Nna, it wasn't deliberate now!; Barman! Give us one one more bottle and forward your bill.

A man in my neighbourhood confided an issue in me that I should channel it to nairaland forum, for advice but begged to be anonymous.
He is stinkingly rich and indeed, the only male child and bread-winner of the family of thirteen dependants. Last month, he suddenly developed a very strange sickness that paralysed his limbs and twisted his speech. The sickness, according to his family, defies both the orthodox and traditional medications, and he is at the point of death.
Since last week, he has been taken to not fewer than 10 spiritual churches for deliverance. Surprisingly, through the spiritual ministrations, all the churches visited point to one thing as the only solution to his predicament. That he should sleep with his aging mother for three days, and after that, he should sleep with his 13-year old daughter for 5 days. Please advise him on what to do.

Irresponsive Democracy
-Mr John Samuel Inyang
Over the years, I have been watching the dynamics in the Nigeria's acclaimed democratic governance but oftentimes go back home with a bleeding heart. That my dear country-rich in corruption and poor in development. Perhaps, for the fear of being whisked away by the unknown, I may resort to making some deserving reservations. But the one fact that remains obvious is that Nigeria is magnanimously unripe for democracy. It is grossly irresponsive. The leades are aware of this unhidden fact. The brand of democracy Nigeria practices is government by the powerful, for the powerful and of the powerful. Infact, this is the only type of government that allows imposition of candidates on the gullible masses.
The crux of my concern is that responsiveness is essential for responsible government and that political support is an important mechanism in this relationship. As I always tell my students, as a politics scholar, the actions of political parties and political representatives may be more or less responsive to the demands from citizens. These actions are then judged by citizens who form their own perceptions about the responsiveness of the political system. Citizens react according to these beliefs in terms of voting in elections and expressing support/discontent and trust/distrust toward the functioning of the political system. The reactions of
citizens are then supposed to feed back to the political representatives and should preferably affect their future actions. Thus, in this way, governments that act responsive are rewarded with support and trust on behalf of the public.



By the key principle of an ideal democracy, governments should at least be minimally responsive to what a majority of people want. Democratic government is supposed to mean government by and for the people, and when government policies are seen to reflect people’s ideas and preferences, those governments may indeed be evaluated positively. Citizens are simply more likely to evaluate their political system positively when it produces policies that match their preferences.
A government that manages to act in accordance with the preferences of a majority of the citizens should thus be perceived as worthy of support and could therefore be perceived as enjoying a high degree of legitimacy.
This essay may sound ridiculously unfathomable by Nigerian politicians as it integrates what looks like strange democratic doctrine, which negates their myopic and unintelligible practice in all standards.
Very painful is the fact that the graph of democratic governance in Nigeria presents rather, a deteriorating and lopsided picture, which allows the rich to remain richer while the poor remain ridiculously poorer. What an irresponsive leadership!
MR JOHN SAMUEL INYANG IS A BUSINESS MAN, SOCIAL COMMENTATOR AND FIRST-CLASS FURNITURE MAKER IN IKOT EKPENE, AKWA IBOM STATE.

An Akwa Ibom youth has taken his position to appreciate President Buhari's transformative governance, which has brightened the faces of many Nigerians in the past six years, giving them hope and positive expectations.
Mr. Udeme Ekanem Umoren, from Ikwen in Obot Akara local government area of the state has joined millions of Nigerians, home and abroad, to hail President Muhammad Buhari for the positive economic blueprint he has put in place for the country, adding that although, many Nigerians may deny being in terms with the realities of the present administration, Buhari stands out as the best president Nigeria has ever produced since independence.
Mr. Uwem urged all Nigerians to shun ethnicity, religion, politics, tribe and support the president in his effort to transform the country and take it to the desirable height.
"There is no country in the world that can compete with Nigeria in terms of resources that can sustain many generations", he said.
He, however, lamented on the poor performance by the constituent representatives of government, which have failed the expectations of the people they were to represent. Citing the dilapidated infrastructures in Obot Akira loca government, Mr. Uwem blasted the present generation of representatives of the area for ignoring major road projects in the area and social facilities. "There is no good road in Obot Akara, but we have prominent represent Ives of the area, what an irony"! he fumed.

When Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, former President of Ngeria, was leaving the seat of power in 2007, it was alleged that he tactically and wickedly brought in Umaru Musa Yar'Adua who was perceived to be unfit to withstand the rigours associated with governance due to his bad health, as his successor. Many northerners were unhappy believing that Umaru's health was a very big disadvantage in handling the nation's top job. Chief Obasanjo's main aim was that at the instance of the death of the not-too-healthy Yar'Adua, his Vice, Goodluck Jonathan, a southerner, would automatically, according to the constitution, assume the mantle of leadership, as Nigeria's President.
No sooner did Yar'Adua start his major national assignments than signs of sickness started to surface. Medical trips overseas topped the agenda in his administration, although, he was applauded for running a detribalized governance positively marked with peace and security.
Yar'Adua died and Jonathan took over, to suit Obasanjo's alleged plan.
The northeners were unhappy and, it is rumoured in some quarters that the growing spate of terrorism and insurgency across the country may not have been unconnected with the ill machinations of Obasanjo to have tactically defrauded the north in its turn for power.
Now, President Muhammadu Buhari is about leaving the stage; it is also rumoured that the Daura-born General and politician is working out the strategies of enthroning a not-too-healthy southerner, as president, and strong and vibrant northerner, as his vice, so that what happened to Umaru Musa Yar'Adua would also happen to the southerner that will succeed him.
Now, if all northerners, including Buhari himself, should queue behind Tinubu to be the successor, it means the gospel stands to fulfill itself, as a time of vengeance.

