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Tribunal’s verdict: Elders back Emmanuel

Governor Udom Emmanuel of Akwa-Ibom State has been advised not to be deterred by the verdict of the Election Petition Tribunal but should remain resolute in the implementation of his administration’s industrial blueprint as it seeks to better the lot of every Akwa-Ibom person.

Elders of the state under the aegis of Akwa-Ibom State Elders’ Consultative Forum gave the advice when they paid a solidarity visit to the governor.

Briefing reporters after the visit, the Leader of the delegation and former Minister of Lands and Housing, Chief Ndueso Essien, spoke of the verdict as unnecessary distraction.

He said the opposition party cannot secure victory in the state, given the fact that the governorship position was unanimously zoned to Eket Senatorial District. He said that the entire people of the state were anxiously waiting for the zone to produce a governor.

“We are very certain that the opposition party cannot win election in this state, particularly on the basis that it is the turn of Eket Senatorial District to produce the Governor. It would amount to the highest level of injustice if the district is denied this opportunity as the district has been anxiously waiting since the creation of the state,” the elder statesman noted.

Chief Essien pointed out that the tribunal left the people with a confused verdict as proceedings and analysis during the hearing did not correspond with the verdict.

He was emphatic that the elders are in total support of the Peoples Democratic Party’s decision to proceed on appeal, stressing that they have sufficiently mobilised themselves for election if at all a rerun would be the last resort.

November 13, 2015
Emmanuel, PDP appeal tribunal’s verdict

•Fault election cancellation in 18 councils

Akwa Ibom State Governor Udom Emmanuel and his party, the People Democratic Party (PDP), have appealed the judgment of the Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal, which ordered a fresh election in 18 of the 31 local government areas.

Emmanuel and PDP, in their separate appeals, filed on Friday before the Court of Appeal in Abuja, prayed the Appellate Court to set aside part of the tribunal’s judgment, where it voided elections in the 18 local government areas and ordered a rerun.

The appellants urged the court to uphold the results of the governorship election conducted on April 11 in the affected local government areas.

The PDP raised 20 grounds of appeal; Emamnuel raised two grounds. They each relied on the grounds raised in urging the court to uphold the outcome of the results declared by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) before the tribunal’s verdict.

They faulted the tribunal’s judgment on the grounds that the petitioners – Umana Okon Umana, of the All Progressives Congress (APC) – did not plead any fact to support his allegation that voters in the 18 local government areas were disenfranchised.

The governor and PDP argued that the petitioners did not call evidence to support their claims that voters in the affected councils were disenfranchised.

He said: “The petitioners did not, in their petition, plead the facts of voters’ disenfranchisement in the 18 councils.

“The number and details of the voters that were purportedly disenfranchised and the specific facts and circumstances of their said disenfranchisement were not pleaded in the petition.

“There was no relief in the petitioners’ petition that supported the orders of the tribunal nullifying the election results in the 18 councils andý ordering a rerun thereat on the grounds that voters in the said councils were allegedly disenfranchised during the election.”

November 2, 2015
Emmanuel’s wife’s love for the poor

In fulfilment of her promise to turn the fortunes of the less-privileged around and show love to the vulnerable in the state, the Wife of Akwa-Ibom State Governor and initiator of Family Empowerment and Youth Reorientation Programme (FEYReP), Mrs. Martha Udom Emmanuel, visited destitute homes, children’s homes and prisons in the state where she made donations as well as encouraged the inmates.

At the Lutheran Children’s Home, Ikot Otong Nsit, Nsit Ibom Local Government Area and the St. Anthony’s Destitute Center, Uruan Street Uyo, she donated food and relief materials to the inmates.

Represented by the wife of the Speaker, Akwa-Ibom State House of Assembly, Mr. Ememobong Uko, the Mrs Emmanuel urged the inmates of the various care centres to imbibe the dakkada spirit of believing in their greatness, being obedient to their care givers, respect for the elders as well as fear and honour God in order to become good and worthy citizens.

