Otu Bassey Edet

APC✓ WON

258,619 votes (57.23%)

Election2023 Gubernatorial Elections →

RaceCross River race →

StateCross River →

PartyAll Progressives Congress (APC) →

Born18 October 1959 (age 66)

ReligionChristianity

GenderMale

EducationUniversity of Calabar

BirthplaceCalabar

OccupationPolitician

QualificationDUKE TOWN PRIMARY SCHOOL, CALABAR SALVATION ARMY SECONDARY SCHOOL UNIVERSITY OF CALABAR

Running MateOdey Peter Agbe

View full political career →

Otu Bassey Edet is a Nigerian politician who contested the 2023 Gubernatorial Elections as the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate in Cross River. They won with 259K votes (57.23%).

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Career This race Biography Policies13 News15

Career

2027APCGovernorship ElectionNominee→

2023APCGovernorship Election258,619 votes · 57.2%Won

See Otu Bassey Edet’s full career →

In this race · 2023 Gubernatorial ElectionsAll candidates →

Coco-Bassey Joseph

YPP

Effiom Edet

APP

Effiong Effa Nyong

ADC

Ekeng Effiom Effiom

Ibiang Marikana Stanley

ADP

Obu Ogar

Biography

Bassey Edet Otu (born 18 October 1959), popularly known as Sweet Prince, is a Nigerian politician and the current governor of Cross River State, Southern Nigeria.

He served as a Senator for Cross River South from 2011 to 2015 and a Representative of Calabar Municipal/Odukpani constituency of Cross River State in the House of Representatives from 2003 to 2011.

Prince Bassey Edet Otu was born on 18 October 1959 to the family of Late Eld. & Mrs. Edet Okon Otu of Adiabo in Odukpani Local Government Area of Cross River State. He grew up in his home city of Calabar and in Jos, Plateau State, where his father had been assigned to the mission of the Church of Scotland.

He obtained a bachelor's degree from the Faculty of Social Sciences at the University of Calabar.

Before entering politics, he was engaged in banking and the petroleum sector. He is also involved in farming.

Otu was elected a Member of the House of Representatives in April 2003 to represent Calabar Municipality/Odukpani Federal Constituency and re-elected in April 2007. During this period (2003–2011), he was Chairman, House Committee on Petroleum (Upstream), Vice Chairman, House Committee on National Population, and a member of committees on Power, Ministry of Niger Delta, Inter-Parliamentary Relations, Inter-Intra Party Relations, Environment, Water Resources, and Defense.

In a 2007 interview, he stated that the ruling by an international court that the Bakassi peninsula belonged to Cameroon was incorrect, but emphasized the need to resettle displaced relatives of Nigerians and move forward.

Otu was Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Petroleum Resources (Upstream). In 2011, he was elected as Senator representing Cross River Southern Senatorial District. Upon arrival in the Senate, he became Chairman, Senate Committee on Finance and later Chairman, Senate Committee on Banking and other Financial Institutions; he was also a member of the Committee on Navy, Power, Petroleum, and Water Resources.

It is believed that he had a significant impact on the citizens of Cross River.

In 2018, Otu was appointed to the board of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) by President Muhammadu Buhari.

Following his inaugural speech in May 2023, Otu claims he joined politics for the service of humanity.

Party Positions

Policy positions from the All Progressives Congress (APC) party manifesto.

Security & Defense

Enhances compensation, medical care, housing support, scholarships, stipends, and health insurance for military personnel injured in duty and their families.

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Governance & Reform

Commits to amending Nigeria’s governance architecture through constitutional review and collaboration with the National Assembly and State Governments to grant States greater autonomy over critical matters like crime prevention, prisons, stamp duties, and taxation.

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Economy & Trade

Reforms the Federal Budgetary Methodology to move away from oil revenue dependence and base spending on projected growth, establishing an inflationary ceiling to optimize fiscal policy without causing excessive inflation.

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Infrastructure

Launches a National Infrastructure Campaign to modernize national infrastructure by hiring millions of unemployed Nigerians through the fiscal flexibility gained from reforming budgetary methodology.

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Agriculture

Will encourage local farmers to form farm cooperatives, enabling them to pool resources for modern farming equipment, fertiliser, and access priority government agricultural assistance programs (extension services), with tax breaks and credits.

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Environment & Climate

Will **reduce Nigeria’s gas flaring** by removing it from the top 10 countries with highest flares, aiming to maximize sector benefits while eliminating environmental harm.

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Anti-corruption

Curb reliance on imported goods via luxury taxes, higher tariffs, and processing fees while incentivizing local manufacturing with tax credits/rebates.

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Enterprise grant support

Provides tax credits, holidays, and reduced interest rate loans for businesses that hire a specified percentage of youth in their workforce and offer on-the-job training.

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Energy

Will increase Nigeria’s domestic crude oil production to **2.6 million barrels per day by 2027** and **4 million barrels per day by 2030**, while implementing a Special Enforcement and Monitoring Unit to deter theft, vandalism, and pipeline breaches using drones and aerial surveillance.

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Education

Introduces a new management system for federally funded primary and secondary schools via Boards of Education, reserving community representation in decision-making.

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Healthcare

Will strengthen primary healthcare infrastructure with incentive schemes, counterpart funding programs, and grassroots preventative care (vaccinations, cancer screening, blood pressure monitoring) in collaboration with state/local governments.

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Technology & Digital

Establishment of an advisory committee to review and reform regulatory frameworks for blockchain technology and virtual asset services.

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Reliefs and scholarships

Provides **conditional income support** to very poor households, tied to human capital development goals like high-school attendance, healthcare, and nutrition.

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