Encomium
Aniete Ukpe is the Chief Press Secretary/Senior Special Assistant on Media to the Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Chief Godswill Akpabio.
In this interview with ENCOMIUM Weekly in Lagos, he opened up on various issues, including the 2015 senatorial ambition of the governor, amendment of the Pensions Law in state, various developmental projects.
Recently, Governor Akpabio did a volte-face on the Pensions Law and had it amended because of the outcry that attended it. If he was convinced that the law was right, why did he bow to public pressure?
Actually, this was a 16 year old law which was just amended by the House after due deliberation of an executive bill. The state government noticed a lacuna in the open-ended provision for the medical treatment of former governors, deputy governors and their spouses. It, therefore, sought to put a ceiling to it to safeguard it against abuse and protect public funds.
In clear terms, the amendment was right and was made with all good and patriotic intentions. Sadly though, in Akwa Ibom State politicians try to reap selfish political capital out of everything. Where the law simply puts a ceiling on how much, in terms of health insurance, former governors and deputy governors and their spouses who were sick (note who were sick) were entitled to annually, the politicians mischievously cast it as if it were a yearly pay out to former governors and deputy governors. This was preposterous falsehood!
Unfortunately, some sections of the press, apparently acting the scripts of these mischievous politicians, did editorials along this jaundiced line, without reading the law or confirming the situation from the relevant officers in government like the attorney general or speaker of the House of Assembly. They obviously did not want the facts to interfere with their biased conclusions. It was the worst distortion of truth by some sections of the mainstream press in recent times and a worrisome pointer that every Nigerian has his price. This was why Governor Akpabio rightly described the situation as a siege on truth in his chat.
As to why Governor Akpabio decided to have the law amended, you should remember that he ended his speech by referencing Dr
Nnamdi Azikiwe’s quotation that “History will vindicate the just.” History will definitely vindicate him. For an example; the legendary scientist, Galileo Galilei was the first man to propose that the earth moves around the sun and not the sun moving around the earth.
That did not sit well with the religious establishment then led by Archbishop Asconia Piccolomini, who maintained that Scripture’s position was that Joshua asked the sun to stand still and it did. Galileo argued that Joshua may not have known, but all the same, God may have caused the earth to stop for Joshua to achieve his end. He maintained that Scripture was true but should not be taken literally or in the context of man’s understanding. He was put on trial (like the press put Governor Akpabio on trial), and asked to recant. He did in the interest of peace. But when he left the court, he looked up at the sky and at the ground and stamping his foot and said, “Eppur si muove!” (still this earth moves). Today, history has vindicated Galileo.
If the press had sought to be fair, it would have compared the Pensions Law in Akwa Ibom with those of other states and they would have known that Akwa Ibom has the most modest such law in Nigeria. I believe that history will vindicate Governor Akpabio.
Some people have argued that the Pensions Law ran into a storm because the press was not carried along?
Such thinking is not only patronizing, it gives the impression that some sections of the press cannot analyse events on their face value. You do not need to carry the press along when you are sending your child to school. You do not have to carry the press along when you are undertaking a righteous cause.
Remember, to the pure all things are pure. This is more like noticing that your house is on fire and you are trying to fix it, only for your neighbour to block the fire truck and claimed that you did not carry him along before calling the fire truck.
What Governor Akpabio did was a righteous act and he could not have anticipated that men who do not wish the state well would seek to destroy it for their selfish advantages using the press. Governor Akpabio is not just any governor, he is a governor, whose uncommon transformation of Akwa Ibom State speaks for him, and testifies to his statesmanship, candour, forthrightness, integrity and good conscience.
Asking for the law to be amended has been applauded by many Nigerians and has strengthened his credentials as uncommon leader with a good heart and conscience. More so it would have been unfair and unjust for these ill-intentioned politicians to seek to define his sterling performance as a governor by referencing this law.
Right now, the burning issue in Akwa Ibom State is zoning. The governor wants power to be zoned to Eket senatorial district. Some want an open contest with candidates from all over the state. Why is the governor insistent on Eket Senatorial District?