Mrs. Emmanuel also advised the inmates to be of good behaviour, believe in God, cultivate the ‘I can do mentality’ and look into the future with great hope, adding that God, in his grace, will strengthen and make them great and productive citizens.

She advised the inmates against indulging in unruly behaviour that could be inimical to their future, noting that the government would not rest on its oars in ensuring that every Akwa-Ibom child achieves his highest potential.

Mrs Emmanuel thanked the care givers and members of staff of the various homes for their continued love for the inmates, saying that she was impressed with their living conditions.

In appreciation, the outgoing father in-charge of St. Anthony’s Destitute Centre, Rev. Fr. Anthony Ekong appreciated the governor’s wife’s benevolence towards the home, stressing that for the past 10 years that he has been in charge of the centre, he has not seen such philanthropic gesture. He prayed God to reward the Governor and his wife and guide them in the discharge of their duties.

Also speaking, the incoming father in-charge of the centre, Rev. Fr. John Adei appreciated Mrs. Emmanuel for her donations. He described the visit as being providential because he is barely in office, yet the governor’s wife greeted him with donations to the inmates. Fr. Adei said he was marvelled by the magnanimity of the Governor’s wife, promising to use the items donated judiciously and for the benefit of the inmates.

At Eket, the morale of inmates of Eket Prison was given a boost as the wife of the governor made donations and engaged them in some soul-lifting discussions.

Represented by the wife of the Hon. Commissioner for Health, Mrs. Nelly Ukpong, Mrs. Emmanuel said her visit was part of the social responsibilities of her pet project to touch lives. She implored the inmates not to give up on life, irrespective of the situation they may have found themselves in.

She also urged the inmates to imbibe the dakkada spirit of believing in their greatness, stating that life behind bars does not mean that they cannot be productive citizens again.

Earlier, the Chief Superintendent of Eket Prison, Agomo Ibezimako expressed his gratitude to the governor’s wife for her benevolence to the inmates of Eket Prisons. “Your visit to us is not unexpected. When we realised that you have begun a tour of destitute formations in our state, we became hopeful that you have included us in your itinerary, and that you will visit us before you exhaust your list. By your coming here today, our hope has not been dashed. We are most grateful to have you,” he said.

Also visited was the Motherless Babies’ Home, Idung Iniang, Eket, where the governor’s wife donated items.

Mrs. Emmanuel thanked the Matron of the home, Mrs. Tom Bush for dedicating her life to taking care of the motherless, praying that God will reward her labour of love.

In appreciation, Mrs. Tom Bush thanked Mrs. Emmanuel for her kind disposition towards the home, saying that within four months in office, her impact on the socially-disadvantaged people has already been felt. She prayed God to sustain her and the Governor.

Among the items donated to the inmates were bags of rice, beans and tubers of yam.

Others were gallons of palm and groundnut oil, cartons of indomie, pillows, mattresses, toiletries as well as cash.

On the entourage were wife of the Hon. Commissioner for Culture and Tourism Mrs. Emmanuel Ibiok, wives of members representing Nsit Ubium and Nsit Atai State Constituencies in the House of Assembly, Mrs. Uduak Onofiok Luke and Mrs. Dorcas Mark Esset, among others.

October 30, 2015
Emmanuel should step down, says APC

The All Progressives Congress (APC) yesterday asked Akwa Ibom State Governor Udom Emmanuel to step down, saying that his government is confronted with a legitimacy crisis.

Hailing the verdict on the re-run poll in 18 of 31 local governments, the party said the tribunal was irked by the colossal fraud that characterised the governorship election.

APC National Deputy Chairman (South) Mr. Segun Oni said the position of the party is that the governor should vacate office because he did not meet the criteria victory at the poll. He said it is now evident that none of the candidates met the criterion of spread as stipulated by the constitution.

Also, APC candiate Umana Okon Umana, hailed the judgment, saying it has vindicated his position that the poll was a charade and an assault on the electoral principle.

