Ekong Sampson: Playing the middleman role

BY ATAIFIOK USEN

I have never met this man called Ekong Sampson, possibly because I have not had that close ranks dealings with politicians or public office holders (whichever category he prefers falling into). However, in all these years, I have been  acquainted with the state polity and the history of government in the state, enough to know that the said man is properly addressed as Rt. Hon (Barr) Ekong Sampson, being a certified lawyer, and having held a few political offices in the past- from chairman of council, member of two assemblies in the state legislature, to his last as commissioner for rural development and presently, special adviser, political, legislative affairs and water resources to the incumbent governor.

As long as fate never made our paths cross, all we had in common was the common patrimony of Akwa Ibom State where we are both indigenes, until recently when I listened to him speak on radio during an interview that featured him. Then it became obvious we had something more in common than just sharing one state of origin.

Apparently his first public outing since taking up duties as the governor’s adviser, in the interview which I was supposed to be a passive audience, this man caught my interest simply when he reasoned in conformity with my ideology of politics and administration- an issue I had long identified and held as a major contributing factor to the stagnation of our country, Nigeria in terms of administrative progress.

Hearing him ntroducing the maxim, “politics through policy”, which he went ahead to explain as a guideline to the blueprints of his new office that will pay a takeoff focus on a total reorientation of the citizenry as regards reawakening their consciousness to the fact that our desire to join the world class of genuinely developing, and hopefully, developed states can only be possible when the desire to attain political heights is subsumed under high regard for laid down policies, I felt this urge of having an exclusive discussion with him instantly kicking in me.

It is no more a scarce knowledge that Nigeria has lost so much over the years to political interests, and the reason is simple. Our fellows in positions of authority in past and present times have always subjected policy making to a scrutiny process guided by personal (political and financial) benefits. By so doing, our development potentials have always lost credence to the interest of very few individuals who only constitute less than one percent of the country’s overall population. This is rather unfortunate.

Before Ekong Sampson’s affirmation of this fact, a Nigerian born economist in a paper he presented during an economic summit I attended in Lagos had put clearly that Nigeria is yet to record a genuine economic progress because too much focus is paid to politics and political power play by its leaders. Sadly, even with the serious economic challenges starring at us with an eyeball-to-eyeball concentration, very little or no efforts at all is paid to this. Back to Ekong Sampson and the Akwa Ibom context.

Being an integral part of the Nigerian entity, Akwa Ibom as a state is yet to stand out convincingly as being free of this virus. Governments in the past and present have been unable to run without being identified with this negative feature, not because the heads mesnt no well, but because some bad hands, sadly, found their way into the operating structures of these governments. Favouritism and personal relationship were meant to override merit and due process; the benefits of government programmes no longer got to targets, as they were misdirected and misused to relatives and allies of the channels. Hence, making uselessness of genuine efforts on the part of the heads and other good hands in the structures, and a gradual decline of confidence of the citizenry in the government was what we had as a result.

This is not just lying with those within the corridors of power. Virtually, if not every citizen (in the Akwa Ibom context) has had a contributory role in this spoil. Even at the least of social gatherings, those in positions of authority are commonly seen in this practice of misuse of power, making it relatively difficult for one to venture into a strange terrain hoping to meet his target only with the confidence of having the required qualification.

With this ugly seed sown, may I now send my words of commendation to the Ekong Sampson man who has through his ideology, shown understanding that until this spoil is properly fixed, it will remain a major challenge which every emerging government stands to inherit, and which the need to tackle will equally remain an invisible part of whatever blueprint the emerged government with put up.

I am yet to know his plans for the water resources part of his portfolio, but I believe he understands the home terrain well enough that his capacity to deliver cannot be doubted, especially as it concerns fixing the far less active water regulation system and reckless borehole drilling activities being very common in the metropolitan cities in the state.

Agree with me or not, with the Ekong Sampson man playing the middleman role between the governor and the political class on the one hand, and between the governor and the legislature on the other hand, his boss, the governor is sure to enjoy the best moments of his relations with both sets of people. This is so because in the political aspect, he is well grounded with the power demystifying theory and as well understands its importance in a democratic setting where government is required to descend from its olympian heights and settle with the people so as to achieve a fast-tracking process of meeting the yearnings of the citizenry.

On the other hand, his well grounded knowledge in (contemporary) parliamentary practices will sure guarantee useful advices that will keep the governor and his led executive arm always in the right track with the legislature. Having earned the “Compendium of the 5th Assembly” title during his second missionary journey in the state legislature, I have the belief that this man will leave no stone unturned in proving the worth that earned him this honour. 

Finally, let me put my pen to rest by hoping that his consistent years of sujourn in the state polity and governance would in the end, be seen to have equipped him with the requisite knowledge and experience which prepared him for future tasks concerning state and by extension, nation building. And should this be the case, I forsee the Mkpat Enin strong political wig receiving a pat on the back for a job well done.