When Governor Akpabio says that it is the turn of Eket senatorial district to produce the next governor, he is speaking the minds of Akwa Ibom people. His position is based on justice, equity and fair-play, attributes that endear him to the people and mark him out as a statesman.
He had town hall meetings in all the federal constituencies in the state and the people were unanimous that power should be zoned to Eket senatorial district. Eket senatorial district is the only senatorial district that has never produced a governor in the 26 years of Akwa Ibom State.
In line with the principle of zoning and extant agreements, it is, therefore, fit and proper for Eket senatorial district to have a sense of belonging by producing the next governor. That has been the governor’s and Akwa Ibom people’s just position. Those who fault this are a vocal minority who are not driven by altruistic interests. Added to this is that zoning is in PDP constitution and should be observed.
What is the relationship between the Governor and the SSG, Mr. Udom Emmanuel? Is he the governor’s candidate?
Considering his antecedents and contributions to the banking industry, the SSG, Mr. Emmanuel Udom, is eminently qualified to be the next governor of Akwa Ibom State. He is from Eket senatorial district. He shone like a thousand stars in the banking industry and rose to the top echelon of the industry by deploying the Akwa Ibom attributes of integrity, honesty and diligence. He is doing an excellent job as the Secretary to the State Government. He commands great respect throughout the length and breadth of the state.
Having said that, the fact remains that Governor Akpabio is imbued with a democratic spirit and would not impose someone on Akwa Ibom State that the people do not want. He is too much of a democrat. He wants all Akwa Ibom people to be involved in choosing their next governor and ensuring that the legacies he is leaving behind are in safe hands.
Those talking “Imposition” are afraid of something else that they cannot afford to say publicly. What are they afraid of? It is that the governor is so extremely popular and loved in the state that if he endorses any aspirant, the people will immediately gravitate towards that person and the fight would be over before it starts.
So, they would want him blindfolded and gagged so that the people would not know what he thinks. But that is not possible. In every democracy, all citizens have the right to endorse anyone, even media institutions, in spite of their strict code of impartial reporting, at times endorse candidates.
Governor Akpabio has been talking about metropolitan politicians. Who are the metropolitan politicians?
It was a general statement. What the governor is saying is that if you want to contest in Akwa Ibom, you should connect with the people in Akwa Ibom – not Abuja. Politics is about selling yourself to the electorate – not selling yourself at the capital, Abuja. I am using Abuja here as a generic term. Home is where you should prove your mettle, not Abuja.
The political battleground is in Akwa Ibom, and you cannot win in Akwa Ibom by telling stories and making propaganda in Abuja. You cannot have a farm in Abuja and harvest in Akwa Ibom. So, if you want to reap in Akwa Ibom, come and plant here in Akwa Ibom. It is as straight cut as that.
Some stakeholders are saying that the governor should provide a level playing field towards the emergence of the next governor. What is your comment on this?
That the governor will not allow a level playing field is a fallacy. Anyone who knows the governor can attest that he plays by the rules. PDP has its rules pertaining to the conduct of primaries and the governor will definitely observe the rules to the letter in Akwa Ibom. Like I said, their fear is that the governor has a surfeit of goodwill in the politics of Akwa Ibom State.
They forget that the governor is a citizen of Nigeria and based on his human and constitutional rights, he can relate with whoever he wants to relate with and endorse anyone he may want to. Just like they can also relate with or endorse whoever they want. But they want to reserve the right for them to endorse whoever they please and deny the governor the right to endorse anyone.
Even in the American presidential election, popular presidents endorse candidates. It is only unpopular presidents who could not endorse anyone, because their support would be counterproductive.
There is a moral side to this discourse. If a saint were to contest an election against a tout, I am certain that you would consider it a moral obligation to society to endorse the saint. That is why they are coming up with abstract concepts like “Level-playing field” and “Imposition.” Endorsement is not imposition so if anyone endorses anyone he does no wrong.
Even the media, like the New York Times, among others, endorsed Obama in 2012. Foreign personalities like President Hugo Chavez of Venezuala and the British Labour Party leadership candidate MP Diane Abott endorsed Obama openly. So what is wrong with endorsement? US President Andrew Jackson endorsed Martin Van Burren and the heavens did not fall.
