To an on looker, Governor Akpabio insistence that Mr. Udom Emmanuel, the current SSG must succeed him, may appear ordinary. Far be from it. That is an issue for another day. There is more to the governor’s preference successor than meet the eye.
Akpabio marginazation of Oro people during his eight years’ administration was seen by the political watchers as a deliberate plan for emergence of an Oro person as Governor of Akwa Ibom State in 2015. That was why Oro people kept quiet But the question is what has Oro as a Nation done to Akpabio to deserve such humiliation? The answer is not far-fetched. Why has Akpabio decided to make it personal and throws all decency and protocol into the wind?
According to speculation from his camp, his grouse against Oro is because an Oron Man, Larry Esin, contested the PDP Primaries in 2006 which Akpabio was one of the contestants. That, since then he has found it difficult to recover from the shock of “superior strategy” of Larry who came from nowhere to click the third position despite that it was zoned to the Ikot Ekpene Senatorial District.
In the eight years of Akpabio administration, the highest office given to an Oron man is that of House Leader which he later reduced to Chief Whip and three commissioners in the second term.
Within the same period, Annang has occupied the offices of the Governor, Deputy Speaker, Head of Service, nine juicy ministries as Commissioners.
Most Commissioners of Annang extraction, who started with him are still in his cabinet, but, not even Ibibio nation who are the majority were able to survive it. The lopsidedness of appointments by Akpabio administration permeates over every appointment be it ministries, commissions, agencies, international, national, state and local governments.
Akwa Ibom State was created on the foundation of brotherliness and peaceful coexistence among the three major ethnic groups of Ibibio, Annang and Oro. This is the tripod principle entrenched from the very beginning of the state creation to strengthen the state, ensure balance and engender a sense of belonging.
However, this is without prejudice to the inclusion of other smaller peoples such as the Ekid, the Ibeno and the Obolo ethnic groups in the even distribution of preriquisites.
Consequently, in the state, a two-fold enabling principle was mutually agreed upon by our founding elders: first, that certain political offices, sensitive key positions, should be paired in three categories or “baskets” of viz. Governor & DEPUTY SPEAKER; DEPUTY GOVERNOR & HOUSE LEADER; AND SPEAKER OF STATE HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY & STATE CHAIRMAN of the ruling political party; that one of the three paired categories should at all times be allotted to each leg of the tripod.
REGIME “A” OBONG AKPAN ISEMIN
In 1991-93, the principle was IMPLEMENTED thus:
Basket 1 (Ibibio): Governor – Obong Akpan isemin
Deputy Speaker – Barr, Grace Edim Inyang
(Later Barr. Effiong Bob)
Basket 2 (Oro): Deputy Governor – Engr. Etim Jack Okpoyo
(Chief Whip) – Chief Nelson Efiong
Basket 3 (Annang): Speaker – Barr. Jimmy Jimmy Ntuen
(Late Barr. Nse Ekanem and finally Barr. Akpan Henry Afang)
State Chairman: Dr. Lambert Udoh (National Republican Convention (NRC)
REGIME “B” ARC. (OBONG) VICTOR ATTAH
In 1999-2007, the Tripod principle was likewise IMPLEMENTED thus:
Basket 1 (Ibibio): Governor – Arc. (Obong) Victor Attah
Deputy Speaker – Elder Aniefiok Thompson
(Later Hon. Emmanuel Ekpenyong)
Basket 2 (Annang): Deputy Gover nor – Engr. Christopher Ekpenyong
House Leader – Dr. Etido Ebekwe
Basket 3 (Oro): Speaker – Chief Nelson Efiong
State Chairman – Chief Tony Emeyi
(Later Arc. Otu Ita-Toyo) (PDP)
REGIME “C” CHIEF GODSWILL AKPABIO
In 2007-2015 the tripod principle was grossly distorted and inexplicably scuttled; and ORO WAS UNJUSTLY DEPRIVED OF ANY 1ST LEVEL SIGNIFICANT APPOINTMENT, sample:
