Senator Florence Ita Giwa is angry with former Governor of Cross River State, Donald Duke right now. And the reason is simple. She is unhappy with the derogatory remarks he made about her, a few weeks back. For quite sometime now, both of them had been engaged in an exchange of words over the political situation in Cross River State.
In the build up to the General Elections, both Ita Giwa & Donald Duke had pitched their camps differently. Ita Giwa, a Cross River APC chieftain supported the new Governor who won, whilst Donald Duke, a PDP chieftain was in full support of the PDP candidate who lost.
Politics tore them apart during the last general elections when Ita Giwa and Co came up with what is known as The South Agenda and Donald supported a candidate from another zone of the state. Ita Giwa called on everyone to respect the Zoning formula (rotation).
But Donald does not believe in that. He says he prefers Competence over Zoning. He openly came out to campaign against former governor, Ayade and the APC. And Ita Giwa gave him a big fight. She had to relocate to Calabar to ensure that the APC candidate won. Donald didn’t like that and he was vehemently opposed to it. Senator Florence Ita Giwa has been so angry at Donald Duke’s decision to campaign against the agitation of those from the Southern part of CRS who campaigned that it was their turn to be Governor. Ita Giwa was at the vanguard of the campaign and Donald Duke who is also from the South refused to be part of that narrative. He insisted that he would only support a candidate who can do the job, and not whether he is from the South or not.
According to Ita Giwa, one of the reasons she is unhappy with Donald Duke is because of the negative comments he made about her. She says she has started a new campaign against the rising wave of harrassment by male politicians in Nigeria to intimidate women who have been coming out to run for office or those who have been elected to serve in public office, especially in this current dispensation. She says that despite the fact that all these women are eminently qualified for the positions they get elected to, some of their male counterparts choose to run them down, stereo typing them, and calling them all sorts of names.
Interestingly, both Ita Giwa & Donald Duke had been political associates for years. Both served the Obasanjo’s PDP government in the past. Both had been political office holders. Ita Giwa believes that she has paid her dues and has done well for herself and the women folk and so she won’t take anyone casting aspersions on her or any attempt to rubbish or malign her reputation. She says she is going to go to court to get Donald Duke to apologise to her. She is also starting and championing an advocacy against Verbal Violence against women. She insists that Verbal Violence Against Women must stop forthwith. Women should not be blackmailed into shying away from going into Politics.
During the last campaign, at a rally, Ita Giwa took on those who were against their Back To The South campaign. She said “When Governor Ayade came to campaign for governorship election, he arrived here with his house, with his guards, with all his business scattered all over Nigeria.
“That our son who is going around talking, he arrived here with one brief case, no house. He was sleeping in white house street, somebody mother’s house. They came here and put in place all kind of power line project.”
“Look at Tinapa! Where are we today? But you go around lying to people, today you go to Tinapa, I brought an American here, he went to Tinapa. The man was crying for us. So, I would rather follow even if it’s for the sake of argument, you say that Prince Otu is the product of Ayade, I will rather follow the product of Ayade than follow the product of nonentities.”
“My last message to you is that, there is an Efik man who does not want any other Efik son or daughter to raise his or her head. I am a mother, I will not mention his or her name, because I don’t know what sex he belongs to, but let me leave that for another day.”
Although Ita Giwa didn’t mention any name specifically in her speech, many felt all her talk pointed in a particular direction. Then, Donald Duke also issued a response, titled: “Why I Never Responded To The Aspersions Of Madam Florence Ita Giwa, On My Person “BY DONALD DUKE…
According to him, “in human interactions, 2 factors are sacrosanct, Age and Authority and even more so in the African context. On both counts, Mma Florence is my senior.
