Akpabio’s men declare war on Udom
.Senator Godswill Akpabio
. Accuse governor of non-performance
. Why they are after Udom – Governor’s aides
By Signor Emedu, Newslinkng.com
Two men who served as Special Assistants to Senator Godswill Akpabio when he was governor have seemingly declared war on the man their Boss anointed as his successor.
The two aides- Udoh Silas and Clement Ikpatt were Senior Special Assistants to Akpabio on Media and Diaspora Affairs respectively while Governor Udom Emmanuel was Secretary to State Government in the same Akpabio administration.
While Silas, who doubled as General Manager of The Pioneer during the Akpabio era, took to Governor Udom’s Easter message to assail him on social media, Ikpatt has been regular on social media ranting about how every government motive or decision is wrong and dubious.
Hours after Governor Udom Emmanuel read his Easter Message penultimate Sunday, Silas, a respected media figure in the country wrote: “Your Excellency, I am sure that you and your coterie of aides, would be clinking glasses and patting backs for your own Easter message disseminated to all Akwa Ibom people.
“That is as it should be. But not one of them would tell you that your message was a mere pretension to compassion. Sir, I read through your Easter message and did not find one word of hope or empathy for and with, the families who lost loved ones at the Reigners Church collapse that killed so many innocent souls under your watch. Truth is you missed an auspicious occasion to resurrect their hope and assuage their thirst in the living waters of our belief. Yet you describe your leadership as selfless, Christ-centric and People-centric. I cringe”.
Continuing in a bid to trash the governor’s speech, he continued: “ In your Easter message you described us as belonging ‘in the category of those who talk’. But you also admonished ‘those who talk’, to ‘please season your communication with honesty of purpose, integrity of heart and the salt of righteousness’. Be assured that in my ‘talk’, I would take that admonition to heart.
“Your Excellency sir, you paraphrased the late Myles Munroe in your Easter message in your description of different categories of people, enjoining us to become the kind of person that makes things happen.
Permit me sir to ask; what have you made happen in the matter of the Reigners church mishap? Akwa Ibom does not expect you to bring back the souls of the departed. You are not God.
“Your aides would not tell you; but majority of Akwa Ibom believe that the reason why you have not done anything (lets not even begin to discuss your well publicized administrative report) is because of your friendship and loyalty to Bishop Akan Weeks. There is also talk on the streets of your government’s ALLEGED complicity in the events that led to that avoidable human waste.
“Your Excellency sir, while Akwa Ibom may forgive you for the insensitivity of your Easter message, she may never forget the governor that professed the Godhead while putting a tar to the bar of justice that adorns it.
“You may have only succeeded in advertising the politics of your achievements by your Easter message at the detriment of re-creating God’s love. Please hear me sir, there is no love, in the absence of justice.
“Lest I forget sir, you said somewhere in your Easter message that you are building an international worship center that we deserve. You warned us not to play politics with God’s name.
“With due respects sir, the people prodding you on, are the ones playing politics with God’s name. What you are about to build sir is not a worship center but a fellowship center. Worship does not need an edifice but fellowship does. ‘An act of worship may be performed individually, in an informal or formal group…”
For Ikpatt, his tirades against the governor are constantly directed to demean every intention of the current administration.
In the past two weeks, Ikpatt who resides partly in America has authored three articles trending on social media for the wrong reasons.
While the first, published on April 1 2018 and entitled : ‘My comment: where is our ibaka deep seaport?’ questions the intention of the Udom administration to complete the Ibaka Seaport Project initiated by the former admistration of Godswill Akpabio the next one published three days later and entitled : ‘Udom roads in Akwa Ibom State’ claims that all the roads built by the Udom administration through its supervisory ministry, Works are grossly substandard.
A day after that, another publication also authored by Ikpatt and entitled: ‘Udom’s mall politics’ also made its way into public domain questioning and castigating the governor for abandoning the Tropicana Mall commissioned three years ago.
But why are these Akpabio’s aides descending on Governor Udom Emmanuel not minding the close affinity they shared during the days of Akpabio?
Responding to Udo Silas’ rebuke of the governor, Aniekeme Finbarr, Special Assistant to Governor Udom Emmanuel on Media said: “ Every writer has an inalienable right to free speech, provided for by the laws of the land. It includes the right to write and be read, to scribble and to publish. That right, however, does not automatically include the right to be taken seriously. The Udo Silas we know cannot be taken seriously, not on the subject matter of Governor Udom Emmanuel”.