FIRST TERM OF AKPABIO ADMINISTRATION
Basket 1 (Annang) Governor – Chief Dr. Godwill Akpabio
Deputy Speaker – Hon. Uwem Udoma (later Obong Okon Uwah)
Basket 2 (Ibibio): Deputy Gover- nor – Engr. Patrick Ekpotu
(Later Obong Nsima Ekere)
(Ibibio): Speaker – Egnr. Ignatious Edet
(Later Elder Anitie Etuk)
State Chairman – Prince Uwem Ita Etuk (PDP)
Basket 3 (Oro) House Leader – Prince Jerome Isangedighi
SECOND TERM OF AKPABIO ADMINISTRATION
Basket 1 (Annang) Governor and
Deputy Speaker
Basket 2 (Ibibio): Deputy Gover nor and Speaker,
House Leader and
Chairman of the ruling party
Basket 3 (Oro) Just Chief Whip
With the tripod principle with the Annang taking Governorship and the Ibibio the Deputy Governor, the offices of Speaker and State Chairman of the ruling PDP should automatically go to Oro. It is a profound issue, there can be no equity and justice in political machinery without respect to the tripod upon which our dear State was founded.
The office which Governor Akpabio is holding is on trust, on behalf of the Annang nation certainly not for him as a person. Annang Nation should not therefore, close their eyes and allow one desperate politician to mortgage their political future for his selfish end. If this faulty precedent is sustained, it simply means that each time power rotates to Ikot Ekpene Senatorial District, the Ibibio who are in the majority will always bring a candidate from Ini Ikono Federal Constituency and our Annang brothers should not complaint.
Eket Federal Constituency had already produced two Governors – the late Brig-Gen U. J. Esuene and the late Dr. Clement Isong while Oro had Engr. Etim Okpoyo as a deputy governor. Meanwhile, Oro nation has five local government areas of Oron, Mbo, Udung Uko, Urue Offong/Oruko and Okobo, Eket Federal Constituency has four local government areas of Eket, Esit Eket, Onna and Ibeno while Ikot Abasi Federal Constituency has three local government areas of Ikot Abasi, Mkpat Enin and Eastern Obolo. In Eket Senatorial District, Oro federal constituency is the majority in terms of council areas.
In the eight years of Akpabio Administration, Eket Federal Constituency has produced two senators: Mrs. Eme Ekaette and Mrs. Helen Esuene and a minister in the person of Chief Ndueso Essien, while Ikot Abasi Federal Constituency has produced three deputy governors viz – Engr. Patrick Ekpotu, Mr. Nsima Ekere and Mrs. Valerie Ebe. President Jonathan has to overturn Akpabio’s continued marginalization of Oro nation with the appointment of Prof. Ita Okon Bassey Ewa and Mrs. Akon Eyakenyi to share two years each as ministers.
If President Jonathan from the smallest state in Nigeria, Bayelsa, with only eight local government areas could rule Nigeria as the president, it therefore means that Oro nation with five local government areas with her 70% contribution to the State’s revenue should also produce the State Governor. The time is now, because it is said that “justice delayed” is justice denied!
Governor Akpabio is an Haman of our time. We should not allow his wicked plan to stand but like Mordecai and Esther should teamed up together to save our state.
We must collectively defend the “Tripod Principle” of our founding fathers “three good brothers living in peace and harmony”. Let us not allow enemy of our state to sow a seed of disharmony, discontent and destroy our oneness. Let us together hold in check a power drunk man who parades himself as a leader but is nothing than a local champion. Let us not follow the man who bites the finger that fed him through the benevolence of zoning principle which brought him from nowhere to the Government House for eight years to triumph.
The good news is that Chief Akpabio has no power to give to anybody, be it Mr. Udom Emmanuel or Oro nation.