How prepared is Governor Akpabio to actualize his senatorial ambition come 2015? Some of his billboards have gone up in Akwa Ibom State?
Governor Akpabio is not the one putting up the billboards. He knows nothing about them. He is not the one who wants to go to the senate; it is the people of Ikot Ekpene senatorial district who have said that it is a desideratum for him to go to the senate. They want him to render service at a different level, because he has been very faithful in the discharge of his duties as a governor. When you have a treasure, you show it around.
The people believe that for him to have performed so creditably well as a governor, it will be of great benefit to them if he represented them at the Senate. The senatorial agenda is the agenda of the people of the senatorial district and they are the ones doing everything. The people put up the billboards you saw. The governor does not want to be distracted from performing his duties as governor, and he wants to end his tenure on a crescendo.
Has he formally declared his intention to run for the senate, come 2015?
He does not need to, brother. Like I said, it is the people of the senatorial district who offered him the position. A declaration is a notification of intent. When the intent is the demand and desire of the people, who you ought to make the declaration to, then the narrative has to change.
A formal declaration would be done at some points to fulfill all righteousness, but right now it is a mass movement in action. A mass movement by the people of the senatorial district to send someone there who would give them the best possible representation. And Governor Akpabio is pleasantly surprised and overwhelmed by the level of support he enjoys from his people and their kind sentiments.
For the continuity of the good performance of Governor Akpabio, how do you think the emergence of APC will affect the success of PDP in the gubernatorial election?
APC is not politically on ground in Akwa Ibom state. In the last election, how many local government areas did ACN win? Two out of 31, and they won the two by very narrow margins. APC is like a passing ambulance – we only hear the siren in the press. They may never have a foothold in Akwa Ibom because Akwa Ibom has a sophisticated political class.
What further dividends of democracy should the people of Akwa Ibom expect from Governor Akpabio before he hands over in 2015?
What the governor has done in Akwa Ibom state is phenomenal and awesome. If we were to follow the normal trend of governance, it would have taken over 50 years to achieve what we have achieved in just over six years with Governor Akpabio. The roads that he has constructed have guarantees of over 15 years.
We are talking about over 330 roads, over 35 bridges and five flyovers. Someone, in consideration of the quality of the roads, described them as runways. All his projects are of world class standard, architectural masterpieces. Is it the airport that you want to talk about? It has one of the longest runways in the country. The airport has broken aviation records.
Is it the pipe-jacking system, the first of its kind in Africa? Is it the free and compulsory education programme? That was what Obafemi Awolowo did in the West when some people in the East and North said that it was not working. But now history has proven that it worked.
It is working here because you don’t see kids anymore in the streets hawking. With this programme, children of the poor now have access to quality education. That programme is a phenomenal success. Experts like Professor Wole Soyinka have commended it. The international stadium programme will be completed this year and it is the best in West Africa.
The Tropicana Entertainment Centre, a one-stop, five-star hospitality edifice will also be completed this year. If you talk about all the projects of Governor Akpabio, you can only be indicted of forgetting some, you can never be accused of exaggeration – they are simply too many of them.
Considering the many projects of the governor, is he not going to leave behind a high debt profile?
Everything the governor is doing is accommodated in the budget. He budgets 80 percent for capital expenditure, 20 percent for recurrent. The state deliberately budgets to focus on development and infrastructure.
He is completing his projects because he is passionate about development. He has said repeatedly that he does not intend to leave abandoned projects behind, because he has had to complete many abandoned projects left behind by preceding administrations. He laments that he would have done more for the state, if preceding administrations did not leave so many abandoned projects, which he felt bound to complete.
What is the position of Governor Akpabio concerning 2015 presidential election?
His is completely and irrevocably in support of His Excellency, President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan’s re-election. This, he considers a desideratum. He is driven in this by the same virtues of uncompromising loyalty, fairness, justice and equity, which mark him out as a virtuous man, and a patriot of great distinction.
– TADE ASIFAT
