to seek redress have been futile, leading the parents to petition the IGP through the state Police Command headquarters, led by outgoing Commissioner of Police (CP) Olatoye Durosinmi, recently elevated to Assistant Inspector General of Police (AIG), Zone 6, Calabar, Cross River state.
He said, “The attack was targeted at stopping him (Ubokobong) from reporting the matter to Senate President Senator Godswill Akpabio at the APC gathering in Ikot Ekpene. The misguided youths succeeded in preventing the Senate President from getting feedback on the distribution of goods meant for the Senatorial District.”
Ubokobong, averse to injustice and corruption, had protested on his Facebook page against the diversion of items and money meant for the Youths’ Directorate of Ikot Ekpene Senatorial District to cartel members.
“It was no coincidence that Emmanuel Amama, the Special Assistant to the Senate President on Youths Matters, and other APC leaders were at the spot where Ubokobong was attacked. It’s worrisome that a youth leader of a party controlling the Federal Government was attacked publicly, and the party leadership has remained silent,” Udom added.
Seven days after the incident, Ubokobong Ime Udoworen remains missing. The family urges the press to inform the world that Ubokobong belongs to a family and community.
The family demands that event organisers and security organisations, including the Nigeria Police Force, produce Ubokobong Ime Udoworen within 24 hours.
They call on President Bola Tinubu, Governor Umo Eno of Akwa Ibom State, and the Chairman of Ikot Ekpene LGA to fulfil their duty and release Ubokobong, dead or alive.