He said: “We welcome the judgment. It has vindicated our stand that the governorship election was characterised by fraud, rigging and other malpractices.”

Oni, who spoke with our correspondent on telephone, said the Buhari administration is dedicated to electoral sanity, urging the stakeholders to support the crusade for the sanctity of the electoral box.

He said: “We are happy. It is the triumph of the rule of law. Nigerians now know that the governorship election in Akwa Ibom was fraught with irregularities and cannot stand the test of scrutiny. The cancellation in 18 local governments means that the governor should step down for an acting governor to be in charge. Nobody can claim to have won with the required spread. The governor did not meet the requirement stipulated by the constitution.

“We urge the people of Akwa Ibom to keep hope alive. We know there is a right of appeal, but we are certain that it will go this way. The election was too crooked to be sustained. APC will get victory at the end of the day. The governor will have to step down for another election to take place.”

The Chairman, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the state, Paul Ekpo said the judgment was confusing.

Mr. Ekpo said the only good thing about the judgment was that Emmanuel remains in office.

October 22, 2015
Emmanuel : I’m midwifing Akwa Ibom’s industrialisation

Akwa Ibom State Governor Udom Emmanuel has said his administration is building a new Akwa Ibom that will be industrialised and become more worker-friendly.

The governor said he had been building enduring infrastructure across the state since he assumed office to actualise the plan.

Emmanuel spoke on Friday night during a broadcast to the people on his 100 days in office.

He said: “I came into office with a Five-Point Agenda of wealth creation, economic and political inclusion, poverty alleviation, infrastructural consolidation and expansion, and job creation.”

These are encapsulated under the broad theme of industrialisation, he said.

“We have spared no effort in putting blocks and bricks together to build a truly magnificent edifice that we all fervently desire Akwa Ibom to be,” Emmanuel added.

The governor said in his first 100 days in office, he performed the ground-breaking ceremonies of new industries and resuscitated some moribund others.

“Powered by foreign direct investment policy, my administration has laid the foundation for an automobile industry, a LED factory, Shoprite mall, a broadcast complex and a fertiliser company,” he said.

Emmanuel said he boosted the state’s industrialisation drive with the Peacock Paint Industry at Etinan, which had been moribund for about 15 years.

The governor said his administration was reviving other ailing industries.

On infrastructural development, he said his administration started the construction of various roads and various components of the Ibom International Airport to improve its facilities.

Emmanuel said his administration had intervened in other projects, following some natural disasters.

September 7, 2015
Akwa Ibom land owners to Fed Govt, Emmanuel: save us from untimely death

Five villages in Ukana Clan, Essien Udim Local Government Area, which donated their land for the establishment of Universal Basic Education (UBE) Special Vocal School (a Federal Government project), have decried non-payment of compensation on economic trees that were destroyed in the area to give way for the project.

They have also decried government’s neglect following the destruction of their means of livelihood.

Members of the five villages, which consist of Ukana Ikot Ngwo, Ukana Ikot Udo Etim, Ukana Ikot Osom, Ukana Ikot Udo Inam and Ukana Ikot Ide , told reporters in Ikot Ekpene that the donation of their land for the project and refusal of government to compensate them for the destruction of their means of livelihood, had made life unbearable for them.

The land donors who spoke through the village head of Ukana Ikot Ngwo, Chief Effiong Akpan Udoeshiet said, “Since 2013 when government demanded the use of our land for Niger Delta vocational school, we gave it to them as we saw it as a project that would bring development to the area.

“Shortly after we gave out the land which government promised to pay compensation for the economic trees destroyed, we never heard anything from them again. All we saw was the raising of structures which are nearing completion. We never heard from the government again even when some of our kinsmen have died due to the fact that what used to sustain them as peasant farmers have been taken from them and they don’t have anything to lean on. Till now, nothing has been done to alleviate the suffering of our people.”

The monarch said while they appreciated government’s lofty project for the community, he decried the negative effect and untold hardship that they are currently suffering.

