Crisis rocked Akwa Ibom State of Assembly following the report that Governor Godswill Akpabio, personally supervised the beating of a lawmaker he suspected to be politically opposed to him and his loyalists.

According to the report, Akpabio beamed with smile as his loyalists dealt with Onofiok Luke, chairman of the House Committee on Finance and Appropriations, who was accused of being rude to the governor after he rose in defense of another lawmaker accused of challenging a loyalist of the governor at a caucus meeting held two days earlier.

The incident happened November 2 at a funeral service in honour of the mother-in-law of a state lawmaker, Gabriel Tobi, held in Etim Ekpo local government area of the state.

The report further stated that Mr. Akpabio had at the event summoned some lawmakers and tongue-lashed them for doing nothing after Victor Udofia, a lawmaker representing Ikono/Ini state Constituency, allegedly attacked his loyalist, Aniekan Akpan, a member representing  Ukanafun state constituency, at a caucus meeting of the House.

Witnesses say as the governor fumed and abused Mr. Udofia, who was not at the event, an equally furious Mr. Luke rose in defence of his colleague, telling the governor to abandon his divide-and-rule tactics in the interest of the state.

The governor is said to had directed the speaker of the Assembly, Sam Ikon, to immediately activate a  process that would lead to the suspension of Mr. Udofia from the House. But Mr. Luke reportedly shot back, saying Mr. Udofia committed no offence and that any move to punish him would be resisted.

Angered by Mr. Luke’s audacity, the governor’s loyalist, Messrs Ekon and Ntuen descended on him, hitting and punching him repeatedly while Mr. Akpabio simply looked on, our sources said.

The fight was said to have ended after Paul Ekpo, the state Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, intervened.

However, “The Akwa state House of Assembly is now divided among those from the governor’s minority Annang ethnic group and those from the majority Ibibio ethnic group,” the report said.