Governor Akpabio is Gone, It's Just a Matter of Time

This Saturday (April 17, 2010) former Senator Akpan Udoedehe will be in Uyo, the administrative Capital of Akwa Ibom State, to officially open his campaign towards becoming the next governor of Akwa Ibom State. On the podium with him will be Obong Victor Attah, who has since regained and maintain his status as a political king-maker in the State. Attah will be on the podium to raise up the hands of Akpan Udoedehe, not only as a symbol for endorsement, but also to pledge his unflagging support and his blessings for the former two-term Senator.

On that day, there will be jubilation in Akwa Ibom State because it will mark the beginning of the end of a corrupt and incompetent administration of Godswill Akpabio. April 17, 2010, will for ever remain in the minds and in the history of Akwa Ibom State as a day the people decided to come out and speak, as one voice, against a government of intolerance, nepotism, arrogance, terrorism in the form of kidnapping, and a government whose leader is internationally known as someone who steals their money and launder it through a conduit of over-inflated and bogus contracts.

This Saturday, Uyo is going to be in storm. Akpan Udoedehe will address the thousands of people that will definitely show up. It is there and then that he will launch his campaign with a clearly crafted manifesto, which he will deliver to the people of Akwa Ibom State. From then on, the politics of Akwa Ibom State will never be the same again and the erstwhile dreams of Akpabio and his cronies to return to office, unopposed, for a second-term, will not only be squashed but killed, burned, and the ashes buried deep under the tears and sorrows of Godswill Akpabio and all his crumbs-from- the-table- eaters, who have been beating the drums of victory when the battle plans were still concepts.
When the information reached governor Akpabio that former governor Obong Victor Attah would be on the podium to give Akpan Udoedehe his blessings, it is reported that governor Akpabio quickly requested one of his top aides (name withheld) to make contacts with Obong Attah and use every efforts to stop his (Attah's) appearance with Akpan Udoedehe. It failed, because as soon as the news of Akpabio's moves to stop Attah's appearance leaked, prominent Akwa Ibom indigenes, from Ikot Ekpene, Abak, Oron , Eket, Ibeno, ONNA, Ubium, Uyo, Itu, and everywhere, immediately contacted Obong Attah with instructions never to yield to the pressure of governor Akpabio.
Out of desperation, governor Akpabio quickly awarded the contract for the construction of 12 kilometer Aka-Nung Udoe, which is supposed to link Ibesikpo and Asutan Local Government Areas at a cost of (please pay attention to the cost) N12.03 billion, which translates into N1 billion per kilometer. And for those who may not understand why Akpabio has all of a sudden decided to construct this road, the truth is, Obong Attah is from the area and Akpabio, in his infinite wisdom, really believes that awarding the contract now for the construction of the road would encourage Obong Victor Attah to reconsider his support for Akpan Udoedehe. What a myopia!
For months and months, Akpabio's administration has been known to harass Obong Victor Attah, as if Attah is still the governor of Akwa Ibom State. Who would forget how Attah was dismissed from Akwa Ibom States' branch of PDP for expressing his opinion as a private citizen? Who would forget the paid advertorial which chief Don Etiebet posted in national dallies to trash Victor Attah? Who would forget how Obong Attah was denied the use of Meridien Hotel for the celebration
of his 70th birthday? Who could forget the press conference, which Akpabio used to announce that Obong Attah and Akpan Udoedehe are trying to destabilize his government by sponsoring kidnappings in Akwa Ibom State? The items on the list of harassment can go on and on.
But, ever since governor Akpabio received the news that Obong Attah was about to endorse Akpan Udoedehe on April 17, 2010, Akpabio has incessantly been referring to Attah as “my mentor, my boss, my father, my God, and my Alpha and Omega.” What a comic lie!
The battle is now on and to quote my good friend, Eno Adams, “there is a new Sheriff in town.” Akpan Udoedehe has never lost election. Without the agility and the maneuverings that Akpan Udoedehe is well known to possess, Godswill Akpabio would never have become a governor under Obasanjo's style of regime three years ago. Akpabio himself knows this and that is why he is a nervous wreck. If he had a magic wand, he would not hesitate to use it to make sure that Akpan Udoedehe does not only stop entering the race, but vanish, for ever. Now I can understand the meeting, which was held in Ukana, in which plans were discussed to kidnap the former Senator, hold him, until after the election. It was God who thwarted the plans.
Akpabio Must Go so that Akwa Ibom people can regain their security and safety that they have been known to enjoy for thousands of years before Akpabio became a governor. Akpabio Must go so that another administration can come in to execute programs that will solve anger among the masses. Akpabio Must go to create room for a government that will carry out programs which will solve unemployment, especially among the youths. Akpabio Must go so that he can carry his cultist-infested government out with him. Yes, Akpabio Must go, and after April 17, 2010, it would be safe to say that Akpabio is Gone, it's just a matter of time.

Thompson Essien, a native of Nsit Ubium wrote in from Portland, Oregon, USA