He made a passionate appeal to the federal and state governments to come to their aid by paying them compensation.

The Village Head of Ukana Ikot Udo Etim, Chief Effiong Udo Udo Enwene, said while the community really appreciated the siting of the project, it was however unfortunate that they have been made to suffer while they should be thanking God and the political leaders of the community.

Other leaders of the five communities who spoke with reporters to express concern over their total neglect were the village head-elect of Ukana Ikot Osom, Chief Monday Sunday Udo, village chairman of Ukana Ikot Ngwo, Ime Akpan Umo, Village chairman of Ukana Ikot Udo Etim, Ime Akpan Okure and family head of Iwe, Alphonsus Johnsons Iwe.

They said the call for federal and state governments to pay compensation has become necessary as they do not want members of the community especially youths to react confrontationally with the authorities.

A human rights group in the state, Community Policing Partners for Justice, Security and Democratic Reforms, has expressed displeasure over government’s taking over of the communal land without payment of compensation to owners of economic trees destroyed in the cause of raising structures on the said land.

The Executive Director of the organisation, Mr. Saviour Akpan, in a letter to Governor Udom Emmanuel, said the acquisition of the land without adequate compensation is a ‘serious violation of the people’s right to food.

Akpan urged the governor to take an urgent action to meet with the owners of the said land to “forestall unnecessary tension and a possible breach of the peace”.

The communities said the youths are gradually losing their patience and may be forced to embark on a mass protest.

They called on political leaders in the area who might have gotten their due from government to give them their rights.

August 21, 2015
Oro youths disagree with Emmanuel on rector’s job

Youths of Oro ethnic nationality in Akwa Ibom State have disagreed with Governor Udom Emmanuel over his comment on President Muhammadu Buhari’s re-appointment of Mr. Joshua Okpo as the Rector of the Maritime Academy of Nigeria (MAN), Oron.

The youths, under the aegis of the Coalition of Oro Nation Community Youth Leaders, addressed reporters yesterday in Oron on the development.

They criticised Emmanuel for saying President Buhari’s extension of Okpo’s tenure, instead of upgrading the institution to a university, was a wrong step.

The group’s Acting President. Usuyak Atting said Emmanuel displayed a lack of basic knowledge about the dynamics of the institution.

He noted that Emmanuel was pretending to show concern for Oro, whose mandate he had allegedly stolen.

The youths’ leader said Oro had suffered eight years of hardship, pains, neglect and injustice under former Governor Godswill Akpabio.

According to him, by re-appointing Okpo as the Rector of the academy, President has done the right thing for Oro, considering the dynamics of maritime institutions worldwide.

Atting said: “Governor Emmanuel is not only bereft of knowledge about the dynamics and technicality of the Maritime Academy of Nigeria at Oron, he is also a busy body. He pretends to show concern about the development of an ethnic nationality that has benefitted immensely from Dr Joshua Okpo-led administration via the provision of corporate social responsibility (CSR) to the host community and training of youths in various skills for self-reliance, after eight years of hardship, pains, marginalisation and gross injustice meted out to Oro people during his predecessor’s traumatised administration.

“…It is rather unfortunate that Governor Emmanuel has forgotten in a hurry that Maritime Academy of Nigeria, Oron, is a Federal Government-owned institution and not a secondary school in Awa Iman, Onna, or a state-owned tertiary institution.”

August 17, 2015
Emmanuel urges divine help to develop Akwa Ibom

Akwa Ibom State Governor Udom Emmanuel has urged the church to partner his administration in its quest to redeem the state from poverty for sustainable development.

The governor spoke yesterday at Destiny International Mission, Uyo, the state capital, where he worshipped.

He said it was for the state’s restoration his administration initiated projects and programmes, such as the vehicle assembling plant, to create jobs and wealth for the people.

Emmanuel urged Christian to purge themselves of hypocrisy and focus on God for divine revelation.

The governor said prayers were key to unlocking the hidden treasures of the land.