Irresponsive Democracy
-Professor Akpan Ibanga Akpan
Over the years, I have been watching the dynamics in the Nigeria's acclaimed democratic governance but oftentimes go back home with a bleeding heart. That my dear country-rich in corruption and poor in development. Perhaps, for the fear of being whisked away by the unknown, I may resort to making some deserving reservations. But the one fact that remains obvious is that Nigeria is magnanimously unripe for democracy. It is grossly irresponsive. The leaders are aware of this unhidden fact. The brand of democracy Nigeria practices is government by the powerful, for the powerful and of the powerful. Infact, this is the only type of government that allows imposition of candidates on the gullible masses.
The crux of my concern is that responsiveness is essential for responsible government and that political support is an important mechanism in this relationship. As I always tell my students, as a politics scholar, the actions of political parties and political representatives may be more or less responsive to the demands from citizens. These actions are then judged by citizens who form their own perceptions about the responsiveness of the political system. Citizens react according to these beliefs in terms of voting in elections and expressing support/discontent and trust/distrust toward the functioning of the political system. The reactions of citizens are then supposed to feed back to the political representatives and should preferably affect their future actions. Thus, in this way, governments that act responsive are rewarded with support and trust on behalf of the public.



By the key principle of an ideal democracy, governments should at least be minimally responsive to what a majority of people want. Democratic government is supposed to mean government by and for the people, and when government policies are seen to reflect people’s ideas and preferences, those governments may indeed be evaluated positively. Citizens are simply more likely to evaluate their political system positively when it produces policies that match their preferences.
A government that manages to act in accordance with the preferences of a majority of the citizens should thus be perceived as worthy of support and could therefore be perceived as enjoying a high degree of legitimacy.
This essay may sound ridiculously unfathomable by Nigerian politicians as it integrates what looks like strange democratic doctrine, which negates their myopic and unintelligible practice in all standards.
Very painful is the fact that the graph of democratic governance in Nigeria presents rather, a deteriorating and lopsided picture, which allows the rich to remain richer while the poor remain ridiculously poorer. What an irresponsive leadership!

PROFESSOR AKPAN IBANGA AKPAN, AN ELDERSTATESMAN, PHILANTHROPIST, AND A SOCIAL CRITIC, WAS THE DEPUTY VICE-CHANCELLOR OF AKWA IBOM STATE UNIVERSITY, OBIO-AKPA CAMPUS.

Nigerian youth tasks Govt on good governance

A junior secondary school student of Ritman College, Ikot Ekpene, Akwa Ibom State, has tasked Nigerian government on providing good leadership for smooth governance, to guarantee sustainable future for the youth and upcoming generations.
William Myke Williams, 14, JSS2 student of Ritman College, Ikot Ekpene has asked President Muhammadu Buhari-led governance to provide good leadership structure under the present democratic dispensation as a roadmap to create a better future for the Nigerian youth. He said the future of Nigeria depended largely on the viability of today's youth potentials and the government's sincere determination to provide the enabling environment to develop their mental and intellectual capacities. William said that involving the youth in capacity building programmes was a necessity in view of the fact that their youthful mentality was more dynamic than the old static mentality of the old generation. Hear him: "All that the nation needs now for sustainable development is security. With enough security, there will be no terrorism, no armed robbery, no kidnapping, no banditry". " But the government must be prepared to put in place the mechanism for job generation to ensure that the youths are meaningfully employed and fully engaged", he advised.
Speaking to journalists at the ocassion of the 2022 edition of May 27 Children's Day celebration at Ikot Ekpene Township stadium, William urged governments at all levels to shun politics of ethnicity and religion and take Nigeria as their only constituency to be able to get to the pinnacle of economic and political stability. "There is no nation in the world that attains a stable economic and political level without the youth's involvement in the design of the policy measures of the place", he said.

Democracy Versus Impositocracy

Macbeth, one of the literary works of William Shakespeare, in the tragic tale of Macbeth, was a virtuous man, corrupted by power and greed. This tragedy could in fact be adequately summarized using two theories. One theory could suggest that the tragic hero, Macbeth, was led down an inescapable road of doom by an outside force, fate in the form of the three witches. The second theory could suggest that there was no supernatural force working against Macbeth, which therefore, made him responsible for his own actions and inevitable downfall.
It must be remembered that Macbeth was a mere literary work of art and as a piece of art, was open to many different interpretations; none of them right, and none of them wrong. But the text of the play seemed to imply that Macbeth was indeed, responsible for his own actions, which were provoked by unwillingness to listen to his own conscience, the weird sisters, and his ambition.
First, Macbeth ignored the voice of his own psyche. He knew what he was doing was wrong even before he murdered Duncan, but he allowed Lady Macbeth and greed to cloud his judgement. In referring to the idea of the murder of Duncan, Macbeth, first stated, “We will proceed no further in this business”. Yet, after speaking with Lady Macbeth, he recanted and proclaimed, “I am settled and bent up each corporal agent to this terrible feat”.
There is nothing supernatural to be found in a man being swayed by the woman he loves; as a matter of fact, this action could be perceived as quite the opposite.
Second, the witches had to be dispelled as a source of Macbeth’s misfortune before the latter theory could be considered. It was admittedly strange that the witches first addressed Macbeth with “All hail Macbeth! Hail to Thee, Thane of Cawdor!” a title which even Macbeth was unaware he had been awarded. Even stranger was the third witch calling to Macbeth, “All hail Macbeth, thou shalt be king hereafter”.
However, as clearly stated by some school of thought “No connection of these announcements with any actions of his was even hinted by the witches”.
The whole scenario boils down to the capacity for the external factor to influence one’s destiny and amplify one’s ambition. But be it as it may, Macbeth would probably not have ended up the way he did if he had listened to and obeyed the dictate of his conscience. Or, it can be reasoned that the tragic end of Macbeth was a deliberate literary design by Sir William Shakespeare to earn him credit on Elizabethan stage.
Again, Macbeth’s tragic fall was unarguably prompted by his vaulting ambition clearly
fuelled by the combined powers of the weird sisters and Lady Macbeth.
Another school of thought is of the opinion that the witches’ pronouncement of Macbeth as Thane of Cawdor was an imposition on the Cawdorians and a threat to their sovereignty as a nation. Again, the witches’ prophetic project had also relegated the people’s franchise to choose their own king, the king whose heroism was not only popular on the war fields, but also with the leadership qualities that would put smile on the faces of many. This is clearly branded impositocracy.
In an unwarped view of an ideal world, impositocracy could be defined as the type of government where the most powerful in the society use their resources to forcefully place someone in an authority against the wish of the masses, in order to use it as a conduit for siphoning or looting the treasury for their selfish interests and personal aggrandisements. Or simply, it is government by the incumbent, of the incumbent and for the incumbent. This version of government also implies that whoever that is imposed should agree or accept to shield the authors of his imposition from any category of indictment resulting from any level of financial misappropriation incured in the immediate past regime or so.
In recent times, This type of government (impositocracy) has assumed unprecedented proportion in Nigeria, in such a way that competence and professionalism are totally relegated in leadership.
Worried by the untoward scenario, impositocracy scholars have come to unite in the belief that this governmental concept is enhanced only in countries with high corruption index because the imposition merchants would always want to escape the eyes of the law by anointing someone who would shield them through their ccontroversial, or rather, illegal regime.
If the three witches in Macbeth, Shakespeare’s literary work of art, had sought the consent of the people of Cawdor before proclaiming Macbeth their king, their collective prayers and wishes would probably have brought a way out, for Macbeth, to achieve his aim very naturally.
In Nigeria, for example, the doctrine of imposition has been integrated in governance and has been adopted to advance the cause of our nascent democracy. Since the country returned to democracy in 1999, at the presidency, there is no president in Nigeria that has ever been democratically elected by the people, for the people and of the people. At the National Assembly, Governorship, even at the local government level, the whole business has been that of imposition by a few power brokers who constitute themselves as Cabals, a refined and latest version of cult group.
Nigerian cabals, unlike the Shakespearan witches, are inordinately bent to commit all levels of atrocities to ensure that somebody who would shield them and act according to their instructions, is imposed on the people, but the witches only announced their prophecies and left Macbeth to his conscience for eventual determination and actions.
In Nigeria, what actually are the impositors want to gain? What are they afraid of that they don’t allow the people to really elect who would lead them through the murky waters of Nigerian democracy.
Unlike the Shakespearan witches who simply prophecised and left Macbeth to implement by his conscience, Nigerian imposition architects are bent, at all cost, including using the state resources, to ensure that their choice is enthroned, without limitations thereby relegating democracy.[color=#000099][/color]

