WHY UDOM IS RIGHT FOR AKWA IBOM THE former Secretary to the Akwa Ibom State Government, Mr Udom Emmanuel, must have had a lot of scripts written about him in the few months to come.Those stories, though unauthorised by the banking expert, would have him, other politicians and the people of Akwa Ibom State as the dramatis personae while the state, whose destiny and progress are in the hands of the actors, must decide who to cheer in the eventual play that will be acted few a months to this time. The scripts are apparently being written in bad spirit by a crop of self-conceited politicians in the state, who through different media, spread lies and spin untruths about Emmanuel, who has done nothing but his job for the progress of the state. Though he is yet to declare any intention to contest the governorship election in 2015, he has been consulting the people and taking in their views and desires about the race for the successor of Governor ef Godswill Akpabio. But some political detractors and overlords who see the state as their personal property and cash cow have continued bashing him and the governor, premising their hate messages on Emmanuel’s reportedly late entry into state’s political scene. Next year will prove decisive for the state and its people, because the eight-year tenure of Akpabio, who has transformed and rewritten the state’s history, will come to an end. But Akpabio’s good works must continue, hence the search for a worthy successor, a situation which some people are using to heat up the polity of the state. For the actors in this group of anti-people politicians, their interests neither lie in zoning, equity nor merit, conditions which Emmanuel apparently meets and even stands head above shoulders against other contenders for the governorship seat. They have no regard for people’s interests or the wellbeing of the state but their personal ambitions and aggrandisement. And to achieve that end, they must bring someone down. Unfortunately, Emmanuel is the one they could choose, having seen how his values, experience in the financial sector and commitment to the growth and progress of the state, could combine to aid his emergence as the next governor. To achieve their ignoble end of rubbishing Emmanuel, they have said that he only recently joined the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), while also attacking Akpabio ceaselessly for allegedly resolving to foist Emmanuel on the state, though they all know there is no truth to such claim. But does Emmanuel deserve the attacks? What exactly has the former banker done to warrant the venom and hate messages from the politicians who are daily becoming frightened and threatened by the former SSG’s blossoming political credential? The people want a government that is committed to the education of every child, which will continue the legacy of compulsory free primary and secondary education. The foundation that has been laid by the governor is strong enough to have a skyscraper built on it. It is, therefore, important that not just anybody is allowed to succeed him. The state does not need a successor that would build a bungalow on the solid foundation laid by Akpabio. But can Emmanuel build on it? For a man who was a director at a notable bank and a member of the reputable Agro-Allied Economists, a World Bank initiative for building internationally accepted agro-allied concerns across the globe to eradicate food shortages in the world, will his not being a political jobber stop him from delivering democratic dividends in a state where economy, commerce and agriculture are of importance? The answer is no. But the self-conceited politicians can never agree. In fact, they will look the other way if his unblemished career in the banking sector is mentioned. Albert is an Abuja-based public affairs analyst.
Posted on: Mon, 27 Oct 2014 00:31:03 +0000
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