GODWIN AKPAN
On Thursday, the 3rd of November, 2016, dur ing its plenary, the Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly rose to its responsibility by ordering the immediate suspension of the implementation process of the Anchor Poultry Borrower’s Scheme, an initiative of the Central Bank of Nigeria.
The action of the AKHA which pundits believe is in the best interest of the generality of Akwa Ibom people, was brought before the honourable House in a matter of urgent public importance by the Chairman House Committee on Agriculture and Mineral Recourses and Member representing Essien Udim State Constituency, Rt. Hon. Nse Ntuen, who sighted a lacuna and irregularities in the entire selection process, with multiple repetition of names, and the uncertainty surrounding the list of beneficiaries not representing the composition of the state in a proportionate manner.
This act of commitment to duty, diligence and responsibility exhibited by Ntuen and by extension, the AKHA is indeed commendable. The ability of the Lawmakers to stop a process that they considered fraudulent must be so commended by every right thinking person in our state. This singular decision by the 6th Assembly shows unequivocally that their promise to make the 6th Assembly the people’s assembly was not folk-tales after all, rather a reality. Bravo to the 6th Assembly!
In the past, successive governments in the bid to fulfil electioneering campaign promises to the electorates came up with lofty scheme and policies that will benefit the people. But regrettably, such intentions are either hijacked by a few cabal or failed during implementation; or better still, not having square pegs in square holes.
This has been the bitter pills the people of Akwa Ibom have had to swallow in many years, until this recent decision by the 6th assembly to rise to it responsibility to prevent certain ills in the system, and doing so within the ambit of the law.
History is replete with several government policies and scheme meant for the common people that failed to see the light of the day despite huge sums committed to such scheme and policies. A case in point is the Graduate Training Programme (GTP) conceived and initiated by Obong Victor Attah’s administration. This scheme was well celebrated by Akwa Ibom people, as it was a knowledge based initiative, meant to enhance the academic capacity of the youth in the state for optimum productivity.
This scheme followed the establishment or planned establishment of Akwa Ibom University of Technology, basically for research works and proficiency in specialized skills. Graduates were selected and sent abroad for research, as well as to understudy the workings and operations of foreign universities, so they could be deploy to the planned AKIUT. Unfortunately, this vision by Attah could not be realized because the graduates selected absconded upon their arrival overseas, while those who were disciplined enough to undergo the training, never to return to the state.
Most people believe that the scheme failed not because the idea was not well thought out; rather it failed because the selection process for the beneficiaries was faulty. The failure of this policy is described till date by many as the biggest minus in Attah’s 8years, despite the huge sums and the good intention behind the policy.
Again, still under Obong Attah’s administration in 2005, an Agric Enhancement and Poultry Scheme (AEPC), an initiative meant to support and creates employment for fresh graduates failed because the selection process for beneficiaries was hijacked by politicians. One of the politicians, who benefited from the ill fated scheme, James Etokudoh, was asked by his people through protest to go and pay back the loan he collected when he was later appointed a Transition Chairman to represent his people by the same administration. ‘This is how we roll’, as my friends would say!
In 2008, precisely 2 years into the administration of Chief Godswill Akpabio, the administration came up with a Township Taxi Scheme, meant to assuage the plights commuters were facing at the time. Akpabio, had during one on his campaigns, promised to lift the face of transport system within the Uyo metropolises and put smiles on the lips of commuters, no wonder he swung into action almost immediately with the Taxi scheme. Hundreds of Ford Saloon cars were bought and brought to the state. Applications were called for interested candidates to be submitted. Things seem to be headed as planned, until party stakeholders emerged from the blues to attempt to hijack the scheme.
This never went down well with that scheme, as upon noticing desperation on the part of politicians, Akpabio suspended the implementation process of the scheme. What later followed that lofty poverty alleviation scheme and face-lift in the urban transportation system was regrettable, as 80% of the cars were burnt to ashes during the bill up to the 2011 elections in the state. This is still very fresh in our minds.
Now under the governor Udom Emmanuel’s administration, similar attempts as observed in the past by politicians to scuttle policies and poverty alleviation schemes meant to improve on the lives of the common man and woman in the state has resurfaced. Well, one thing is certain; the Udom Emmanuel I know will resist any attempt by desperate politicians to bring his vision to its knee.
Just like the 2014 teachers employment exercise was marred by untold irregularities and fraud by those selected to conduct the exercise, so much so that the governor was left with no option than to cancel the entire process to allow for a more transparent exercise, the AKHA in the same manner, moved swiftly to suspend the implementation process of the Anchor Poultry Borrower’s Scheme, a scheme if allowed to scale through, would have put the integrity of the Lawmakers into question.
This thought-provoking action by the AKHA to help bring some level of sanity to the system may not have gone down well with some unscrupulous folks who believe in taking advantage of a flawed system and policies to enrich themselves. This explain why ever since the 6th assembly took the decision to suspend the process, media campaign against members of the house by these few selfish persons have begun in earnest just to attract to themselves sympathy from the general public.
The decision of these few folks to criticize and sponsor media campaign against the suspension of the flawed scheme by the respected honourable members of the AKHA didn’t come as a surprise to some of us, as even the governor was also at the receiving end, when he took that bold step to suspend the fraudulent teachers employment exercise, where fake appointment letters were issued to innocent persons.
Perusing through some comments made by some people in the local tabloids in the state, one get to wonder why the call for a transparent and diligently followed process could offend the sensibility of ‘well thinking’ individuals, who according to them meant well for the growth of the state. We wondered why a right thinking person should questioned the decision of the honourable House to haul a fraudulent process that was not only visible to the blind but also audible to the deaf.
This simply goes to show that in this part of the world, we celebrate mediocre; we adore sycophants; we fail to learn from our past failures by doing things right; putting square pegs in square holes. We need to understand the need to follow due process in the implementation of schemes, policies and projects so as to achieve the desired goals to the benefit of all.
The present administration of Governor Udom Emmanuel and the AKHA, the People’s assembly, must be commended for their proactiveness in detecting, suspending and standing up against corruption, corrupt tendencies and corrupt individuals, whose cardinal objectives, stock in trade (if you like) at all times is to swindle the people, the system and the future of Akwa Ibom youths.
No comments:
Post a Comment