Osinbajo's Posters Flood Akpabio's Hometown
Barely two weeks after Senator Akpabio's declaration of interest to succeed President Muhammadu Buhari on May 29, 2013, as Nigeria's next president, major streets and communities, mainly, Ikot Ekpene senatorial district, in Akwa Ibom State have been flooded with a variety of posters and billboards of Nigeria's vice-president, Professor Yemi Osinbajo, as the rightful successor of President Muhammadu Buhari, whose tenure comes to the constitutional end by May 29, 2023.
Already, one of the support groups for Osinbajo's presidential ambition, which is a coalition of socio-cultural groups in Nigeria, under the auspices, "The New Tribe", has taken its south south coordination train to the streets of Ikot Ekpene, Ikono, Ini, Obot Akara, Etim Ekpo, Abak, Oruk Anam, Ukanafun, Ika and Essien Udim, Akpabio's local government area, with members and volunteers, in their "Osinbajo For President" T-shirt chanting songs of victory for Osinbajo and claiming that Senator Akpabio was soliciting cheap political relevance and, at the same time, preparing a pathway for his second disgrace at the polls citing his landslide loss of his senate re-election to Senator Chris Ekpenyong of the Peoples Democratic Party, in 2019, as one of the key determinant factors.
The group, with its intimidating structure, boasts patriotic Nigerians cutting across
diverse professional backgrounds and technocrats with the capacity, will power and mindset to make the right choice and take the right decisions at any time, not minding the nation's rough political terrain.
Last Monday, the palace of Obong Uforo Ikot Ekpene, villagehead of Utu Edem Usung and clanhead-elect of Otoro-Ubo, His Highness, Dr. Ime S. Ekpo, who doubles as the group's south south coordinator, was a beehive of activities, from cultural groups, social entertainers, musicians, to entertain visitors, when the group took its train structure to his palace to receive his royal blessings and advice.
Welcoming the over-pouring crowd into his palace, the colourfully dressed monarch said, "Your choice and support for Professor Osinbajo as Nigeria's next president is the noblest project Nigeria has ever embarked upon in her years of democratic dispensation". "I urge all of you who have seen the imperative to embrace a meaningful change in our democratic process, to imbibe the virtues and the leadership spirit of the vice-president, else, your patriotic initiative will speedily lose its merit", he advised. Dr, Ekpo, therefore, called on Nigerians to, as a matter of urgency, flee the camps of mischief makers and join the "The New Tribe", in support of the man who can truly take Nigeria to where it is supposed to be.
Fielding questions from journalists at the ocassion, Dr. Ekpo advised Nigerian youths, irrespective of religion, tribe or political standing, to make the choice that would offer them a refreshing breath of the leadership that would guarantee their future and that of the upcoming generations. "In Nigeria, we need a change and a departure from the old mentality of governance to something dynamic and of modern standard", he preached.

Receiving under false pretence!

The roaring tiger of the Niger Delta, the uncommon transformer, the man who sees tomorrow from today; what more? Carry Go!