“Indeed, if she were family, she would qualify as my late 94 year old mothers immediate junior sister, as none of my aunties are anywhere near her age and I don’t take that lightly. I recall a former Federal Minister, telling me that when he started secondary school at Lagos in 1952, Mma Florence the same year commenced training as an Auxiliary nurse at Aba. Indeed, Mma Floxy as I fondly and respectfully call her, had aspired and contested the Ms. Nigeria pageant, while I was still a foetus, (she contested in April 1961 and I was born much later in September of the same year).”
“Earlier last year, she scoffed at a meeting I held at my residence to harmonize southern aspirants under the platform of the PDP. She was vexed she was not invited. I apologized to her, but made it clear she did not qualify to attend, as 1. She’s not a member of the PDP and two, although she bears the honorific title of “Eka Iban”, in the strict sense, she’s neither Efik nor of southern Cross River origin. (She’s paternally from Atabong in Akwa Ibom State and maternally from Umuahia in Abia State).
That notwithstanding, she has served Cross River State, her State of residence, diligently to the acknowledgment of all, Mma Floxy has also served Nigeria well. At the onset of the Nigerian civil war in 1967, when I was barely 6 years old, she was already serving at the front lines. She was one of the few brave ladies reverentially referred to as the ‘Commando Girls’ for their exploits and services in times of a national crisis. Thereafter, she’s been in the front lines of business and societal struggles, in Abuja, Lagos and of course Cross River State. Her resume in this regard is wholesome.
She has represented Cross River State at the Federal House of Representatives and the Nigerian Senate. She has been a Special Adviser to the President and has diligently carried out several responsibilities most of which remain classified.
Recently, she queried my gender, frankly, I’m pleased she’s not in a position to confirm as that would have been sacrilegious, but I am indeed a proud father of 3 biological children. On the issue of me being indigent prior to being elected governor, I needn’t remind her or anyone my pedigree and that I self sponsored my elections even at that time of political uncertainty.
On a personal note, I stood in as her person of contact when she did liposuction, breast implant and upliftment, so I consider her somewhat of an aunt, a next of kin. Contrarily, Mma Floxy, has been known to be courtesan in her political and business dealings. All said, it will be a betrayal of my upbringing to be abusive or cast aspersions on such a personage. Politics should never be a platform that denigrates the ethos of respect to our elders”.
Also, just before the General elections Donald Duke in a video that went viral, addressed the people of Cross River State. “This Saturday, we the citizens and residents of Cross River State shall have an opportunity to redeem our state, and right the wrong of several years past.”
“This will be our huge task of constructing, repair, and restoration to bring us back on course. It’s not a task for the novice, faint hearted, nor for the untested, it requires one who understands the state, it’s challenges and it’s vast level of opportunities.”
“It is not a time for jesters nor their surrogate. It is not a time for fan fare, ill conceived ideas, it is certainly not the time for I but for We.” “Let no one be in doubt, this election will determine the fate of our state and her people for many years to come.”
“At times like this, we don’t bind it to sentiments except when it produces the best amongst us. For the stakes are too high and the consequences too dire. This Back to the South slogan, is simply just back to the statusquo, back to the Ayade’s with one transitioning from Co-Governor to actual Governor through a surrogate he single handledly picked and has funded thus far. A vote for APC is a vote to another 4 to 8 years of the same horrors of bogus project, another comical administration of course, a filthy environment.
Dear Cross Riverans if you truly believe that Governor Benedict Ayade has done well for our state, then vote for APC as it will be a continuity of government, as stated several ties of the APC candidate.
If however you believe he has failed, as I know you all surely do, then speak to your conscience and vote for the PDP.
My brothers and sisters if you ever believed in me, then I employ you to hear me now, I Donald Duke stand with, for, and by Sandy Oja Onor, for I know he has a requisite exposure at all levels of governance. The humility to listen to the government, the focus to stir the ship of state aright and the capacity to endure the challenges that we face.”
“I urge all of us to please go out on Saturday and in an orderly manner vote for PDP, and protect that vote. With that you will be voting not just Sandy Onor as our next governor, but also voting out the tagged team of Benedict and Frances Ayade.
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