AKPABIONOMICS: “WEALTH WITHOUT WORK” It was Mahatma Ghandhi who listed seven sins in the world as: · Wealth without work · Pleasure without conscience · Knowledge without character · Commerce without morality · Science without humanity · Worship without sacrifice · Politics without principles In Akwa Ibom State, the culture of “wealth without work” has been enthroned into the polity by the administration of Chief Godswill Obot Akpabio. Today, it is common to see few miscreants without feasible sources of livelihood swimming in questionable wealth with fleets of state – of – the art vehicles and mansions within and outside Nigeria. This ugly development is capable of killing the spirit of hard work that an average Akwa Ibom Youth is known for nationally and internationally. It has the potential of making our youths to become timid about venturing, self development and actualization. If this culture of “wealth without work” as promoted by the present administration and exhibited by these miscreants, masquerading as Special Assistants, Personal Assistants and politicians is not reversed, it may build into the sub-conscious minds of some Akwa Ibom Youths “short-cut mentality” to wealth acquisition which puts one on a journey to nowhere. Now, what some young people in the State strive to achieve is to join one fraternity or the other to qualify for inter-ministerial contracts or become a special or Personal Assistant to a political office holder as a first step towards acquiring “wealth without work”. While, we encourage youth empowerment as a potent economic instrument for wealth creation, we also advocate a well tailored industry – driven wealth creation policy and meritocracy by His Excellency, Chief Godswill Obot Akpabio to instill the culture of hard work and productivity, because strength grows out of struggle RISING UNEMPLOYMENT IN AKWA IBOM: BY EMMANUEL NDON The struggle for the creation of Akwa Ibom State, which was participatory and peaceful started in 1955 and crystallized in 1967 with the creation of South Eastern State. The South Eastern State was later renamed Cross River State, where Akwa Ibom was carved-out. It was one of the States that was created by President Ibrahim Babaginda on the 23rd of September, 1987. The State has a population of approximately five (5) million people at home and in Diasporas with a wide ranging human capital base and varied skills known for social peace, industry and integrity. Her economic potentials are enough to put her on the industrial map of the world. Some of these potentials include, abundant agricultural, marine, mineral and forestry resources, which can be exploited for use as raw materials, intermediates, and finished products for local consumption and export. The tourism potentials of Akwa Ibom can accommodate the biggest hospitality industry in the world with her long beaches and coastlines. Her Hydrocarbon resources (Crude Oil and gas) if optimally explored, exploited and processed can put three square-meals on the table of every Akwa Ibom indigene within and outside Nigeria. Her marine/ fishery resources can sustain a multi- national fish processing and canning industries, and world-scale integrated fish farm. Strategically located within the oil belt of Niger Delta region of Nigeria, the state enjoy the status of one of the largest oil producing States in the Nigerian Federation with a growing monthly Crude oil derivation revenue of over thirty (30) billion Naira from the Federation Accounts, made possible by the immediate past Governor of Akwa Ibom Arc Obong Victor Attah through his resources control struggle. It was in realization of these potentials that Arc (Obong) Victor Attah started a foundational work for industrialization of Akwa Ibom State through creation of enabling environment for private sector growth, including taking substantial equity in ECONET wireless service (now AIRTEL), investment in Independent Power Supply at Ikot Abasi, Building of a Five Star Hotel at Nwaniba, privatization of ailing companies, including the Champion Breweries, liberal and broad – Spectrum empowerment of citizens through award of contracts and expanded access to micro credit by private sector operators through National Association of Small Scale Industrialists (NASSI) Akwa Ibom Branch, establishment of a specialized University of Technology in Mkpat Enin, promotion of Ibom Petrochemicals, Fertilizer Plant, Ibom Science Park, Gas plant, Cement Bagging Factory, Roofing Tiles Factory, Ibaka Processing Zone (IPZ), Ibom International Airport with Aircraft Hangers, Building of Ultramodern International Market (Urua Akpandem), Timber Market Complexes at Itam and Ifa, Ultramodern Central and Regional Motor parks and Slaughter House Complexes at Itam as well as creating and publishing of a master plan of Akwa Ibom State for the Industrial takeoff of the State. Indeed, Arc (Obong) Victor Attah was a God-sent generational Moses for the people of Akwa Ibom State and generally described by intellectuals as “AN ORDER IN CHAOS”. Music played only in an International stage. Today, the foundation laid by the immediate past Governor has been destroyed by the present Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Chief Godswill Obot Akpabio because of lack of focus and a vision driven development blueprint. The Ultramodern Motor Parks, Slaughter House Complexes, Ibom Science Park have been abandoned by Akpabio’s Administration while the specialized university has been converted into a multi-campus conventional university. Now, Akwa Ibom State is the 4th poorest State in Nigeria with per capita-income of $10 or N150.00 per month and stagnant growth of Gross Domestic Products (GDP) Income inequality is highly skewed with mass poverty, extremely high unemployment, especially amongst the youths. The informal sector is constrained by lack of access to credit, and the state remains net exporter of food items from the neigbouring states and internationally. Cultism which undermines culture of meritocracy has assumed an alarming proportion in the state. The Government of Chief Akpabio harbours politicians who pursue selfish interest cloaked as public interest. His chaotic policies and poor governance have enthroned insecurity, financial and human capital flight, status quo mentality (Resistance to Change), high inflation, weak legislative instruments, weak revenue base, poor revenue generation effort, zero export base, de- industrialization, high corruption index, poor health indices, lack of formation and implementation of strategic economic