TheHILL | POLITICS | MAY 17.
The performance of Governor Udom Emmanuel in the past seven years of his administration of Akwa Ibom State has been described as woeful and far below people’s expectations.
A legal luminary and astute politician, Barr Jerry Akpan, laments that the enthusiasm of the people and stakeholders, who campaigned massively for the emergence of Mr Emmanuel as governor in 2015 have been virtually dashed.
In a media briefing in Uyo, the Akwa Ibom State capital, Barr Akpan, a former Commissioner for Economic Development and former chairman, Local Government Service Commission, was unequivocal that the current administration has not matched the performance records of the administrations of former Governors Obong Victor Attah and Chief Godswill Akpabio.
“I remember when Arc (Obong) Victor Attah came to govern Akwa Ibom State, Uyo was like a local government headquarters. Attah did his very best, he worked, and he laid foundations. Most of the things we see today are programmes initiated by Obong Victor Attah. He ruled the state from 1999 to 2007 where he handed over to Obong Godswill Akpabio, whom God used him mightily to do things for Akwa Ibom State. In his time, there were massive developments. Developments in the time of Godswill Akpabio were unprecedented. Little wonder he was tagged ‘uncommon transformer’.
“If you come to stomach infrastructure, he was uncommon transformer; if you come to physical infrastructure, he was uncommon transformer; if you come to psychological development, he was uncommon transformer and if you come to educational development, Akpabio was uncommon transformer.
“Look at all the good roads everywhere. He expanded Uyo. Look at the international stadium. Look at that airport – Victor Attah International Airport; he tried his best. He built good and durable roads. He brought in five-star construction companies to take charge of construction in Akwa Ibom State.”
According to him, the ‘shoes’ literally left behind by Akpabio, Emmanuel’s predecessor, who foisted him on the people, have turned out to be too big for him to wear and continue on the same pace of development, hitherto known as uncommon transformation.
While recalling his contributions to Emmanuel’s emergence as governor, Barr Akpan, however, pointed out that he now regrets his actions, revealing that he has since apologized to his people in Mkpat Enin Local Government Area for wooing them to give support to the governor.
“I was at the forefront of his emergence; I was everywhere, following him to everywhere. I was almost stoned for that; there was nothing that was not done to me that time. I kept telling the people that he was coming from the banking sector, that such person, with just an email to anybody in the world, we would be far better than anybody in the world.
“I believed in him, I worked for him and he emerged. We believed that he would turn things around. That hasn’t been done. It is very sad for us to witness the kind of development we have witnessed in this regime of Deacon Udom Gabriel Emmanuel.
He criticised the claims by the administration to have established over 20 industries when checks by eminent citizens of the state have revealed that those firms are privately owned, lamenting that people and communities have lost their lands for projects that are not either owned by the state or built for the common good of all.
Akpan also alleged that there are grounds to suspect serious looting of state funds by the administration, adding that Udom Emmanuel uses the name of God to perpetuate deceit.
“I have had to apologize to my people in Mkpat Enin. Nobody expected this. We may not know whether it was intentional by the former governor to bring someone who will not outshine him. But I think he meant well considering Emmanuel’s profile as placed on the table then,” Akpan said during the interview.
According to him, the present administration in the state has received more funds than the previous regimes and has no excuse whatsoever of not meeting up with the expectations of the people.