Taking a swipe at the former Pioneer GM, Finbarr continued: “The Governor had clearly envisaged these feeble and flimsy criticisms against the worship centre. So, he succinctly said in his Easter Message to Akwa Ibom people that ‘we are building a befitting International Worship Centre. This State is a wholly Christian State. If anyone tells you we don’t deserve a worship centre as we have in other States, tell them they should not use God’s name to play politics’. If I may add, this is not also a good topic to justify monthly tokens by Udo Silas’ sponsors.
“It is the honest opinion of every Akwa Ibom son and daughter, residents and vistors, that Governor Udom Emmanuel is focused, passionate and committed to delivering good governance in the state”.
“Writers like Udo Silas do the society no good when they take money to run others down in crafty ways. Udo is not in any position to lecture Governor Udom Emmanuel on moral issues. He cannot hide under fine words and phrases to mock the sensitivities of Akwa Ibom people”.
Replying Silas on the claim that the governor is shielding Rev Akan Weeks from prosecution as a result of the ill-fated Reigners Church collapse, Finbarr said: “Udo cannot be more catholic than the pope. The Governor personally supervised the rescue efforts at the scene of the incident that day, made calls and stood for long hours to save lives. The Governor did not spare any cost in bringing in the best surgeons and consultants to treat those who were affected.
“The Governor has received the report of The Commission of Inquiry he set up to thoroughly investigated the incident and a white paper is expected. Is Udo Silas a necromancer to have seen the white report before it is made public? What does justice mean to Udo Silas? Is he expecting the Governor to arbitrarily declare people guilty, tie the noose on their necks and strangle them to death? Will the sight of that make him happy?”
Responding to Ikpatt, another media aide of Governor Udom Emmanuel, Emmanuel Nicholas says Ikpatt’s frustrations due to his inability to get a role in Udom’s administration is responsible for his recent outbursts.
Nicholas said: “Clement Ikpat, by right, should not be walking free in the Street. He should be confined by the law behind the Prison walls for his many fraudulent programmes during his tenure as Special Assistant on Diaspora Affairs.
“Clement Ikpat for six years collected over 2 billion naira from the State Government to do Road Shows in America and Eroupe to attract investors. Yet, he did not bring one single investor to Akwa Ibom State . Instead, he embezzled all those funds and converted them to his private use .
“During his last Eruope Tour, Mr Clement Ikpat, under false pretence, collected twenty five thousand dollars from one Ms Gloria Etim who stays in Germany, claiming that, Akwa Ibom State Government will refund the money .
“As we speak today, Clement Ikpatt has long recouped the funds from the State Government and he has refused to refund the money to the lady .
“Clement Ikpatt, who stole during his days with Nigerian Police Force, left the country disguised with heavy beard , and for 25 years he did not visit Nigeria.
“But with God’s mercy, he was given an appointment, that, instead of adding value to government back home , he returned to his fraudulent atitvites .
“Mr Clement Ikpat wanted to continue with the present Government, but considering his fraudulent nature, he was never engaged.
“So, he simply engages in deploying all manner of schemes to derail and compromise acceptability of the superior Performance of Governor Udom Emmanuel by the populace, which has been an uphill task for him”.
On claims by Ikpatt that roads constructed by Udom’s administration are substandard, Nicholas responded: “Clement Ikpatt is no professional to talk about the quality of Roads. In this dispensation of Governor Udom Emmanuel’s administration , the Hon Commissioner saddled with the responsibility of managing the Ministry of works , Mr Ephraim Inyangeyen, is not an office personality , but he is on the road everyday to monitor and check, if the Road is constructed according to the specification .
“Few days ago, a contractor constructed a drainage that did not meet the specification. The Honourable Commissioner of works ordered for the entire stretch of well over 2 kilometers of Drainage to be removed and a new one done , to meet up the Standard set by Governor Udom Emmanuel’s administration .
“About a year ago , Governor Udom Emmanuel also cancelled the contract of Airport -Okpedi dualization due to inconsistencies by the contractor who could not give proper interpretation of that project construction .
Governor Udom Emmanuel most times, takes out time from his busy schedule and inspects these Road projects to ensure it is properly done”.
