The shake-up in the Akwa Ibom State executive council has long been expected; therefore, when it came last week, it was no surprise. And in the estimation of many observers, it fell below expectations in some ways.
Timed perfectly to coincide with the inauguration of the new leadership committee of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) in the state, many felt the cabinet reshuffle was not far-reaching enough.
Some commissioners were dropped; some swapped their positions while many others retained their offices. It was the first of such move since Governor Udom Emmanuel, a banker-turned politician assumed office in 2015.
Given the circumstances in which Governor Emmanuel took over from his predecessor, Godswill Akpabio, it was expected that he would inherit some commissioners and some members of the state executive council were actually appointed for him ahead of his inauguration on May 29, 2019.
Since some of the commissioners have spent more than five years in office, the expectation has been that they should have exited the cabinet before now to give room for others to bring in fresh ideas on how to prosecute the governor’s completion agenda which is centred around industrialisation, job creation and development of infrastructure. In addition, some of the commissioners have been in the corridors of power for more than 12 years having started as chairmen of their various local government areas.
For some, it was a deft move by the governor to assert himself as the person who is in charge, who calls the shots and who decides where the bucks stop. Also, it was seen as a bold attempt to break loose from the apron strings of his predecessor and to set up his governance structures ahead of 2023 general election.
Yet others felt that it had little or nothing to do with repositioning the economy of the state as the key sectors that would impact economic activities were not affected in the exercise. For instance, the Ministry of Economic Development was not affected in the shake-up, same as the Ministry of Finance.
However, the ministries of Education and Health had new commissioners; a development many believe was borne out of the urgent need for the two sectors to have a breath of fresh ideas. For the education sector, a lot is required in terms of infrastructure, teachers’ welfare and recruitment as well as policy direction. Last year, the state government organised stakeholders’ conference on education after much outcry but nothing has changed since then. The health sector, as it is known now, is facing the most critical moment with the outbreak of the coronavirus.
For instance, one the commissioners who was sacked, Ekong Sampson and who was in charge of the ministry of Environment, is believed to have been in power since the inception of democracy in 1999 having started from the grassroots. Similarly, another commissioner, Iniobong Essien who was in charge of the Ministry of Science and Technology until he was dropped was said to have been around since the Akpabio governorship era. So, it was a big relief in a way to bring in new faces into the cabinet, hoping that they would make the much-needed difference in turning around the economic fortunes of the state.
In the cabinet reshuffle, some of the commissioners were also given appointment into higher offices of responsibility though they have exited the executive council, and it is believed that it was a call to service as a result of their hard work and commitment in their previous assignments. One of such commissioners was Nse Esssien who was in charge of the ministry of education but was appointed as the Vice Chancellor of the state University at Ikot Akpaden in Mkpat Enin Local Government Area. In the same vein, the commissioner for health, Dominic Ukpong, a retired occupational health expert was appointed honorary special adviser on health matters while the commissioner for works, Ephraim Inyang was appointed Chief of Staff to the Governor.
In the case of the former works commissioner, Inyang, it is widely held that he performed creditably given the resources available at the disposal of government. A clear example was the construction of various kilometres of roads across the state which he supervised as the commissioner for works and most importantly, the construction of the isolation centre at Ituk Mbang in Uruan council area. It was gleefully acknowledged that the isolation centre for coronavirus treatment built within a record time of one month was no mean a feat given that the centre was adjudged as “a world class” facility.
However, with a number of roads yet uncompleted, it is believed that a lot is still required to be done in bringing all the projects initiated by the Udom administration to fruition. This, he acknowledged while handing over to his successor, Eno Ibanga. According to him, the ministry of works being a crucial department in the state due to the number of capital projects under its purview, “the success story of this government is dependent on the jobs executed and completed.” And perhaps, that was what informed the governor’s decision to appoint Eno James Ibanga, a professor of Engineering Physics and immediate past Vice Chancellor of the state university, as the new commissioner for works.
Nevertheless, the decision of the governor to drop the former works commissioner has been greeted with mixed feelings. First, many believe that the governor by removing his right hand man from the ministry of works has gone ahead to please “others” who had been his fiercest critics while at the same time denying his home local government area the position in the cabinet. Both Udom and the former works commissioner are from the same local government area.
