Six Years of Result Driven Governance Under Emmanuel Udom

…Akwa Ibom on the path to greatness

Daniel Orogun

Giving his inaugural Address, on May 29, 2015, Governor Emmanuel said”I stand before you today not as a master but as a servant and not as a boss but as a co-labourer. I accept, with great humility and sense of responsibility, the mandate you have freely given to me to hold power in trust for you are your Governor. You have kept your part of the covenant and I intend to keep my part by executing the programmes I enunciated to you during my official declaration to run for the office of Governor. These include: … To transform the economy of our State via industrialization and sustain public-private sector initiative, thereby opening up opportunities for growth and improved living standards… To pursue the task of Rural Development and Integration with all vigour, bring the benefits and dividends of our democratic governance to every nook and cranny in the state, and provide basic amenities of life to all … To provide trade, commerce and tourism between Akwa Ibom and the rest of Nigeria, and in fact, the rest of the world.”

Six years down the line, the Udom administration has achieved so much in the course of transforming the Land of Promise from a Civil Service State, to an industrialized state. In the concluding part of this article, I highlight the achievements of the Udom led administration in the areas of health, education and security among others.

Industrialisation

The most important the goal of the Emmanuel Udom administration is to aggressively industrialize the state and continue to attract foreign investors, ensuring that the environment is made favorable for investments. The goal is to make Akwa Ibom the industrial hub of Nigeria. The government has started begun the industrialization process and has already recorded so much success.

While presenting the 2021 budget tagged the ‘Budget of Economic Reconstruction’, His Excellency stated that “It is our earnest belief that at the end of the budget year, the state will have moved very close to actualizing the dreams and aspirations of this administration, which is to transform this state from a ‘civil service’ state to an industrialized one”

In line with its industrialization drive, some of its ongoing and already completed job providing projects include the following: Coconut Plantation and Refinery, Quality Ceramics, Eket International Market, Eket, Phase 1, Ibom Airlines, Uyo International Market, Oron International Market, Tropicana Shoprite Mall, Ibom Deep Sea Port, Ibom Industrial Park/Jetty, Plywood Manufacturing Factory, Power plant, Jetty, Refinery, Gas processing plant, Waste to Wealth Plant.

Aviation Development

Ibom Air currently has a fleet of seven bombardiers CRJ 900 aircraft, and currently covers 6 destinations (Uyo, Lagos, Abuja, Calabar, Port Harcourt and Enugu), and makes 22 flights daily. The airline is considering domestic expansion in its travel routes. It may soon add the newly inaugurated Bayelsa International Airport to its domestic route network after the Bayelsa state government approached the Government of Akwa Ibom over partnership possibilities. The choice of the airline to serve Bayelsa was predicated on Akwa Ibom’s proximity and the smooth relations between the states. Furthermore, Ibom Air will soon expand its operations into Gambia. Following his meeting with the Gambian High Commissioner to Nigeria, Mohamadou Musa Njie, Governor Udom stated as follows “We are actually planning a regional flight with Ibom Air, so we hope by next month we should take delivery of two brand new A220-300 series Airbuses, we want to use that for regional flights. I will get this to be discussed at the directors meeting of Ibom Air so that we can also consider Banjul”. In June 2021, the two new A220-300 series were added to the Ibom Air. While receiving the new aircrafts, Governor Udom stated that 10 Airbus A 220-300 series will be added to the fleet of Ibom Air before his tenure elapses in 2023.

Human Capacity Development

Revolution in the education sector forms the crux of the Akwa Ibom State Government’s focus. This revolution, best described as war in the education sector, comes with a physical revamp of infrastructure, retraining of teachers, employment of new ones and security of facilities.

