The fall-out between Akwa Ibom State governor, Godswill Akpabio, and his close political associate, Umana Okon Umana, though resolved on the surface, may rear its ugly head again in the run-up to the 2015 general elections. Remi Adelowo reports
Until the unexpected sack (or resignation) of Umana Okon Umana as the Secretary to Akwa Ibom State Government, a few weeks ago, his relationship with the state governor, Godswill Akpabio, could be described as near-perfect.
This was quite understandable. Both men had struck a bond over 14 years ago while serving as commissioners in the administration of ex-Governor Victor Obong Attah, who ruled the state from 1999 to 2007.
The relationship moved on to another level following Akpabio’s election as Attah’s successor in 2007.
Umana was one of the few aides of Attah who stood by Akpabio in the acrimonious battle for the governorship ticket of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
While Attah allegedly favoured his son-in-law, Dr. Udoma Bob Ekarika, who served as the Commissioner for Health, to succeed him, other stakeholders, including Umana, threw their weight behind Akpabio.
No one gave Akpabio any chance in the 2007 PDP governorship primaries. But banking on the support of powerful forces both within and outside the state, particularly in the Presidency, Akpabio coasted to victory beating over 20 aspirants to the exalted seat.
As compensation for his role in Akpabio’s emergence as governor, Umana was appointed as SSG, a position he held until recently when he unexpectedly threw in the towel.
So unceremonious was Umana’s exit from the cabinet that he was reportedly locked out of his office by security operatives, who allegedly acted on the governor’s directive.
The ugly episode occurred less than 48hours after Umana formally announced his intention to contest the 2015 governorship election. His statement, which did not come as a surprise to stakeholders in the politics of the state, however, did not go down well with his boss, who was then on a trip outside the country.
Before he formally declared his governorship ambition a few weeks ago, Umana had, in the last one year, kept sealed lips on this issue, preferring his supporters to do the subtle campaign for him.
But in spite of his stance, not a few people in the state believed he was Akpabio’s anointed candidate as the next governor of Akwa Ibom State.
Sources say so entrenched was Umana’s influence in the government that he was referred to as the de facto deputy governor of the state, who largely determined who got what and how in the administration.
But his statement to contest the 2015 race without allegedly taking the governor into confidence exposed his vulnerability.
The Nation gathered that Umana’s reported lock-out from his office, leading to his resignation, caused a major crisis within government circles, most especially among commissioners, special advisers and other top government officials, most of who felt he (Umana) does not deserve the ill treatment.
Worried that the crisis could cause a major crack in his government if not quickly nipped in the bud, the governor was alleged to have cut short his trip to embark on a rapprochement with Umana by heading straight to the latter’s residence on his arrival in Uyo, the state capital.
At the end of their closed-door meeting, the two men agreed to bury the hatchet, citing a breakdown in communication as the reason for their feud.
It was based on this reconciliation that Umana accepted the governor’s invitation at the inauguration of the new SSG, Udom Gabriel Emmanuel, a former Executive Director of Zenith Bank.
Zoning controversy still raging
The controversy over the unwritten zoning policy, which will ensure the rotation of the governorship seat among the three senatorial districts in the state, is still raging despite Umana’s exit from the government.
For the people of Eket Senatorial zone, the general consensus is that 2015 is their turn to produce the governor of the state after the tenure of Victor Attah from Uyo, who served for two terms (1999-2007) and Akpabio from Ikot Ekpene senatorial zone serving out his two terms in office in 2015.
Umana’s declaration for the governorship, if allowed to stand, would have rubbished the zoning arrangement as he hails from Uyo zone, which has had its taste of the plum position from 1999 to 2007.
Up until recently, the governor had consistently advocated for a merit-based process to determine who emerges as his successor without recourse to the zoning formula.
But sources disclosed that the governor may have had a change of mind on the issue following tremendous pressures on him by some forces within the state, the leadership of the PDP and the Presidency.
Other side of the argument
Another reason cited as to why Akpabio dumped Umana may not be unconnected to the argument of certain individuals close to him that Umana, when he becomes governor, will be too difficult to control.
This school of thought was also alleged to have convinced the governor that Umana is too rich and independent-minded to keep deferring to his (Akpabio’s) leadership with the reins of power firmly in his grips.
Before his appointment as the Commissioner for Finance in 1999 (a position he held for eight years), Umana retired as a director in the state budget office. He also served as SSG for six years and is widely perceived as very wealthy.
Other sources in the state revealed that Umana’s refusal of an offer to become the next Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), while insisting on the governorship, is another source of controversy over his next agenda.
Umana’s new game plan
Unconfirmed speculations have it that in spite of his well-publicised reconciliation with the governor, Umana may likely go ahead with his plan to contest for the 2015 governorship race.
Already, emissaries are being sent to the former SSG by prominent figures of opposition parties in the state to dump the PDP and join them.
The possibility of leaving PDP, revealed sources, may have informed Akpabio’s visit to Umana where he allegedly apologised to the former, while he also appealed to his former SSG not to leave the PDP.
The fear in government circles in the state is that Umana knows too much about Akpabio, which has necessitated the need to keep him within the PDP at all cost.
Promises are being made to the former SSG, one of which is a ministerial appointment in 2015.
If this plan remains unchanged, the political configuration of the state, post-2015, will have the incumbent governor as a senator, while a candidate from Eket will emerge as governor, with the ministerial slot ceded to Uyo senatorial zone.
All of these permutations, no doubt, indicate interesting times ahead in the politics of the oil-rich South South state.