Non-Certification of Otoro-Ubo Clan:
Ekpo writes Udom

The prolonged delay in the certification and recognition of Dr. Ime S. Ekpo as the clanhead of the reinstated Otoro-Ubo clan in Ikot Ekpene local government area has sparked wide condemnation from the public and the civil society fingering some politicians and royal fathers as the stumbling block.
It could be recalled that Otoro-Ubo clan was reinstated during the Akpabio-led administration, to bring the total number of clans in Ikot Ekpene to three, but unseen hands in government and in the royal family in Ikot Ekpene, have been working around the clock to ensure that Dr. Ime S. Ekpo, the villagehead of Utu Edem Usung, who won the clanheadship election since 2008, is denied the nod to function as certificated clanhead of the clan.
Several attempts by the concerned public and civil society organisations to correct the impasse have always hit the brick wall as the government mind may have been poisoned against Dr. Ekpo's legitimacy for the highest stool in the reinstated clan. The late Paramount Ruler of Ikot Ekpene, Okuku (Engr.) Augustus Jonah Ekpenyong Asiak, was alleged to have been, in connivance with those loyal to him,
influencing former Governor Akpabio publicly, against recognizing and installing Chief Ekpo as Otoro-Ubo clanhead. Asiak's hatred for Ekpo may have been 'inherited' by his successor, His Majesty, Okuku Okon Udo Ukut who claims that he can take advantage as an inlaw to Governor Udom to neutralize any attempt by the His Excellency to look into Otoro-Ubo clanheadship.
Worried by what appears an open robbery of his fundamental rights, he has written to His Excellency, Governor Udom Gabriel Emmanuel recounting the lane of royal lineage in Ikot Ekpene, the traditional structure and the negative forces in his administration who are also working secretly against the governor.
The letter, read in part,
"...I am a businessman and Chief Executive Officer of Incarnate Holdings Limited with chains of conglomerates in many parts of the world boasting intimidating business profile and international connections.
With this too, I concentrate on my royal duties and build my community as our forefathers had left it. Like my late father, I do not depend on the monthly stipend for chiefs, rather, I use my personal resources to complement government's capacity development effort in the community. Today, Utu Edem Usung is one of the most peaceful villages in Ikot Ekpene. That is my pride. I don't parade government's corridors looking for one favour or the other, rather, I remain in my palace to receive many classes of visitors on daily basis.
This exemplary lifestyle, I think, may not please a lot of people who see me as a threat in their ill-machinations and selfish expositions. As a result, they tactically and systematically keep me away from sensitive traditional issues; meetings are scheduled without my consent, policy-decisions are made without my consent.
They see my business background as too intimidating and detrimental to traditional governance.They believe that traditional governance system should remain static and positively retrogressive with 100% dependence on government, as the colonial authority had designed it.
Your Excellecy, sir, although, traditional rulers are supposed to be apolitical, occupants of traditional positions should have their fundamental rights. As citizens in their own rights, they should have a voice, in the sense of
contributing to the democratic process without being accused of partisanship, which, in the worldview, has the capacity to negate the belief that they are fathers to all. Most occupiers of traditional stool across the country in general, are modern, educated and career persons in their chosen fields before ascending to the stool of their forefathers.
The immediate past Ooni of Ife, Oba Okenade Sijuade, was a successful international busness man. Oba Akiolu, the Oba of Lagos, was a lawyer and an Assistant Inspector-General of Police. The Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa'ad Abubakar, retired from the Nigerian Army on the rank of Brigadier General in 2006.
and was even the Attache to Pakistan, before his coronation as the Sultan. The Gbong Gwon of Jos, Da Jacob Gyang Buba, was a Comptroller General of the Nigeria Customs Service. The traditional ruler of Oko in Orumba North Local Government Area of Anambra state, Obi Professor Joseph Chike Edozien, is a Professor of Nutrition at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge.
As custodians of history and culture, traditional rulers should be vested with enough exposure and social experience to make them useful in the reconstruction of the society because when policy neglects history, culture and social context, huge amounts of effort and resources can be wasted on poorly conceived initiatives.
Sir, lookig at this background, one should wonder why my own business career with its international connections should cause a stumbling block to my chances for royal fortunes, hence, the government's delay for my certification and recognition for Otoro-Ubo clanheadship.
It is not far from the truth that the crisis rocking the Nigerian democratic process today is the absence of viable traditional governance system capable of unifying the deeply fragmented Nigerian state..."

"Udom needs to protect his legacies”
- Dr. Ime S. Ekpo

Without any sentiment, as a royal father who is expected to be totally apolitical, I openly declare the administration of Mr. Udom Gabriel Emmanuel as God-given to Akwa Ibom State. Also, as a public commentator on issues of public interest, I have no hiding place when I feel mandated to execute my royal or, rather, social responsibilities that would be of general benefits to the people of the state. I have just discovered that although, Chief Godswill Akabio claimed to have transformed Akwa Ibom State, infrastructural, to attract foreign investors, the biggest gift he ever made to the people of Akwa Ibom was his choice of Mr. Gabriel Udom Emmanuel, as his successor. Initially, Udom's choice was received with mix feelings, which precipitated divisions among various political houses in the state. Akpabio received curses and abuses for making Udom his successor. But today, the narrative has changed. The state, through Udom, has moved from a civil service status to an industrialized level. Good road networks are everywhere of the state. Adequate social infrastructures are being put in place to agree with the principle or the manifestos of the preceding administrations.

Uyo, the capital city of the state wears a supermodern look with series of 21st century architectural outlook. Governor Udom ensures that his developmental initiatives are properly followed up to their logical end. In the educational sector, Udom has insured the future of the children of the state; in economic empowerment. Udom's administration has generated various job opportunities for our youth teeming population; in employment, Governor Udom has engaged the youth in various skills acquisition programmes to make them economically relevant; in industrialization, the Governor has established over 17 industries in the state with expartriates brought in from other industrialized nations of the world; and on security, Governor Udom has succeeded to flush out all brands of criminalities-kidnapping, assasination, robbery-in the state. This is probably, what Chief Akpabio had foreseen when he made the choice as his own successor. Also, projects that were initiated by the preceeding administrations have been completed, some redesigned before completion. Most astonishing are the beautiful road projects his administration has put in place. The Ibom Air initiative, the first state-owned commercial aircraft, which is second to none in Africa, attracts the ever-flowing interest of tourism investors. Of the various achievements Governor Udom has made, the supermodern road network with fantastic drainage brings to mind the need for proper waste management and control initiative so that the beautiful gutters don't get filled up with waste and lock up the gutters, hence, causing overflow of water current and erosion menace.

The survey I have personally taken over the years has shown that sachet water bags or waste has caused the most disturbing menace to the environment, and has oftentimes constituted total blockage to the water channel that enhances free flow of water. I
suggest the government should establish a proper waste control and management agency to act as an organ of the government, or task force, to enact any punitive measure for anybody or organization that violates the waste management and control law in the state. The state government should discourage sachet water production by empowering the pure water producing companies to divert their production initiative to bottled water, which has a controllable disposal system than the sachet water. Disposed bottled water container is more accessible for use than the sachet water waste which constitutes environmental hazards to infrastructures and facilities, thereby diminishing the beauty of the structures put down by the administration. Recycling system for disposed sachet water bags is more cost intensive than the bottled water, which container can be picked anywhere and used to store kerosene, oil or anything. Alternatively, I personally call on His Excellency, to provide a reliable disposal system for already used pure water sachet at strategic locations of the state with functional monitoring team to oversee the enactment so that the beautiful projects of his government may not be rubbished by the lawless elements in the society, thereby destroying the legacies of his divine-driven administration.