The power will be returned to the Ibibio Nation the majority ethnic group who will then give it to Oro nation brothers and sisters for the sake of equity, fairness and justice. Oro nation is ready to discuss the terms with the stakeholders.
Oro people have absolute confidence in the judgment of the Ibibio Nation because history has shown that they had always carried Oro people along in their administrations, unlike Akpabio’s who had forgotten so soon the part played by Senator Victor Akan for emergence of Chief Donald Etiebet an Annang man, as the Executive Governor of the defunct Cross River State.
During this period of Akpabio administration Oro nation has lost prominent sons and daughters – Hon. Ononokpono, Hon. Oyong Asuquo and Mrs. Grace Anwana. The Ibibio Nation which is the eldest brother of Akwa Ibom Abasi State will not take side with any of the two younger brothers who are quarrelling. The Ibibio Nation as the big brother should rather allow justice to prevail knowing full well that the two younger brothers are his.
Ibibio Nation, Akpan Akwa Ibom State, should prove once again that they don’t believe in vendetta governorship. As an in-law happily married to an Etoi woman from Uyo Local Government Area and like many Oro people who have inter-married with the Ibibio Nation. We shall expect our in-laws to stand by us in the spirit of time honoured custom that “in-laws cannot perpetrate an evil or harm an inlaw”.
Remembering an Ibibio proverb which says that: “a child does not run from the masquerade when the father is the one who bears the masquerade itself”, Oro nation expects our eldest brother and in-law to give Akpabio a shocker of his life (shocker of the century) at the PDP primaries where juju will be powerless, money loses its influence and only justice will triumph.
With His Excellency, Obong Victor Attah and Chief Don Etibet as the political leaders of our state and Hon. Robonson Uwak as the highest political office -holder of Oro nation we know that justice will be done in the spirit of “what is sauce for the goose is also sauce for the gander”.
For those who know the truth but allow the spirit of deceit to blind their eyes and sense of justice, we can only tell them what Jothan, the only surviving sons of Jerubaal told the people of Shechem who conspired and killed all the children of Jerubaal and made Abemilech their king. Judges 9:16-19.
(verse 16) Now therefore, if ye have done truly and sincerely, in that ye have made Abimelech king, and if ye have dealt well with Jerubbaal and his house, and have done unto him according to the deserving of his hands. (17) For my father fought for you, and adventured his life far, and delivered you out of the hand of Midian. (18) And ye are risen up against my father’s house this day, and have slain his sons. Threescore and ten persons, upon one stone and have made Abimelech, the son of his maidservant, king over the men of Shechem, because he is your brother. (19) If ye than have dealth truly and sincerely with Jerubbaal and with his house this day, then rejoice ye in Abimelech, and let him also rejoice in you.
And also to remind them that all the big names who brought Akpabio to office were thrown out by Akpabio within six months in office – what about you?
For my Oro brothers and sisters especially the political leaders of this millennium, what I am putting across is an information, the same information which Mordecai put across to Queen Esther about the impending plan by the Haman to exterminate the Jews from the surface of the earth and the reply of Queen Esther “If I perish I perish”Esther 4:12-16.
(12) And they told to Mordecai Esther’s word. (13) Then Mordecai commanded to answer Esther, Think not with thyself that thou shalt escape in the king’s house, more than all the Jews. (14) For if thou altogether holdest thy peace at this time, then shall there enlargement and deliverance arise to the Jews from another place; but thou and thy father’s house shall be destroyed: and who knowth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this? (15) Then Esther bade them return Mordecai this answer. (16) Go, gather together all the Jews that are present in Shushan, and fast ye for me, and neither eat nor drink for three days, night or day: I also and my maidens will fast likewise; and so will I go in unto the king, which is not according to the law: and if I perish, I perish.
If Esther, a young woman with all the comforts could chose to die for the cause of her people, Oro political leaders should also do the same.
Usuyak is (Publisher/Editor in Chief) Ibom International Magazine.
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