Akwa Ibom @ 27: The people speak

BY KENNETH JUDE

As the State marked its 27 anniversary last Tuesday, many have continued to share their views on the unique occasion and what it means to the government and people of the State. While some of those who spoke with The INK extolled the State Government for massively developing the State, others picked holes in some of the projects.

Speaking with The INK recently, Mr. Kelechi from Abia State who has been in the State for a year and six months expressed his feelings on the celebration this way: “i used to come here from time to time and from my interaction with the people and environment, I decided to relocate to the State because of the peaceful disposition of the people. what I like most in Akwa Ibom State is the network of roads and the serenity of the environment and it’s far from what i used to see where i lived before coming here. In fact, it’s the serene nature of the environment that attracted me to Akwa Ibom”. 

When asked what he thinks the State government can borrow from other States like Abia in terms of commercial activities, he stated that the problem with some people is their over dependent on the government: “The people here think the government should do everything for them. In modern governance, there’s no way the government will prepare food and still place it in your mouth. The government can only evolve policies that will support the people in their endeavours. And when these policies are made and you refuse to do anything, other people will come and take full advantage. They have created the atmosphere, it is now left for the people to key in”.

On Governor Godswill Akpabio, he had this to say: “when i first watched him on TV, i was amazed and said to myself that Akwa Ibom have a very good product here. In fact, i doubted if he is from Akwa Ibom State. When i came to the State i appreciated his developmental strides and came to a conclusion that he has many things ‘upstairs’. In as much as one cannot satisfy the needs of everybody cause he can’t be loved or hated by all, one thing i’ve seen is that he creates results irrespective of what the people are saying. Criticism is good for democracy to grow, but it should be constructive. But when criticism is done or zeroed down to ethnicity, it’s bad. He further advised the youths not to allow themselves to be used by desperate politicians to achieve their mandate, noting that doing so is mortgaging their future to satisfy the desires of those, he claimed have made it already in life.

He cautioned the youths not to give out their lives as sacrificial lambs by way of engaging in thuggery and other anti-social lifestyle. “the problem with most of the youths is that they are not enlightened; one must not go to school to know what is the best for himself”. He adviced aspirants to go about their campaigns in line with democratic ideals. Mr. Obinna who is a business man stated that the State has come a long way in the areas of infrastructure especially in the dualisation of road and construction of new ones. He however called on government to focus on empowering the people noting that there are many people who have nothing to do and thus constitute a threat to the society. He also called on government to set up more industries to absorb the army of unemployed youths in the State. He further expressed dismay over the high rate of shopping outlets in the State, calling on the government to set up a regulatory agency to regulate the rate landlords charge on shops. “These days, the rate paid for a shop is outrageous. Some landlords collect upwards of 15 to 25 thousand per shop. And most of the times, we hardly make sells that cover the amount we pay”. He noted.

A man who gave his name as Ubokudom Akwa Ibom expressed dismay over the relation of our native tongue to the background, noting that it’s a big setback for the State. Hear him: “The biggest disappointment I have seen in the past eight months i have been in the State is that our people do not like to speak their own language. I’ve lived among the Yorubas an even the professor of English in Yoruba communicates in Yoruba with his people, same thing for Hausas and Igbos”.

He called on government to put in place policies that are people oriented, noting that any policy that is not people centred is fraudulent. He further added that government should expedite action on the Ibaka Deep Sea Port as such, he noted will witness an influx of industries and create employment for the people. he called on the youths to be proud of their culture and belief in themselves and not constitute themselves into beggars.

“Where I live in Rivers State, most of the hospitals are owned by our people. This shows that our people are industrious and hardworking”. He submitted.