DR. IME S. EKPO IS THE VILLAGEHEAD AND CLANHEAD-ELECT OF
OTORO-UBO CLAN IN IKOT EKPENE LGA, AKWA IBOM STATE.

Lies everywhere If it's true, show her pix so that we can follow you and hunt for her. Even if it's true, why should the police pognose into the girl's private life; who knows how many men have broken her heart on promise-and-fail? She feels happier to 'deliver the goods' to the dog free of charge, KPAM!

Dear ex-Excellencies, don't panic, don't extend your fasting hours, pray moderately; the President's decision is irreversible. Very soon, you will be attending high profile meetings in Abuja. But while cerebrating your promised freedom, don't forget to go and complete your payment to ypur Malams.

The police know the culprits very well and the big men who sponsor the act will soon throw in their weights to quench the matter, so that the guys can come out and walk freely.

Tension heightens in Ikot Ekpene
...as pro-Ekpo clanheadship plan a showdown
Economic and social activities in Ikot Ekpene may be brought to a stand-still next week as a group loyal to Dr. Ime S. Ekpo's clanheadship of Otoro-Ubo clan plan to stage a peaceful demonstration in the town to register their dspleasure over the government's deliberate failure to grant certificate of recognition to Dr. Ekpo as clanhead of Otoro-Ubo.
The group, known as Transparency Initiative for Good Governance (TIGG), through its national media consultant, Mr. Josiah Umoren, said the planned showdown is expected to block major roads leading to the city, the city plaza, markets (Urua Oto and Urua Mbakara), the local government secretariat, the motor parks, and major government's facilities in the town but assured that it will be peaceful and orderly but ordered business owners to shut down their businesses throughout the period for fear of criminals taking advantage to destroy properties and loot people's items.
In a communique issued at the end of the annual conference held at the group's secretariat in Ikot Ekpene last week, the group reacted to the government's continued delay in issuing a certificate to the clanhead-elect of Otoro-Ubo clan, Dr. Ime S. Ekpo, to give him the authority to act as the royal head of the clan. The communique also condemned the reported attempts by some politicians and a section of the Traditional Rulers Council members of the place to use politics of man-know-man and godfatherism to sweep Dr. Ekpo's credibility under the carpet. The group also wondered why Udom's administration which governance philosophy draws authority from God should succumb to calumnies and blackmailing from mischief-makers, whose aim is to misdirect His Excellency's policy measures and focus, rather than strengthening the structure of his legal regime.
A member of the group who spoke to newsmen after the conference but begged not to be named, said some royal fathers in Ikot Ekpene and politicians who are in Udom's government, are building on the enmity and hatred they had for the late father of Dr. Ekpo, Okuku (Obong) Sunday Udo Ekpo Akaka, and vow to use all instruments of government to turn Governor Udom's mind against Dr. Ekpo's right for Otoro-Ubo's clanheadship and to ridicule his relevance in royal matters of Ikot
Ekpene. "It is an act of irresponsibility and moral immaturity for people to transfer grudges from one generation to another generation; patronizing them too, is another act of uncivilizedness", the source reasoned.
Obong Sunday Udo Ekpo Akaka was a first-class chief in Annang land who combined his royal voice with his unrivalled trado-medical enterprise. He was an authority in analysing the cultural heritage and ancestry of Annang people. During his life and times, his large-heartedness in accommodating the needs of the people within and outside his royal domain endeared him to the hearts of the people, while his refusal to compromise injustice, inequity and nepotism, in the discharge of his royal functions, created enmity for him, from the royal family of the place. His fame and popularity did not augur well with other royal fathers who constantly devised several means to either eliminate him or diminish his royal power.
It is belived that the remnant forces against Okuku Sunday Udo Ekpo are back on stage to use similar forces against his son, Dr. Ime S. Ekpo.
It could be recalled that election for Otoro-Ubo clanheadship was conducted among three major contestants-Chief David Ukpong Ukut of Utu Ikpe, Barr. Alban Udofia of Nsiak and Dr. Ime S. Ekpo of Utu Edem Usung. Dr. Ime S. Ekpo polled 6 votes while Chief David Ukut and Barr, Alban Udofia polled 1 and 2 votes respectively making Dr. Ekpo the winner and clanhead-elect of Otoro-Ubo clan.
After Ekpo's victory at the election, some bureaucratic forces have been mounted on Governor Udom against issuing certificate of recognition to Dr. Ekpo, to start functioning as the royal head of the new clan.
Against this backlash, the group, which philosophy is to build and encourage a harmonised society through dialoguing between the community and government, feels the only way to register its dissatisfaction is to embark on a peaceful demonstration, to remind the governor of his neglected responsibility, which the world has been watching with keen interest.
Although, the actual day for the showdown has not been decided, the public affairs department of the group says it would not exceed the first week of May.

