AKWA IBOM & THE NEED FOR DECORUM

Sir,

AKWA IBOM & THE NEED FOR DECORUM

I feel Akpabio and Attah should cease fire. Akwa Ibom needs some breather. The State needs the peacefulness it used to have, especially now that more funds are accruing to her; and should be spent judiciously.

The use of “seeking relevance”, “ethnic jingoist”, “great tribalist”, etc to describe the former governor Obong Victor Attah, is seen in bad light by many. The many argue that Attah made Akpabio politically relevant. But at the same time there are those who argue that what Akpabio is doing to Attah was merited because Attah ignored good counsels to sack (then) Commissioner Akpabio from his cabinet after certain behaviours were noticed in the latter.    

Apart from Attah appointing Akpabio as Commissioner for consecutive six years and even at a point touted him a replacement for Dr. Chris Ekpenyong as Deputy Governor; but for the intervention of other founding-members of PDP in Akwa Ibom State that saved the day. Furthermore, all the developmental projects initiated and taken to appreciable levels by Attah are what Akpabio continued with, few of them now to conclusion; but surprisingly Akpabio now claims total-credit for them all: The Airport/Hangar project; the Ibom LeMeridien Hotel and Golf Resort; the Independent Power Plant project; the Science Park project; the free education up to JSS-III which Akpabio though made, not only free but compulsory, up to SSS-III; etc.

Nevertheless, there were other areas like roads, which Akpabio has greatly improved upon and the Tropicana, which people are asking “at what cost, specifications and why it has not materialized as promised?”

Again, Akpabio could not establish any financial impropriety against Attah; he would have been the first to report him to EFCC if he did because of the supposedly strained relationship. For this, Akpabio would have used his present SSG, Obong Umana, who was Attah’s Finance Commissioner as Akpabio was Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs. It is believed that Umana must have squealed to Akpabio; there is nothing holding against Attah else all would be shooting themselves at the foot.  

Samuel O. Bassey, Goldie St., Calabar, Cross River State.