Emmanuel, who based his submission on the book of Nehemiah 5:11 and Psalm 7:9, noted that God can always make something out of nothing.

The governor urged the people not to be discouraged by the prevailing economic situation but to have faith in God for the manifestation of His blessings.

He sympathised with victims of a flood in the state, promising that his administration would forestall future floods.

Emmanuel said more jobs would be created because his administration had concluded plans to reactivate ailing industries.

July 20, 2015
Emmanuel: PDP governors will back Buhari

Akwa Ibom State Governor Udom Emmanuel has said Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governors have no option but to support the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari to succeed.

Udom spoke with reporters after meeting with President Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

He expressed delight at Buhari’s relationship with governors, irrespective of political affiliations.

Emmanuel said: “The day you are elected, you are no more a PDP governor; you are a governor of a state in Nigeria. There is nothing like PDP or APC again.

“People elected you, party is just a platform on which you get to serve your people. The day you are elected and sworn in, you are sworn in as the governor of the state, the day you are sworn in, you are sworn in as the President of Nigeria.

“The President welcomes us as the father of the country, it has nothing to do with partisanship here, it has to do with the people; the nation is about the people”.

The governor said he was at the villa to discuss the gully erosion facing the state with the President, stressing that the state government had intervened and is expecting a refund from the Federal Government.

According to him, commercial activities almost came to a halt on a few occasions because a major federal road linking the Southsouth and the Southeast collapsed due to gully erosion.

“We have the problem of gully erosion. If you watch the news in recent time, you will see the devastating effect on some federal assets and how the state government has intervened.

“Commercial activities were almost grounded because a major federal road linking the Southsouth and the Southeast collapsed due to gully erosion. The state government had to intervene and these things cost money.

“Even with that, you still need to carry on your own duty because those things exist within your state and as a governor, you can’t just ignore them”, Udom said.

July 17, 2015
Emmanuel lays foundation for automobile firm

Akwa Ibom State Governor Udom Emmanuel has said his administration is committed to the industrialisation of the state.

The governor spoke yesterday when he laid the foundation of an automobile assembling plant in Itu Local Government Area.

The assembling plant, which is one of the gains of the Foreign Direct Investments (FDIs), belongs to an Israeli company, MIMSHAC Merkavim Transportation Technologies Plant.

Emmanuel said the ground-breaking ceremony was the answer to those who doubted the possibility of industrialising the state.

He said: “If there is anybody out there who doubts our determination to change the economic fortunes of the state; who is wondering whether our bold vision of industrialising Akwa Ibom is possible, this event provides the answer to such doubt.”

Emmanuel premised his partnership with the Israeli Automobile Industry on the need to open up vistas for the industrialisation programmes of his administration.

The governor said industrialisation remained the cornerstone to the creation of sustainable development.

He said Akwa Ibom is endowed with abundant resources, which would be harnessed for the state’s industrial development.

According to him, his administration plans to establish a clay refining plant to boost the economy and create jobs for the people, to fulfil his campaign promises.

The Chairman of Foreign Direct Investment Committee, Mr. Gabriel Ukpe; the member representing Itu Federal Constituency in the National Assembly, Dr. Henry Archibong and Senator Anietie Okon, were among dignitaries at the event.

They noted that the event was the beginning of the industrial revolution Emmanuel promised the people during his electioneering campaigns.

The eminent Akwa Ibom indigenes expressed optimism that better days awaited the people because the governor had taken the major steps to industrialise the state.

The International Business Development Adviser to MIMSHAC Merkavim Transportation Technologies, Mr. Ronen Golan, said the company was among leading automobile assembling plants in the world, with specialty in luxury buses, utility vehicles, ambulances and fire trucks.

He said the company would train 20 Akwa Ibom indigenes in automobile manufacturing, besides creating more jobs, building more schools and bringing international investors to the state.

The paramount ruler of the area, Edidem Edet Akpan Inyang, assured the company of a safe operating environment.

He thanked Emmanuel for beginning the industrial revolution policy of his administration in his domain.

July 15, 2015