Ikot Abia Idem Villageheadship:
P/Ruler's Secret Certification

The ship of the Traditional Rulers Council of Ikot Ekpene, Akwa Ibom State, is heading an iminent crash as membership is divided on the unethical and secret attempts by the Paramount Ruler, His Majesty, Okuku Okon Udo Ukut, to impose a village head on the people of Ikot Abia Idem without the consent of the leadership of the council, a situation considered diametrically opposed to the norms of traditional governance in its entirety. Condemned by its failure to abide by the doctrine of installing a royal father, as a successor of the preceding monarchy, popular opinions largely from the traditional family of the place collectively describe the development as illegal, unacceptable, fraudulent and clever mismanagement of royal resources and responsibilities having the capability of sinking the ship of traditional governance of the place.
An authoritative reports made available to newsmen last week have revealed that the Paramount Ruler of Ikot Ekpene, Okuku Obong Okon Udo Ukut, has singlehandedly endorsed Mr. Eshiet Ekpenyong Asiak as the village head of Ikot Abia Idem without the consent of the traditional stakeholders of the place in particular, and Urban clan, in general.
Mr. Eshiet Ekpenyong Asiak who is billed to enjoy the grace of His Majesty is the first son of the late and former Paramount Ruler of Ikot Ekpene, Okuku Obong (Engr.) Augustus Jonah Ekpenyong Asiak. Engineer Asiak, before his ascendancy to the number one royal stool of Ikot Ekpene in 2001, was the General Manager, Cross River Broadcasting Corporation and also worked with Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria. He died of heart and kidney-related complications in 2016, at 85.
After the demise of the late Paramount Ruler who doubled as village head of Ikot Abia Idem, the traditional organigram of the place for succession has not been designed for decisions by the royal stakeholders of the place. But Obong Okon Udo Ukut felt the royal costumes and regalia of the former monarch were begging for use, and somebody should step in and take control.
A source close to Ikot Ekpene TRC who spoke to newsmen in confidence last Sunday wondered why the Paramount Ruler should use the influence of his relationship with Governor Udom to undermine the authority of chiefs of the clan and urge Governor Udom to issue a certificate of recognition for a person whose father's ancestral lineage was allegedly not of Ikot Ekpene but linked to the infamous Arochukwu slave trade history that brought him as a slave merchandise by the popular slave dealer, Ukpong Inokon. The source said: "It is questionable that our Paramount Ruler is using politics in running the traditional affairs of the local government". "His relationship with the Governor as an inlaw, has added additional influence to his royal activities", a man who simply gave his name as Clement, told our Correspondent last week in Ikot Ekpene.
But it is disappointing that Governor Udom Emmanuel has stooped low to cheap influences allowing himself to be deceived thereby ridiculing the dignity of his executive seat.
Information trending the media since last month says the Paramount Ruler has successfully blindfolded Mr. Udom Emmanuel that Mr. Eshiet Asiak was the choice of the people of the village, whereas no member of the village council was ever hinted of what transpired between Governor Udom and his inlaw, the Paramount Ruler, pertaining to Mt. Asiak's choice for Ikot Abia Idem village headship, and the secret certification. "There is democratic pattern in choosing a village head anywhere; absence of this may attract undesirable consequences for the traditional generations of the community", an unnamed councilor in Ikot Ekpene local government council told our reporter recently.
While Mr. Eshiet, the purported beneficiary of the shoddy arrangement, may be anxiously awaiting his coronation as the next village head of Ikot Abia Idem, the home of Distinguished Senator Emmanuel Ibok Essien, he may be uninformed of the deadly consequences of wearing the cap that is truly not one's own.

Gov Udom's governance is transformative
-His Majesty, Okuku (Obong) Okon Udo Ukut

From whichever angle one looks at it, Governor Udom Gabriel Emmanuel is not only a proactive leader, he is also visionary and focused. A round peg in a round hole who has taken Akwa Ibom State to a greater height. Governor Udom has brought his wealth of experience, exposure and qualifications to bear on the state, thereby actualising his dream of transforming Akwa Ibom State protecting the doctrine of continuity in governance.
For all these and more, the people of Ikot Ekpene Local Government, in particular, shall forver remain very grateful to the administration of Governor.
He has brought dividends of democracy closer to the grassroots. Although, he is a PDP governor, people from the opposition parties secretly commend the governor for improving the lives of people of Akwa Ibom State in general, and for diversifying the economic base of the state.
It is believed that the governor has spread numerous projects and empowerment acquisition network to all the local government areas in the state. There is no sector that Governor Udom has not developed, be it in health care, education, youth empowerment, infrastructural development, especially roads, among others.
Knowing too well that youths are leaders of tomorrow, Governor Udom has
established skills acquisition network, vocational technical training centres as well as modern farming technology. The level of awareness of all these skills acquisition centres is relatively high and encouraging. The Governor is really posed to give youths better future. On women, Governor Udom has established sustainable empowerment scheme where women are given necessary support to stand on their own.
By maintaining the principle of continuity in governance, Governor Udom has also constructed modern structures in schools. Clinics and health care centres in Akwa Ibom State are no longer begging for repairs as he has refurbished and equipped all medical facilities in the state and qualified medical personnel are employed to offer first-class medical attention to the people of the state.
Looking at Akwa Ibom State, very critically, from any angle without any sentiments, that is, without any political, ethnic or ideological background, one can easily adduce that the successive administrations in the state have been, in their capacities, prioritized areas of utmost necessity as they would impact the social and economic lives of the people of the state. The fact that Akwa Ibom State political structure rests on a senatorial tripod-Eket, Ikot Ekpene and Uyo-doesn't widen the gap for ethnic consciousness and ideological diversity. Be it an Ibibio man, Annang man, Oron man or whatever, Akwa Ibom State remains one entity defined by a unique socio-political consciousness. The moment the spirit of ethnic differences is allowed to dominate our mindset, the force of divisiveness must set in.
In any democratic governance in the world, there is no government that is totally free from criticism, in other words, no government has ever satisfied the generality of the people. As people's problems are diffrent, so are the ways of tackling them. Some people prefer short-cut, while others would need systematic approach to issues until solution is achieved. It is this diverse needs and different mindset that invite different channels.
Akwa Ibom State has 31 local government areas, and each of these local government areas has unique needs and unique solutions to these needs. You would not expect all the local government areas to have the same phases of development; it must be different. It is this that oftentimes attracts criticism from members of other local government areas who now feel sidelined in the scheme of things.
Support him to do more for the state.
Okuku (Obong) Okon Udo Ukut is a first-class monarch and Paramount Ruler of Ikot Ekpene Local Government Area

