Politics

Governor Eno’s ”..experience of living and working within the state ought to give him a first-hand knowledge of the lay of the land, the idiosyncrasies of the people, what bites them and the colour and complexity of their rising expectations as the state is about to mark 36 years of its birth,” Ray Ekpu

By Tennyson Sampson

THE Akwa Ibom State Governor, Pastor Umo Bassey Eno, has been commended for his achievements so far as he marked his first 100 days in office recently.

Gov. Eno, who took over from former Gov. Udom Gabriel Emmanuel, is highly experienced in both the private and public service and has spent most of his working life in Akwa Ibom state.

Although there were a few dissenting voices when Pastor Eno emerged as the preferred candidate of his predecessor Udom Emmanuel, the accomplishments of Gov. Eno have proved that the former was right in his choice for the new leadership of the state.

Fortunately, the giant strides of Gov Eno in his 100 days in office did not escape the prying eyes of a veteran and trailblazer in Journalism, Ray Ekpu.

In his recent publication on the performance of the governor, Ray Ekpu remarked; “Governor Eno is the only one who was running his businesses in Akwa Ibom before he got elected. So you can say that he is home grown. That experience of living and working within the state ought to give him a first-hand knowledge of the lay of the land, the idiosyncrasies of the people, what bites them and the colour and complexity of their rising expectations as the state marks 36 years of its birth.

“The governor has sent two bills to the State House of Assembly which have indicated the way his mind works. One is the establishment of Akwa Ibom Peace Corps, which I believe is intended to sustain the relatively peaceful atmosphere in the state. The other is a bill that is expected to compel Local Government Chairmen to live in their Local Government headquarters. At present, almost all the Local Government chairmen and even their councillors live in Uyo, the state capital and only go to their local government areas when there is an important event or when the governor is visiting.

He recalled that Senator Godswill Akpabio had as a former governor of the state built quarters in all the local government headquarters where the local government chairmen and the security operatives in each LGA should reside. This, according to him, was to ensure that those places are safe for occupation by the chairmen. “Those residential quarters have remained largely unoccupied for years now. This bill will “compel the LGA chairmen to live and work with their people so that they can see, at close range, what gaps exist in the development of those LGAs,” he said.

He also hailed the governor for flagging off the construction or repair of hitherto inaccessible roads in five local government areas of the state as well as spending N2 billion to clear the arrears of gratuities owed by the previous government to primary school teachers in the state.

“The governor has also launched the defining agenda of his government with the acronym ARISE. This constitutes the five-point agenda of his government. These are Agriculture, Rural Development, Infrastructure, Security and Education. A pan Akwa Ibom conference was organised to throw more light on these priority areas of governance. Even though health is not included among these five items. I have noticed that the governor has pushed for the completion and or expansion of some of the cottage hospitals in the state,” he added.

In his commendation, the President of the Federation of Tourism Associations of Nigeria, FTAN, Nkereuwen Onung, described the 100 days in office of Gov. Eno as impactful and re-energising.

Celebrating Gov. Eno for reawakening the business environment in the Akwa Ibom state as well as providing succor to citizens and residents alike, Onung, who doubles as the Senior Special Adviser on Culture and Tourism to the state’s chief executive, described his principal as already giving significance to the term; ‘hitting the ground running,’ by virtue of his achievements within a relatively short period of time.

Specifically, Onung expressed the hope that the quest to reposition the state’s economy and raise the bar in standard business practice is sustained.

However, some observers and critics say that the governor of Akwa ibom state needs to go beyond what appears to be a jamboree in his first 100 days in office.

“He may have warmed many hearts when as a governor-elect on the platform of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP), he was among the first batch of politicians from the state to have visited Godswill Akpabio when he was elected the President of the Senate. It was a good move aimed at cementing the bond of unity among people of different political persuasion in the state.

Meanwhile, BusinessDay report said that some critics are of the view that the governor has yet to confront the rising unemployment among the youths in the state. And recently, thousands of youths stormed Uyo, the state capital, taking almost everyone by surprise as they demanded that the state government should bring about transparency in the management of the derivation fund.

According to the report, it took a reinforcement of the joint task force of the military, police and other security forces to disperse the youths who had also demanded job opportunities from the state government as they marched to the governor’s office.

“Umo Eno needs to have a long term view of the development agenda of the state rather than running around attending burials, weddings and going to different churches every other Sunday,” the reports quoted the critics as saying.

Despite the views expressed by the critics, millions of Akwa Ibom indigenes believe that Gov, Eno is focused and they can only expect the best from “an excellent administration from Akwa ibom’s golden jubilee’s Pastor Umo Eno”.

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September 27, 2023 @ 20:48 GMT|

Tags: Nkereuwen Onung Pastor Umo Bassey Eno Ray Ekpu. Senator Godswill Akpabio Udom Gabriel Emmanuel