Akwa Ibom State Government And Accountability

You always say to me:
Manna falls no more
But now I say to you
That manna falls still
And no fall in its fall
But stops in the trays of few
Fixed high in the sky
Who must BLOCK its fall
To us here below.
- Joe Ushie.

Accountability is one of the key characteristics of any governance which makes the people to support a government. But a situation where some vital issues regarding the state's resources are made to be hidden from the people, then there must be distrust, perhaps a revolution.
Though the Akwa Ibom State government naturally would not want its citizens to be aware of the facts that the state (as at now) takes home the highest allocation from the Federation Account on monthly basis; information at our disposal has it that the state takes home in every month a whopping sum (of) between N10 billion and 20 billion (minus excess crude oil fund).
Besides the monthly allocation and excess crude oil money, the state is also making billions in every month through internally generated revenue.
Investigation reveals that recently the state government has received close to, if not above two hundred and thirty nine million dollars ($239m) as its own share in excess crude oil. This is followed by Rivers state. But the main focus of this article is to assess how much of that amount or what percentage has been used in for the betterment of the people. The government has made people to believe that it has done much, whereas it has not even near the mark. What the government is busy doing is planting bill boards every where in the state, singing its own praises and telling people that much has been done.
In the area of roads construction, one can not compare the numbers of roads with the amount of money accruing into this state from the Federation Account. The few roads so far constructed in Akwa Ibom state are: Abak, Etim Ekpo-Iwukem road, Abak - Ikot Ekpene road, Ika road, Abak town road (and about six others in Ikot Ekpene senatorial district). In Uyo senatorial District, the roads so far constructed are: Use Ikot Amama road, and Ekim Itam Ikot Oku Ikono road. Other roads either commissioned or yet to be commissioned, but unfortunately regarded as projects of this administration, example, Oron road linking to airport, were inherited from the immediate past administration where a greater percentage of the contract sum was already given.

Roads like Enen Nsit and Aka Nung Udoe are made to suffer, yet a greater part of the contract sum has been given to Sinoeng (a company rumored to be owned by a member of the governor's family). Now that same road is given to another company, at yet another exorbitant rate. Though the people are not made to know if part of the money that was given to Sinoeng has been retrieved.


In Eket Federal Constituency, there is much noise about massive road construction, yet when our investigation crew visited the area recently, what was on ground cannot be compared to the noise in radio, television and news papers. In Oron Federal Constituency, especially in Oron town, majority of the streets are still under construction. One funny thing is that in all the so called constructed streets, the governor's bill boards with the inscription: “the promise keeper” are planted. This shows that the roads are haphazardly done so as to garner the support of Oron for the governor's second term bid.
The same thing is applicable to Eket where few streets are constructed, yet the people are made to listen to praises.

In Ikot Abasi Federal constituency where the Deputy Governor, Engr. Patrick Ekpotu hails, few (between 2 and 4) roads are constructed. Roads constructed are not counted in numbers but in kilometers. It is very wrong to hear the government says that (example) so so and so numbers of roads are constructed at so so and so place; instead of saying that so so kilometers of roads are constructed at so so and so place.

In the case of other infrastructures, the present government is lacking behind considering the money accruing into the state. The government has rehabilitated few primary/ secondary schools, constructed a library at Uyo, builds a fly over and is embarking on Tropicana Galleria project. But the question that one needs to ask is: “at what cost?” Investigation reveals that one kilometer of road, especially those awarded to Julius Berger is constructed at the cost of one billion naira unprecedented in Niger Delta! Investigation also reveals that a Kilometer of road in the Niger Delta region is constructed at the rate of (less than) four hundred and fifty million Naira. Why then is that of Akwa Ibom State different!
Global Concord also learnt that each class room block so far renovated under Akpabio's inter-ministerial direct labour job costs a whopping fifteen and seventeen million naira. This is incredible!
It is no longer rumor that the state government billed 33 billion naira for Tropicana project, and so far 11 billion naira has been released for the job, yet nothing is seen on ground.

With almost, if not above a trillion naira in Akwa Ibom State, there is much hunger in the land. Why should there be hunger when the state is the richest in the Federation. This shows that the government of the day lacks the political will to create the employment, revamp ailing industries, construct new industries, and save the people from hunger.

Why should there be plenty of money yet there is insecurity, political killing and kidnapping in the land? What those in the government do is to protect their interest without accountability.