“I’ve Chosen to Be a Jetsam”: Umo Eno’s Top Media Aide Resigns Over APC Defection

moThe political aftershocks of Governor Umo Eno’s defection from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC) are intensifying, as yet another key figure in his administration has resigned in protest.

Chris Abasi Eyo, the Honorary Special Adviser on Media and Publicity to the Governor, formally stepped down from his position in a letter dated June 16, 2025. His resignation follows Governor Eno’s open directive that any aide unwilling to join him in the APC should exit his government.

Eyo, a respected journalist, former Commissioner for Information, and spokesperson for Eno’s successful 2023 gubernatorial campaign, used poetic but pointed language in his resignation letter, which has since gone viral.

“There has, undoubtedly, been an avalanche of reflections and reactions from various quarters concerning your ‘progressive move’ and the justification you have advanced in its support,” he wrote. “Nonetheless, while the decision is clearly strategic, it is bound to leave in its wake a trail of political jetsams and flotsams. I have chosen to become a jetsam of the very ship I co-built.”

His departure marks the second high-profile resignation in less than a week. Just days earlier, the Akwa Ibom State Commissioner for Information, Ini Ememobong, also resigned in the wake of the governor’s defection, signaling growing unease within the administration.

Governor Eno’s decision to abandon the PDP has sent shockwaves through the South-South geopolitical zone, historically a stronghold for the opposition party. His defection makes him the second sitting governor from the region to jump ship to the APC, following the recent move by Delta State’s Governor.

Eno has attributed his switch to persistent leadership crises within the PDP and a need to align fully with President Bola Tinubu’s administration ahead of the 2027 general elections.

While the governor’s camp frames the defection as a strategic realignment, the steady stream of resignations suggests growing discontent among long-time allies and loyalists. As more aides weigh their future, political observers are watching closely to see whether this marks the beginning of a wider internal rebellion—or the consolidation of new power dynamics in the state.