A foremost statesman and former member of the national assembly, Chief Nduese Essien has again called on the people of Akwa Ibom State to respect and accommodate the demand of Eket Senatorial District to produce the Governor in 2015.
Chief Essien, in a prepared goodwill message to the reception in honour of former governor, Obong Victor Attah, by his Ibibio kinsmen in Uyo, said in appreciating the foundation Attah laid for a peaceful and stable state, Akwa Ibom people learn to tolerate and love one another.
“As we celebrate this great leader of Akwa Ibom State and Nigeria, we should not forget our common heritage as a people whether Ibibio, Annang, Oron, Eket, Ibeno, Obolo etc, we share common ancestry and a bond that has fired us to build a great state that all of us are proud to identify with today.”
While strongly making a case on the need for Eket Senatorial District to produce Governor Akpabio’s successor in the next general elections, the former Minister of Lands and Housing said such action will further add value to the foundation which Obong Attah laid for the State.
I am particularly happy to be part of this historic reception for a man who, a few months ago, was chastised by many, mocked by associates, vilified by friends and almost sent into oblivion as if he was not Governor of Akwa Ibom State for Eight years.
Essien, who was also a delegate to the 2014 national conference, recalled that “it was his (Attah’s) tenacity, intuitiveness and adroit handling that served the conference from falling apart when a section of the country insisted on reintroducing dichotomy in oil production and taking away the derivation principle we fought so hard to attract for oil producing States.”
He asserted that, “While we recognize and celebrate Obong Attah for what he did at the Conference, I want to say without fears of contradiction; he laid the foundation upon which the present Governor Chief Godswill Akpabio has anchored his strategic infrastructural development of Akwa Ibom State.”
Having known and worked closely with Obong Attah, for a long time and particularly in the days of the resource control agitation, the offshore/onshore dichotomy and the just concluded National Conference, I make bold to say that he is a rare asset not only to AKwa Ibom State and the South-South region but also a shining light within and outside Nigeria.
The former Chairman of the South South Caucus of the national assembly made bold to state that Obong Attah and other leaders of the State fought relentlessly and “took a lot of radical farsighted decisions that have paid off today - agitation for resource Control, abolition of offshore/onshore dichotomy and fiscal federalism.
Chief Nduese Essien used the occasion to advise the people of the State reconcile their differences, maintaining that, “we are all humans and are prone to offend and hurt one another but the greatest tool to overcome resentment and hatred is forgiveness.”
He also called on the former governor to forgive those who offended him within and outside the State, stressing that “it is time for Obong Attah and all the other compatriots to reconcile their differences and work together to bring peace, harmony and development to Akwa Ibom State.”
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