By Elijah Ugani – Calabar
The Chairman of the Cross River State Universal Basic Education Board, Dr. Stephen Odey has stated that he does not want to join issues with all the unnecessary accusations and attack on his person since he indicated interest to replace the late Sen. Rose Oko at the Red Chambers.
Odey made this known to THELUMINENEWS on a telephone call when contacted to clear the air on the document in circulation by the leadership of Northern Cross River State Students World Wide, alleging that Dr. Odey invited them and World Wide Presidents of the five LGAs that made up the Northern Senatorial District, through the Special Assistant to the Governor on Student Affairs, Comr. Abang Ogon but later abandoned them as some were said to have traveled from Jos to Calabar.
Odey who is a front line contender in the People’s Democratic Party PDP, to replace the late Sen. Rose Oko, if given the party ticket will need these students leaders to mobilize support for him is however perturbed that he did not invite any person or group of persons to meet with him when he is aware that INEC has not made any pronouncement about the bye election.
His words “My brother, I don’t want to join issues with all these unnecessary accusations and attacks. That me I invited students to Calabar and I will abandon them, from where?.
” Everybody is just trying to come and extort money because they hear I’m running election. I came back yesterday from my inauguration without any notice, and somebody said there is one SA that is in my office who wants to see me and I told him that I’m not yet ready for any campaign, nothing has been said INEC has not even brought out timetable, he said the SA came with one or two or three persons, and I said call the person who came with those persons, even without my notice and again, I told him I’m not ready for any campaign.
“You people should leave me and I gave him #15,000:00 for launch in my office yesterday. How can you just go and mobilize people and bring to me by force.
“Call the SA and confirm what I’m telling you, whether I have ever told him to bring anybody to me anywhere. There is nobody that can get me in whatever plan they are trying to do, nobody.
“He has been chatting with me that he wants to see me, I now invited him to my office and say look, campaign has not started, cool down, when it is time, I’m the one that will look for all these groups and meet with them, so right now, no decision has been taken, INEC has not even made any pronouncement.
“That he wants to hit the ground running and I said how? What I’m doing now is just private consultation, and I put my hands in my pocket and gave him launch and he left. I didn’t see anybody. So can people come to my office without my invitation or can I invite people to my office without attaining to them?”
When contacted, the Special Assistant on Student’s Affairs to the Governor, Comr. Abang Ogon stated that “that document is fake, I don’t know where it is coming from, it is a very very fat lie. I am doing something to that effect. That document I don’t where it is emanating from. Dr. Just called me.
“I have asked them to drop that thing, what happened is that I had a meeting with Dr. by 2:00pm, I went there and I saw Dr. in his office yesterday, so I don’t know where this is coming from”
When asked whether he went to see Dr. Stephen Odey with NANCRISS and the five LGAs Presidents, Abang said “they came with me, I had a meeting with them and thereafter met with Dr, when I came back I told them”
On his part, the President of Northern Cross River State Students NANCRISS, Comr. Frank Odey stated that “Dr. didn’t ask us to come, someone told us that Dr. wants to see us. We left our various LGAs down to Calabar, you understand my pains. Some people left from far places say Dr. wants to see us. I don’t want to call his name.
“We are trying to resolve it in the middle of where it is now. We say we should give him a listening ear as someone we liked. When we got there at 11:00am, and waited till 3:00pm, and we didn’t see Dr., we were shocked that is it not Dr. that asked us to come? Everybody was blaming me as the NANCRISS Chief that I called them for something I didn’t even understand.
” Though we left, Dr. sent the secretary that he don’t want to see us, we were surprised that why will Dr. send for us and turn round to say, he does not want to see us.
“When we left, the person now sent us a text massage to thank us for coming and that Dr. said we should come back next time not knowing that the person was looking for an opportunity to see Dr. using our own subhead.
“That is why we were angry and wrote that, I have deleted it, I will write another one to that effect, I will send Dr. Odey a text massage”
Below is the extract of the document that was written and shared to some platforms on the alleged insult on Northern Cross River Students and Presidents of the five LGAs in Northern Senatorial District of Cross River State.
The document reads “A group of students berated by Dr. Odey during a visit. The SUBEB Chairman, Cross River State did this during a visit called by himself to see the students leaders of the five Local Government Areas that made up the Northern senatorial district.
“The call which was organized by the SA to the governor on Students
Affairs was honoured by the World Wide presidents including the NANCRiSS World Wide President earlier today in his office, Calabar.
“Today being the 20th of May 2020 a movement was organized by the SA to Governor of Cross River State on students matters for a visit to the the SUBEB chairman, Dr. Stephen Odey. The students representatives of the Northern LGA, through the office of the SA students Affairs, went there.
“As students leaders that are committed to the growth and development of our areas ; and haven got reverence for leaders and elders, we left our various places of residence – Jos, , Ogoja, Yala etc, to honour his invitation. Only to be humiliated and abandoned right in his office.
“One wonders what a leader that has no single courtesy for students. We left our LGAs and other places to listen to him as someone we have respect for.
“Someone that students can look up to as mentor, but it seems he has decided not to be a role model to the students. It shows that he is not willing to be accommodative and receptive to those seeking his attention.
“This happened to us in the company of our wonderful SA Students Affairs who has the interest of the students as his number one priority. An invitation turned out to be and insult to him and the students body.
“This is the very first time an individual would look on students with such disregards. Inviting students from far and near and not giving them audience is an insult, it is a show of lack of capacity and receptive mind that leaders in growing democracies like ours should have.
“We spent six hour of our time waiting for Dr Steven odey to attend to us as planned by him. Sadly, his Secretary after waiting that long came out and told everyone that : “the executive chairman said he is not ready to see any body.”
“Dr. Stephen Odey did this to us not minding where we came from. He kept us stranded in Calabar without food, water or shelter during this period of COVID-19 . We have given respect to a leader who doesn’t even deserved it. We have left him with this words: “Put yourself in this shoe if such is done to you will you be happy?”