policies. Out of the thousands of graduates of Akwa Ibom State Origin who join the labour market annually, only 5% get jobs. Blessing Bassey, an indigene of Aka Offot in Uyo LGA of Akwa Ibom State is a graduate of Industrial chemistry from MADONNA UNIVERSITY. She graduated 5 years ago with second Class Upper. After her National Youth Service, she returned to the land of her birth with the hope of having a job to kick-start her career in industrial chemistry. Sadly, having searched for a job for more than four years, she decided to go into tailoring to eke-out a living. She relived her experience: “I graduated from MADONNA UNIVERSITY at the age of 23 years. Now I have become a burden to my poor parents who expected me to be of assistance to them after my graduation. I cannot expect them to continue to be responsible for my feeding, clothing and accommodation, so I decided to go into tailoring to keep body and soul together”. “I have younger brothers and sister who are looking up to me for assistance but I cannot help them. Life in Akwa Ibom State has been very frustrating for me and indeed thousands of young graduates of Akwa Ibom extraction. “When I first started the tailoring job, I was ashamed that people who knew me would be surprised to see me doing that type of job. Now, I have developed thick skin. I don’t care what people say. It’s the situation in Akwa Ibom that has turned me into “Mma tailor”, it has changed my way of life. Now I don’t even read my books not to talk of research. “I even go out with men (keke Riders, Mechanics and so on) that ordinarily I would not have wanted to have anything in common with. That’s what unemployment in the state has pushed me into” Blessing is one of the Army of unemployed youth that former President Olusegun Obasanjo some weeks ago said are capable of leading Arab-spring type of revolution against the country and Akwa Ibom State. The involvement of our youths in armed robbery, kidnapping, religious extremism and other violent crimes is a testimony to the fact that unemployment can drive youths into heinous crimes. According to a statement by a robbery suspect (name withheld), a graduate of psychology, he said, he was pushed into robbery because five years after leaving school, he could not get a Job. “It is frustration that has led me into this”, he lamented. Akwa Ibom State has a population of approximately 5 million people (at home and in diaspora) who are willing to work but 4.5 million of them have no Job. The figure is alarming. It means that only about 500,000 people have jobs out of a population of 5 million people. According to World Bank Report, the millions of people with no job represent a serious impediment to economic growth. Aside from exhausting our human resources, it generates losses in term of lower out-put, which results in poorer incomes and increased poverty. It also causes social decay (prostitution, religious extremism and other vices) and inhibits economic growth. The unemployment figure in Akwa Ibom is about the highest in the world. Factories that hitherto provided employment for graduates and Artisans had collapsed. For instance, all the factories that were established by Dr. Clement Isong in the 80s had all shut down except the Champion Brewers, which was reactivated by Arc (Obong) Victor Attah’s administration. The Akwa Ibom State SEED Document puts the per capita income of an average Akwa Ibom State person at N150.00 per month and that defines the place of Akwa Ibom State in the economic ladder of Nigeria as the 4th poorest State in the Nigeria Federation. One wonders what His Excellency, Chief (Dr) Godswill Akpabio and his team of economic managers (if any) has been doing with over N 30 billion monthly allocations (Excluding Excess Crude, Ecological funds and Internally Generated Revenue). It is on record that the Government of Chief Godwill Akpabio has encouraged the cultrure of consumerism at the detriment of manufacturing and agricultural ventures. The integrated Farmers Scheme introduced by his Excellency remains a mirage and conduit for siphoning State funds. Everything that is consumed in Akwa Ibom State including the goats we use for preparing our Afia- Efere as well as all the foodstuff and vegetables including Garri, tomatoes, pepper, Okro, Onions, Afang, and yam just to mention a few are brought-in (imported) from Cross River, Delta, Edo, Benue and the Northern States. Simple manufactured products such as Soaps/ Detergents, Toothpick, Hair Cream, Powder come from Aba in Abia State while building and other materials are brought into the State from Lagos State. The state remains a net importer of everything and exporter of nothing except domestic servants. It is the lack of opportunities and sense of hopelessness that drive our young people into domestic service and make the youths susceptible to violence, crime, terrorism and increasing incidence of religious extremism The Governor’s developmental Initiatives and efforts are barely visible, particularly his over-publicized Industrial revolution which falls flat in the face of economics and in terms of technicality, scope and scale. In addition, the so-called Akpabio’s industrial revolution is already harped by poor collaboration and co-operation across sectors by outdated theoretical models and distance from the grass roots. What Governor Akpabio needs is a home-grown, grassroots-driven industrial revolution initiative that can bring about proliferation of manufacturing factories in at least every clan in Akwa Ibom State. As a factory manager, I know that it does not cost more than N12 million to establish a small-scale model factory which can be planted everywhere in Akwa Ibom State to produce the basic goods that are needed in the State to create employment, grow our economy and place Akwa Ibom State on a higher economic pedestal in Nigeria and check the rising unemployment in the State. With the resource profile and configuration of Akwa Ibom State, if Governor Akpabio can build on the foundation that was laid by Arc. (Obong) Victor Attah and stop ethnic politicking, selective generosity and empowerment of Akpabio clan (members of his family) and re-direct the economy of Akwa Ibom on the path of real growth for industrialization, employment generation and wealth creation. A leader is he who knows where he meets his people and where he is taking them to. A good leader knows the way, shows the way and goes away. Culled from Ibom_Forum@yahoogroup
Posted on: Mon, 01 Sep 2014 05:29:14 +0000
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