Tropicana, Four Points Hotel, Uyo-Ik Road are cases of Akpabio’s unrivalled thievery –Senator Anietie Okon

Senator Aniete Okon representing the Uyo Senatorial District in the Third Republic Senate and became the first National Publicity Secretary of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP at the onset of the Fourth Republic. The elder-statesman in this interview gives his perspectives on the defection of Senator Akpabio from the PDP. Excerpts: By Emmanuel Aziken, Political Editor

What is your reaction to the defection of Senator Godswill Akpabio to the APC?

It is very disappointing, very , very disappointing for the same lack of real commitment to the principles and ideologies of enhancing the condition of the state. I have had some very vacuous statements that he left in the national interest. I think a more appropriate description should have been that he left because he could not stand the heat of the revelations of his inappropriate conduct and almost mindless vandalism of the treasury of the state and of our commonwealth.

So when he talks about reconnecting Akwa Ibom and the federal government, how do you make of that?

It is completely illogical. It is akin to the statement which some criminals when they are caught always say as a cause for redemption. Some people of this state have asked some of us why did we not take action earlier. They say that until a crime is committed and discovered, you don’t know that it exists. It will be difficult to find harsher words for the basic elements of treachery of the cause of our people, that is what the defection amounts to. The only things that he had achieved in public life, the opportunities had been granted and provided by the people of the state.

 Associates of Akpabio allege underperformance by the present government?

That is laughable. In what areas?

They talk of uncompleted projects such as the Ikot Ekpene Sheraton, Ikot-Ekpene-Uyo road and Tropicana Entertainment Centre

I don’t want to use very harsh words but that entire catalogue is synonymous with his now revealed character; character of essentially making so much din and noise Tropicana was started two or three years before he left office. He said it was his legacy project and after billions had been supposedly spent on it, why was it not completed? It was started also before the Sheraton project which is in itself an epitomisation of corruption. The act of unrivalled thievery. If he says that it was not completed, what of the noise and fanfare about commissioning the project, so it was just a scam! The Ikot Ekpene – Uyo Road that he has talked so much about was awarded about 2012 at about N28 billion but by the time he left office escalations and variations had taken it to over N54 billion and at departure it was at N74 billion and the state had paid out more than half of the original contract sum. We don’t want to cause so much distraction because the catalogue will be an embarrassment. It will now expose the real meaning of the uncommon tag that he was given, it will now be seen as uncommon act of fraud against the people of the state. Beginning from the airport, you will go and find out that the contracts for the two terminal buildings one for the international operations and the other for the domestic terminal had been paid for. And all you find there are pillars, not to talk of the Mainteanance and Repair Operations, MRO had also been paid for. The current governor has adopted the policy of looking forward rather than looking behind because if we had gone into the books of the state earlier on, there would have been so much turmoil from different quarters of the state because here was barefaced thievery. It is important that his defection took place the same day that the state accounts were frozen by the EFCC and that was supposed to create a state of chaos but as it were, he will keep running and at the end of the day his acts will even embarrass him. Today, you can see the sorry picture of him genuflecting before President Buhari.

What do you think caused him to defect?

Catalogue of crimes.

 He is running from EFCC?

As you would have seen in a national newspaper today, (Saturday, September 1) he seems to have a heavier baggage than others to account for. You know the APC waves a wand of forgiveness whenever they go to surrender all their sins are forgiven.

Given the insinuation that he is an institution, do you share the opinion that his defection would negatively affect the PDP in Akwa Ibom?

He has always gone around with a lot of din, lot of noise, nothing of substance. There is no enabling logic for that and you will find out very soon. He is like Jonah, who has finally left our boat of progress. For us, it is a heave of relief. For a lot of enterprising young men and women in this state he was a cog in the wheel of progress.

How do you compare the peace now and that during the immediate past administration?

If you talk about peace I don’t know if there is anything you could have referred to as peace in Akpabio’s time because the spate of crime, hideous crime was so high that it is only now dawning now the difference. That people could move about without fear or have open disagreements without fear or violent repercussion. We can cite instances of leading citizens who were put in very difficult situations by marauding gangsters and cultists and it became an issue that at one time that he had to carry out cleansing exercise getting some of his close aides to swear that they had abandoned cultism.

What gives you the impression that Udom will win given the fact that Akpabio singlehandedly installed him governor in 2015?

That’s crap! How could he have done that? I was the tower of strength and credibility that pushed and marketed Udom because I had had previous dealings with him and could attest to his integrity, brilliance and his moral anchors.

How prepared is PDP to retain the governorship?

When we say this party is a religion in this state we are not joking. It is not mere noise. Even the attempt by the APC looking for a few people and misdirecting the funds of the NDDC. You can see the extent to which the NDDC has been wrongly employing the funds of the commission that NDDC is being given credit by Akpabio for aiding and funding the registration of members of their party.

Of the key players in the installation of Udom Emmanuel, how many of you moved with Akpabio to APC?

None, not one. Even from his senatorial district. The fact is that this state remains solidly PDP. I have always seen the APC as a contraption that will not go very far. See the type of dissonance that is reigning in the place.