Date Published: 08/23/09

Dear Editor,

Akpabio's 'heavenly' and other endorsements

If I were Chief Godswill Obot Akpabio, the sitting governor of Akwa Ibom State, I would go home and sleep and not bother doing any type of campaigning for my second term bid because it is already sealed.

In the print media of recent it has been articles on how a newly consecrated bishop and owner of Destiny Tabernacle Church in Uyo, Cletus Bassey, had laid his hand on the head of the governor and handing him over the symbolic key for his second term bid. What I seem not to understand is why Daily Sun newspaper in its version, after posting on the front page a picture where Bishop Cletus Bassey was laying his hand on Akpabio had to in its inside page came out with the headline “How a cultist became a Bishop”;a headline capable of conveying different meanings to different (individual) readers. 

The bishop announced that Akpabio is someone who is already in his second term but only waiting for the formal inauguration. The elated governor instantly (or was it pre-arranged) announced donation of SUV Jeep and also an undisclosed cash donation to the bishop. The governor further ordered the State’s Ministry of Works to ensure that the road leading to the church was constructed with immediate effect.  What if at the end he fails to be governor again; ‘God’ then becomes a liar?

Next was Mboho Mkparawa Ibibio’s in special ‘road show’ session for Akpabio’s second term endorsement; the governor there and then at the function rewarded the group with cash donation of N50million. Few days back, it was the turn of some NANS national executive members that visited Akwa Ibom (and the universities are still down with ASUU strike) to add their own ‘voice’ on the governor’s second term bid; action which was captioned by the National Life newspaper of August 15, page 46 as “The limit of Aluta & NANS’ praise-singing”; and allegedly, there was monetary inducement. The governor does not need all the above to secure his second term bid..

Dr. Thomas Uduak-Abasi,

Plot 839 Ozumba Mbadiwe Road,

Victoria Island, Lagos State

uduakabasio@yahoo.com