Is Umana Okon Umana the Right Choice for Akwa Ibom State? It is not going to take long, just as he was disgraced and thrown out of office by Unoma Akpabio, Umana Okon Umana is going to be thrown into oblivion by another disgrace. His desperate attempt to become a governor is what will do him in this time around. Let’s wait and see as events are about to unfold itself. I giggle when people say Umana Okon Umana is the only Ibibio man who can fight Akpabio. The truth is, unlike Senator Udoedehe and Chief Frank Okon, who stood toe-to-toe with Akpabio by using the legal process, Umana is a wimp, weak, and timid. Before Mrs. Unoma Akpabio kicked him out of office, I was constantly reminded how Umana Okon Umana has this and has that against Akpabio. I was told that Akpabio is even afraid of Umana because of his knowledge of all the secret deals of Akpabio. But on that fateful day in July 2013, when the woman locked his office and threw out Umana in shame and in disgrace, everyone used to say that Umana is a fighter to be revered and a wrestler akin to the category of the famous Okonkwo in Things Fall Apart. When Godswill Akpabio blocked his aspiration for governorship in PDP, some greedy elders advised Umana Okon Umana to file an injunction in court. I could have told him for free that he would never win the case. As was expected, he lost. The case was not even settled when Umana ran away and defected to APC. As far as I could remember, the case was decided upon on the same day Umana joined APC. What a fighter! If Umana Okon Umana was a fighter, as many of his supporters want everyone to believe, he could have stayed in PDP and fight Godswill Akpabio; no one drove him out of PDP, he left on his own accord. But because he is weak and timid, he picked what his warped mind deceived him into believing to be an easy target, by going to oust Senator Udoedehe from a party he (Udoedehe) had labored, night and day, using his hard-earned money to sustain and maintain in Akwa Ibom State. Unfortunately for Umana, the target he thought was weak is soon going to become an albatross on his neck. Let’s wait and see. Can Umana Win an Election? Contrary to what those who are on the payroll of Umana Okon Umana would like the populace to believe, other than Godswill Akpabio, Umana Okon Umana is the most hated man in Akwa Ibom State. People blame him for his corroboration with Godswill Akpabio to execute policies that have left many Akwa Ibom people in a state of grinding poverty, hunger, and nightmares. When Umana was in government, he was powerful and, according to knowledgeable analysts, Akpabio was just a governor in name, while Umana was the brain behind all the day-to-day running of the government. Under his watch, as the Secretary to the State Government, many Akwa Ibom people became victims of kidnappings, political assassinations, rape, armed robberies, and murders. While all these vices were going on at the time, Umana was busy accumulating wealth in preparation to succeed Akpabio. Even when the Paramount Ruler of his Local Government (Edidem Robert Obot) was assassinated, Umana could care less. In preparation for his emergence as the successor of Akpabio, Umana eliminated all the individuals he considered inimical to his political ambition by either framing them up for dismissal from government or by back-biting them to Akpabio, thereby creating enmity between Akpabio and those Umana deceived Akpabio into thinking were against the doctrine or the principles of his administration. That is what happened to Deputy Ekpotu and Deputy Nsima Ekere. Some people say it was Umana who blocked the third-term ambition of Senator Effiong Bob, which is probably why the Senator has abandoned Umana in support of Mr. Udom Emmanuel. Till this day, some Ibibio people still blame Umana Okon Umana as the one who saw the demise of Chief Frank Okon and the mayhem, which happened at Ikot Ekpene during the 2011 gubernatorial campaign, in which Senator Udoedehe, his wife, and his supporters were almost killed. At that time, Umana worked feverishly to destroy what was then ACN. It is of interest that today, it is the same party, though known now as APC that Umana Okon Umana is running to for his political refuge. All People Want is his Ill-gotten Naira Every time I hear that Umana has a support base to fight Akpabio, it would remind me of a man who thinks that every woman who smiles at him is in love with him. No one, I repeat no one, in Akwa Ibom State would like to see Umana Okon Umana become their next governor. The reason people dance around him like flies is because of money. The guiltiest among those who flock to Umana are the so-called elders of the Ibibio, many of whom are in the payroll of Umana Okon Umana. They want his money, his money, his money, and nothing but his money. If Umana Okon Umana wants to take it up, I challenge him to stop giving out money for only four weeks and see what would happen. If Akwa Ibom people really wanted someone who could fight Akpabio with a clean slate and won, it would have been Senator Udoedehe. I have heard the argument that Udoedehe cannot fight PDP and won in Akwa Ibom State. I have also heard people say that unless Udoedehe joins with Umana, he cannot defeat Akpabio and PDP. I disagree with all these propositions and here is why. In 2011 election, when Umana Okon Umana was in PDP and romancing with Akpabio, Senator Udoedehe defeated PDP, winning 29 of the 31 Local Government Areas. The PDP, Umana, and Akpabio were so embarrassed that they had to spend billions and billions of the peoples’ naira to bribe the tribunal judges for them to remain in office. It happened then, and it may happen again. Written by Ikpafak Thompson Essien The Voice of the Poor Masses Defender of the Oppressed Social Critic A native of Ibibio nation of Ubium Republic extraction, now living in the safe and beautiful city of Portland, Oregon, where no AKPF, ADUMA, ADV, and Akwa Ibom State politicians can reach.
Posted on: Sat, 20 Dec 2014 07:02:22 +0000