Dr Ekpo Under Attack

Unknown persons numbering over twelve have been parading the vicinity of the palace of Dr. Ime Ekpo, the village head of Utu Edem Using in Ikot Ekpene local government area of Akwa Ibom State, at odd hours, since last week but the village leadership of the place downplayed the figure to six maintaining, however, that their chief was under siege.
The men in their late twenties and mid-thirties, whose motives were unclear as at Thursday morning, were first sighted Wednesday night, in separate congregations around the palace, at about 10.30pm, interacting with the community people. Their identity could not be easily established as each of them used face mask presenting themselves as health workers and covid-19 compliant.
One of the community vigilante members who spoke to journalists Wednesday evening on condition of anonymity said when they first saw them around their chief's premises, the impression they gave the community was as if they were community health workers, but quickly discountenanced the assumption based on the fact that it would be unimaginable for health workers to work late night, and without notice to the village leadership.
Last week, two men were reportedly spotted in the chief's palace disguising as visitors to His Highness, but suddenly disappeared throwing the palace guards who were keenly evaluating their movement from a security range, into confusion as they disappeared into thin air.
It could be recalled that last month, the village head had received no fewer than 10 strange phone calls, almost on daily basis, strange transactions in his bank account and a couple of text messages from unknown sources, a situation he dismissed as normal communication and bank's customer service error, respectively. But the recent siege around his palace by suspicious faces has left him in a sea of troubled waters.
So far, three theories have emerged to unravel the atypical development premising a possible hired assassination project by those who may have fallen out with His Highness on a number of trivial issues, and have been plotting to implicate and ridicule him in order to run down his royal integrity.
Last year, there was a case of murder in Utu Edem Usung in Ikot Ekpene involving one Mr. George who was alleged to have connived with some unknown persons to kill his younger brother, Elijah, in his apartment in their family house. The incident, which attracted wide condemnation from the entire community, seemed to have enjoyed adequaute protection from some prominent politicians loyal to Governor Udom Gabriel Emmanuel's administration, and who were from Ikot Ekpene. They quickly aided the release of George, the prime suspect, from the police custody and sponsored him to petition His Highness, Dr. Ime S. Ekpo, to the police authority alleging that the latter was threatening him and vowed to deal with him, by all means. Since George regained freedom, from detention on the capital offence, aided by his godfathers, he brags in the village that one day, blood will flow in the village.
The second theory borders on the journey to the clanheadship of Otoro-Ubo, which has suffered some 'bureaucratic' delay after Dr. Ekpo had won the election to the throne, very convincingly, some years ago. Some powerful hands in government loyal to Dr. Ekpo's oppositions to the royal seat have taken sides vowing to use any means to eliminate the latter in order to bury his dream for clanheadship.
The third theory hangs on the recent attempts by some executive and royal forces in Ikot Ekpene to disposses Dr. Ime S. Ekpo of his choice properties, especially those located in the heart of the town. The recent attempt by some agents of government
to forcefully and arbitrarily claim the portion of land where Total Filling Station is located in Ikot Ekpene provides yet another clue in analysing Dr. Ekpo's many troubles.
Perhaps, beclouded by the magnanimity of these backgrounds, one may not be unfair in linking the recent siege around the premises of His Highness to any or all of the above theories because in every rumour, there must have been some elements of truth.
But it could be a baffling development that executive forces, which would have been expended for community development, are used to molest, threaten and go after the citizen's life, for the sake of seeking for relevance or power.

