Technocrat Media
Professor Ben Ayade, governor of Cross River State, has sacked the paramount ruler of Calabar south council, Itam Hogan Itam, for attending a political meeting.
Itam reportedly attended a meeting of the southern senatorial district caucus of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) where Arthur Jarvis was said to have been endorsed as a consensus governorship candidate for the 2023 election, according to the TheCable report.
Donald Duke, an ex-governor of the State presided over the meeting.
The monarch’s attendance at the meeting was said to have violated the Cross River state traditional edict.
In a letter dated May 11 and signed by Adoga Victor, special adviser to the governor on chieftaincy affairs, directed the traditional ruler to immediately return the certificate of recognition issued to him when he assumed the throne to the state’s department of chieftaincy affairs in the governor’s office.
“Following the report of the panel set up by the Cross River State Traditional Rulers Council (CRSTRC) and the approval of His Excellency, you have been removed as the village head, clan head of Ukem, and paramount ruler of Efuts with immediate effect to enable you to go ahead to do your partisan politics,” the letter reads.
“You have therefore ceased to be so recognised and cannot operate as such forthwith.”
Governor Ayade was elected on the platform of the PDP but decamped to the All Progressives Congress (APC). He recently declared interest in running for the office of the president.