Governor Udom Emmanuel made this known on Saturday, January 2, 2021 at the Government House Banquet Hall, during a special solemn assembly to usher in the New Year 2021 and rededicate the state to God. He said “In 2021 we have declared war on education the same way we declared on healthcare in the state before Covid-19. We have a comprehensive education agenda…We’ve mapped out. We have an education think-tank. We’ve linked up with all the Akwa Ibom eggheads across the world and we meet with them on zoom; wherever you are, once we know you have something to contribute to the development of the state, education-wise, we contact you…We have been compiling and we are going to launch out aggressively. We will start with physical infrastructures of those schools…We will train the teachers; all the secondary schools in Uyo must be fenced round beginning from this January and we will provide security men in those schools to keep the facilities we buy in those schools. Let us correct this anomaly”.

Health

Governor Udom Emmanuel has left no stone unturned in the revamping of the health sector for effective healthcare delivery for the people of the state.

Before now, a great number of hospitals in the state were in the state of ineffectiveness with decayed structures, insufficient medical equipments for. In other cases, some of these hospitals were secondary habitats for reptiles: Ituk Mbang General Hospital, Ikono General Hospital, e.t.c, are good examples .

While the state government has intensified efforts to establish new hospitals across the state, the already existing ones are receiving a facelift. For example, General Hospital, Etinan, has been reconstructed and equipped with top-notch medical equipment. Residents of Ikono can attest to the fact that the General Hospital, Ikono, has not just been reconstructed but now has state-of-the-art medical equipment installed in the hospital. To ensure the procured equipment are utilised to the fullest and manned properly, 20 Biomedical Engineers were trained for maintenance of equipment while they will train others in turn.

While commissioning the remodeled and reconstructed General Hospital, Etinan, on September 23, 2017, and in appreciation of the feat recorded by Governor Udom Emmanuel in the health sector, the Vice President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo stated thus: “This is an extremely useful project, it is the type of project, I believe touches the lives of the people directly”.

Immanuel General Hospital, Eket, has also been remodeled and equipped. The hospital has been digitized to cater for healthcare challenges in line with the current times. It has been equipped with the most modern intensive care unit facilities. While commissioning the hospital, the Governor maintained that he was going to extend the same to Ikot Abasi and Ikot Ekpene General Hospitals

Sports

It came as no surprise to many when His Excellency was awarded as Sports Governor of the Year 2017 by the National Sports Award, which aims to appreciate, honour and reward outsatanding sports men and women who through their performance on the international stage, have won laurels and brought glory to Nigeria, as well as administrators, managers, and other stakeholders whose exceptional contributions have significantly advancde the cause of sports. In the same year, the State was voted as best in Sports infrastructure, best in grass root sports development and best in fans supportership.

From the inception of the administration in 2015, it has been from one story of success to the other in the sports industry. Within few months of His Excellency’s administration, Akwa United won the FA Cup in 2015, a record in the 53 year old history of the prestigious tournament. The same feat was repeated in 2017. In that same year during the National Youth Sport Festival held in Kwara State, Akwa Ibom emerged second position.

Security

Section 14(2)(b) of the 1999 Constitution provides that the security and welfare of the people shall be the primary purpose of government. The Emmanuel Udom led administration has done so much to ensure a peaceful and secure state. It has attained the status of the most peaceful State in Nigeria. Nigeria Police Force ranked Akwa Ibom as the lowest in crime index in Nigeria for the year 2017. In 2020, His Excellency donated 30 new patrol trucks to security agencies. Furthermore, the administration has carried out sensitization Campaign against Child Abuse, Child Trafficking, Child Abandonment and Baby Factory in the State. It has also granted amnesty to numerous militants in the state who are undergoing rehabilitation. The superb manner in which the administration handled the security challenges arising from the #EndSARS# protest is noteworthy. His Excellency is aware of the fact that no meaningful development that take place in an environment of insecurity, chaos and anarchy. Hence, all hands are on deck to ensure there is peace and security in the state.

In conclusion, the last six years of the present administration has been one in which the government has consistently delivered on the dividends of democracy. Just as path of the just is as the shining light, that shines more and more unto the perfect day , the indigenes of Akwa Ibom state can look forward to a better and brighter future in the last two years of Governor Udom’s administration.