Date Published: 03/11/10

AKPANUDOEDEHE GOT IT ALL WRONG By Thompson Essien

Senator J. J. Akpanudoedehe’s vengeful and uninspiring show up is nothing but a bombastic extravagance to demean the well placed desires of the good people of Akwa Ibom State at enjoying good governance. The people having suffered terrible blows from years of neglect and marginalisation emancipated by a principled resolve to enthrone good governance through a customary solidarity where they challenged the interest of major players in the political landscape of the state to nominate and elect a leader with the personality, will, desire, and vision to deliver.

The Governor of Akwa Ibom State knowing fully well the conditions under which he was elected has brought about sweeping reforms, development, and a generational shift to justify his mandate and as such is putting in place key developments in the areas of state-of-the-art infrastructures, cutting edge services and all round people development aimed at making us a dynamic, productive, and prosperous people.

Akpanudoedehe’s style of politics does not fit into the jigsaw makeup of today’s Akwa Ibom political structure. What is expected of him to find relevance is to honourably take the noble seat of statesmanship and support the new breed of aggressive, pragmatic, and proactive politicians that are turning the fortunes of the state around and learn in the process of subjecting himself to political change management.

His charade of disparaging the exalted office of the Executive Governor of Akwa Ibom State with ridiculously trivial  issues of kidnapping and his possibility of incumbent re-election in 2011 that he is jittery about does not portray him as meaning well for the state but a loner in pursuit of personal aggrandisement from presumed settlement.

Granted, the simultaneous development of several urban centres in the state may have attracted unwanted criminals who are counting on catching the inhabitants off guard. People do not necessarily raise their lifestyles and flood themselves with articles of ostentation expecting to be swarmed by criminals. While the federal government is supporting the state through law enforcement agencies and the Governor is reeling out strategies, legislation, and boosting security as a deterrent measure, it is irresponsible of citizens to point accusing fingers on the state government as being involved in this shockingly evil crime of kidnapping.

The questions that come to mind are: Is it so that state officials share from the ransom? Is it so that they destabilise their own government? I am miffed. One then wonders if the interest of those pointing accusing fingers on the Government over kidnapping in the state should not first be investigated.

On Governor Akpabio’s re-election, that is not for today or for Akpanudoedehe to be jittery about, that is directly to be based overwhelmingly on The Governor’s scorecard on delivering the mandate of the people and dividends of good governance.

Akpanudoedehe should appreciate governance as a sacred responsibility that has no respect for settlement of personal scores. Such seriousness cannot be trivialised for personal settlement or blackmail. It is nobody’s fault that Akpanudoedehe does not posses the capacity and staying power to be part of the present federal and state administration to the end. Be that as it may, that does not warrant dragging the nobility of the exalted office of the governor to the pages of newspapers.

Rather than coordinating his ambitions in the interest of the state and the benefit of the people. Akpanudoedehe having been part of the PDP campaign machinery in the state is in a position to shed light on the unfolding development pattern in the state based on his demonstrated convictions during the campaigns. It then becomes laughable the lack of nobility in Akpanudoedehe’s position in errantly dancing to the tunes of perceived opposition according to him. If he could not stay long enough in today’s government what gives him the impression that he will earn the respect of whatever platform he has drifted to other than that he has reached the regrettable state of a failed and diminishing politician, whose main occupation after failing is to whip up ethnic sentiments in this 21 st century. The world has moved beyond such clannish tendencies as exhibited by John Akpanudoedehe as he is popularly known.

Thompson Essien is an indigene of Nsit Ubium local government area, Akwa Ibom State.