Another sector that received a new lease of life with the appointment of a new commissioner is the information ministry where Charles Udoh called the shots before his redeployment to the Ministry of Environment and Petroleum Resources. The development saw the appointment of Iniobong Ememobong as the new commissioner for information and strategy. Many have received this new appointment with excitement and relief, expressing the hope that the sector would witness a new vista in information management and partnership between the ministry and the media community in the state. It remains to be seen how this would play out in the coming months.
Furthermore, the Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development saw a change of leadership with the redeployment of erstwhile commissioner, Glory Edet to the Ministry of Agriculture and the appointment of Ini Adiakpan as the new commissioner in charge of the ministry. Edet has been a member of the executive council since Akpabio era and late last year she was also made to supervise the ministry of agriculture when the former commissioner left.
When Edet was made to be in charge of the ministry of agriculture in addition to the ministry of women affairs, it was a decision that did not go down well with many people in the state. It was seen as bringing “two strange bedfellows” together by asking one commissioner to take charge of the two ministries of diverse interest.
Also, the Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs which was headed by Udo Ekpenyong was part of the changes which saw the appointment of Frank Archibong, a serving chairman of Eket Local Government Area as Ekpenyong’s replacement while he became the chairman of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP). By the same token, Enobong Mbobo, a University lecturer and an economist, was appointed new commissioner for education, replacing Nse Essien who was named as the Vice Chancellor of the state University.
There are also some untouchables who were never redeployed or sacked in the exercise with some of some them having spent more than six years as members of the state executive council. For instance, Nsikak Linus Nkan, finance commissioner was not affected in the shake up, so also Akan Okon, commissioner for Ibom Deep Seaport and Economic Development though he has been around for quite a while having been first appointed by former Governor Akpabio. Perhaps, the decision by the Governor to have Akan Okon remain in office has to do with the commissioner’s given task of ensuring the delivery of the Ibom Deep Seaport project which his ministry supervises. Okon is believed to have done well while he was in charge of the ministry of aviation which saw the take off of the Ibom Air, a wholly owned airline of the state government.
In all, three commissioners were relieved of their appointments, they are Iniobong Essien who was in charge of the ministry of science and technology; Ekong Sampson, formerly of the ministry of environment and Victor Bassey Unoka who headed the ministry of labour and manpower planning while eight new members of the executive council were appointed and sworn into office.
Emmanuel Ekuwem, secretary to the state government, in a statement said the appointments were made as part of efforts to “strengthen all organs of government for the actualisation of the governor’s completion agenda.”
While many would want a level of synergy between the new helmsmen and their respective ministries and the larger society, others do not feel so enthused by the changes given that the governor during the swearing in ceremony had given an indication that he would carry out another cabinet shake up by December. This means that a lot is still being expected from the cabinet members.
One newly appointed commissioner, Augustine Umoh, a provost of the college of health sciences, University of Uyo Teaching Hospital, who was named to be in charge of the health ministry takes over from Dominic Ukpong who had been embroiled in a faceoff with the state branch of the Nigeria Medical Association over the management of Covid-19. It was one appointment that many felt was in order to end the imbroglio.
With the current administration having less than three years to execute all its programmes, much is the expectation from the governor and members of the state executive council.
For instance, such projects as the car assembly plant, the superhighway project linking many coastal local government areas to the Ibom Deep Seaport and the coconut refinery project are all still in the pipeline waiting to be fully implemented.
Of particular interest is the Ibom deep seaport which has the potential of creating many jobs and boosting the revenue profile of the state and federal governments as well as expanding port infrastructure. It is one project that is keenly being awaited.
There are other projects to be executed which centre on the Victor Attah International Airport and the establishment of a flight training schools.
In a commitment during the presentation of the Completion Agenda before his election for a second term last year, the governor had pledged to improve upon the gains in his first term and “overcome challenges and secure a greater future for our state by surpassing our past superior performance.” Perhaps, this is central to what the people expect from Governor Emmanuel and the new members of the state executive council.
