Between Ubong and Don Etim-who’s lying?

BY DAN ETOKIDEM

 

Ubong had alleged that he took Don Etim to see  Governor Akpabio for the first time which facilitated Don’s appointment  as a commissioner.

True or false? This we all know is true. Before now, Akpabio has snubbed Don Etim severally at Bekado’s house and the residence of the Late Chief F.E.J. Etim. It took Ubong’s interaction for Don to have audience with the Governor which paved the way for Don’s appointment into the State Executive Council.
Don Etim has been accused of collecting passports of some Ikot Ekpene indigenes in 2011 with the promise to send them abroad for Foreign Scholarship which he never did- True or False?. 

 Again this is true. When he saw that he was about losing Ikot Ekpene to the then CAN ahead of the 2011 Governorship election, Don Etim in an act of desperation, used the foreign scholarship bait as a decoy to get the people to supporting Akpabio. Till date, none was sent abroad. 

Ubong is not alone in his attack on Don Etim. Amayam people for instance have cried out over perceived marginalization by the present government. Can Don Etim fault that too? What of allegation of land grabbing by public officials who allocated free lands of the area to themselves to build their houses. Can Don Etim deny this?

Rather than respond to these allegation, Don Etim cowardly spoke through some sycophants accusing Ubong of a 20 year old problem between him and his father, including lying that Ubong was once cursed by his father, an allegation the father has confirmed as totally false. But again, what has that got to do with issues at stake.

Don Etim cannot ignore the  bitter truth like the Finance Minister once said that poverty walks on the streets with a dagger looking for who to kill. In trying to launder his image, the jesters paid by Don Etim  ended by being a P.R disaster. I expected him to answer to questions and issues raised by Ubong and not spending close to N15million trying in vain to dethrone Ubong as Ikot Ekpene Youth Leader. In the past three months, Don has spent over N30million to buy over Ikot Ekpene youths who have vowed to prove who is popular come 2015. This is desperation mixed with fear. 

Don claims to be a wealthy man but is suffering from poverty of the mind. As John Basco Ekanem noted, “the wealthy attracts people to himself and in him there is always the interplay of patronage and clientage. The rich is not rich unless there are many people in the corridors of the rich. Therefore, the economic wealth is not wealth in the real sense of the word if the wealthy has nobody to “eat” his wealth. Prosperity does not only cater for the individual who prospers but also for the poor and the entire community. This is the real essence of plentitude. In Annang land, what falls from the table of the rich are not mere crumbs, but real bread, bread that is a collaborative venture. And those who benefit from the droppings of a the table are not just the poor and the needy but also representatives of all social strata right from the extended family to the kindred and even beyond. 

The story by Mr. Dan Etim in defence of the commissioner only helps in confirming the plight of Amayam and Ikot Ekpene people over the gross reflect and marginalization by their fellow Anaang brothers. The only bone of argument by Mr Dan Etim is that it is not Don Etim’s fault but the Governor who does not listen to two or his most assumedly trusted advisers in his cabinet.
The pettiness and childishness of the commissioner’s defence is condemnable and his unintelligent apologist in trying to divide people’s family by attempting to knock heads together by pitting father against son, brother against brother etc and disgustingly appaling enough and very unbecoming of a person of his character, transferring aggression on others by accusing someone’s innocent wife of adultery without concrete prove. 

While not trying to be an apologist for Ubong Etim I fell that issues were raised and if there has to be any response at all it should be issue based instead of attacking character or dragging other innocent people’s well earned reputation into the mud. I expected to hear the apologist mention at least 20 names or more beneficiaries of the alleged 400 people that were given brand new cars by the commissioner in response to Ubong’s accusation that he is lying. I also expected the apologist to mention at least one person out of the lot whose passports were supposedly collected from Uruk Uso village to be sent abroad or locally for masters or whether there even was such an understanding or not. I also  expected as part of the response by the commissioner’s apologist to either hear that the commissioner sponsored any elderly person or children treatment within the community at any time there by saving lives or other practically observable human and people oriented interventionist scheme in support of his principal, instead of the blame game.

Its obvious the commissioner has not empowered any Uruk Uso  indigene apart from periodic crumbs in which he does not once in a while when he steps out of his maximum security enclave like a mafian Don in a third rate movie surrounded by fierce looking security men and dogs. I expected at least one or two community people to come out to counter the allegation by presenting themselves as beneficiaries of the much acclaimed empowerment largesse or publishing of a contract award from the works ministry being the biggest contract awarding ministry in the state instead of select immediate family members becoming apologist to him. Or are they the only beneficiaries of the acclaimed empowerment?