CRISIS LOOMS IN IKOT EKPENE TRC:
The Hands behind

The history of inter-clan, inter-village rancour, resentment, ill feeling, bad blood, hostility, enmity, malice, antagonism and bare-faced grievances for ascending the traditional power in Ikot Ekpene, Akwa Ibom State, in recent times, is gathering unprecedented momentum making the traditional governance system of the place risky or a do-or-die affairs. The collosal effects of this ugly trend are clearly numerous- stagnated development of core traditional infrastructure of the place, lack of unity among the traditional stakeholders, vulnerability to political influences and indeed, violence, insecurity, among other things. Historians and social writers have come together to believe that lack of adequate traditional structural space, or simply put, inability to depart from the abysmally pre-independence traditional structure and expand its royal frontiers, to accommodate the emerging socio-cultural measures, may have played a significant role in the growing phlegm among different components of Ikot Ekpene royal kingship. Another dangerous dimension, which is often ignored when analysing the declining status of Ikot Ekpene traditional structure, is the effect on succession to royal throne giving political leaders an edge
to decide and dictate for who will be the next on the royal lineage.
In many African societies, it is traditional leadership that strengthens political institutions and its blessings are derived from the words of the royal authority, but in Ikot Ekpene, the reverse is the case. Ascending any traditional throne in Ikot Ekpene is by the influence of political leaders whose aim is to use the royal fathers whom they have installed to enhance their political prominence and draw support for their elections. To them, understanding the basic traditional rites as part of the criteria for the royal seat is irrelevant claiming that modernity has washed away the power of the original traditional prerequisites for typical royal responsibilities. Politicians go for and largely impose people in their cabal with whom they share similar hidden ideologies. They forget that ignoring the basic aspects of tradition and installing the inexperienced in traditional matters normally bring about undesirable consequencies, like, early death, strange sicknesses, violence and havoc in the community.
These indicators have been the negative developments prevalent in the traditional families in Ikot Ekpene.
Going by the diary of paramount rulership in Ikot Ekpene, from 1951, the installation of the first paramount ruler of Ikot Ekpene, Chief Ikpeme Akpan, was peaceful, extremely coordinated according to norms and traditional standards of choosing a first-class royal father of the place. Chief Ikpeme Akpan was from Ibiaku Ntok Okpo, in the present Ikono Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State. It's pertinent to note here that Ikono was under Ikot Ekpene Province and it shared similar geo-ethnic configuration with the people of the area but when the nomenclature was changed to Annang Province, they broke away claiming that they had different geo-ethnic attributes with the Annang people. The second Paramount Ruler of Ikot Ekpene, Okuku Akpan Enang, received the mantle of the royal headship of the place under a coordinated atmosphere, justice and equity. Selection and elections were fair and legitimate by any standard. Okuku Cosmas Okon Akpan came in as the third paramount ruler of the place until the creation of Essien Udim when His Majesty was taken to his own domain to head the traditional family of the place and, Okuku E. A. U. Ntekpere took over as the fourth paramount ruler of Ikot Ekpene. These early gladiators in Ikot Ekpene were men of undisputable traditional wisdom and their reigns witnessed tremendous developments in both the structure and general practice in Annang or, specifically, Ikot Ekpene traditional system. They
lived and maintained the core values as demanded by the royal throne.
After the death of Okuku E. A. U. Ntekpere, ascendancy to the exalted royal seat attracted something appalling which effect is haunting Ikot Ekpene till today.
Two prominent figures, one from each clan of the place, emerged for the paramount rulership. Late Engineer Augustus Jonah Ekpenyong Asiak emerged from from urban, while Chief Akpaimuk emerged from Amanyam. It was quite clear that Chief Akpaimuk was a better choice considering his pedigree in traditional functions. He knew how to harmonize traditional things with religious issues, he knew the language with which to speak and relate with the ancestors of the place and maintain the standard which our fore-fathers had protected for years. Besides, he had been in the royal circle for quite a number of years.
Engineer Asiak, on other hands, was ridiculously unknown in the traditional circle. He was unpopular among his people. It had been potentially revealed that Asiak's ancestral origin was Igbo. His fore-fathers were believed to have migrated from Arochukwu, to the south eastern part of this country tens of thousands of years ago. And,o his connection with Ikot Abia Idem in Akwa Ibom State can only be explained by some migration theory or left for history.
Lobbying with political leaders started, even before the emergence of the two candidates, at the TRC of the place followed with oath-taking and pledges for loyalty throughout his reign. While Asiak allegedly enjoyed the support of Arch. Obong Victor Attah's administration with full employment of the administration's apparatus, to intimidate his opponent, Chief Akpaimuk depended on his scanty followership with zero-financial support from anywhere.
The whole exercise shifted from traditional matter to political arrangement where notable politicians from Ikot Ekpene were involved in scheming for Asiak to get advantage at the end of the day. Although, Engineer Asiak was not directly in government of the day, his impact when he was General Manager, Cross River Radio and the influence of his late brother, Engineer Albert Asiak, one of prominent Engineers who provided the structural design of Calabar-Itu road and the bridge for Fugerol Engineering and Constructions Company, during Gowon's military rule in the early 70s, brought him to limelight and brightened his chances.
Proportion for acrimony, character assasnation and outright enmity between the duo went beyond physical to what an African would call "spiritual attack", in order to
use elimination method for victory. Mysteriously and suddenly, Chief Akpaimuk lost his sight, a situation that disqualified him and made him physically unfit and irrelevant for the royal throne. This gave Asiak an edge over him and he (Asiak) was pronounced Paramount Ruler of Ikot Ekpene. Chief Akpaimuk died years later and his ghost continued to haunt the hands behind his tragic loss of sight and eventual death.
The use of elimination method has been rampant strategy in both politics and traditional stool, in recent times. It can be perfected through a variety of ways, including an organised kidnapping, assasination, physical and spiritual poisoning.
The politicians and royal stakeholders of Ikot Ekpene who played out the script for Akpaimuk's fall are found in every other regime after Obong Attah's administration. They occupy juicy offices and remain a stumbling block for the growth of Ikot Ekpene TRC. Their aim is to support members of their cabal to draw support for their masters, for any elective post in government, through organised thuggery and hired killing.
Unfortunately, this situation has become worrisome and unfathomable and it's growing by the day attracting new lethal methods since ascending royal throne nowadays is no longer by traditional merit but by political influence to satisfy personal aggrandisement specically.
That brings to mind the game-plan that is playing out in the non-certification and recognition of Otoro-Ubo clan, the newly created clan in Ikot Ekpene local government area.
Elections were duly conducted among three candidates-Chief Alban Udofia, Chief David Ukpong Ukut and Dr. Ime S. Ekpo, to choose clanhead of the place. At the peacefully conducted election, Chief Alban Udofia polled 2 votes, Chief David Ukpong Ukut polled 1 vote while Dr. Ime S. Ekpo polled 6 votes making Dr. Ekpo the overall winner and clanhead-elect of the new clan.
Since after the election and the victory and loss announced, certification of the clan, recognition and conferment of the winner as the royal head of the new clan is suffering neglect from the government of the day. There has been some public outcry and total condemnation of the government's lukewarm attitude towards certificating and recognizing Otoro-Ubo clan. The delay believed to be the handiwork of some mischief makers in Udom's administration who were also the
hands that engineered and promoted enmity between Asiak and Akpaimuk feel they can use similar elimination method to do away with the winner of Otoro-Ubo's clanhead ship, Dr. Ime S. Ekpo and instal their own choice, that would be an impossible venture, figment of imagination and indeed, a colossal failure, because Nigerians and the world at large, are watching to see the endpoint of Governor Udom's promises to the people of the state.

hy Is Dr. Ekpo's Clanheadship Nailed On The Cross?

Before the death of the father of Doctor Ime Sunday Ekpo, the village head of Utu Edem Usung in Ikot Ekpene and Chief Executive Officer, Incarnate Holdings Limited, Okuku Sunday Udo Ekpo Akaka, many years ago, royal fathers and some cabal in Ikot Ekpene had already nursed feelings of envy against the late forefront Annang chief based on his rising profile in Annang traditional matters and his unparalleled trado-medical acumen across Annang land and beyond. Many traditional rulers and native doctors felt totally edged out of business as he used philanthropy as a strategy to swell up the file and rank of his practice. . His rising profile in traditional matters as regards preservation of Annang cultural heritage, in general, did not augur well with some royal fathers who felt threatened by the magnanimity of his popularity. Obong Sunday Udo Ekpo's legacies placed him above his contemporaries. During his life and times, most traditional fathers and native doctors occasionally perched in his palace for one advice or the other. Even as a village head, Okuku, unlike other royal fathers of his time, cared for the needy including orphans, widows, homeless and the economically weak. These attributes stimulated by the milk of human kindness in him endeared him to the hearts of many people, within and outside his kingdom.
Intimidated by the wholesomeness of his growing legacies, some which have reflected in local and international journals, like the history of the Annang culture and tradition, forces from Ikot Ekpene, in particular, rebelled against him in varying dimensions presenting him in a negative light, instead of appraising and protecting his kingship and seeing him as a role model and the chief custodian of the people's ancestry.
Okuku Sunday Udo Ekpo Akaka was, indeed, a tourism investment-personified who attracted diverse tourist groups across Nigeria and history scholars from many institutions of learning. His traditional medical practice was unrivalled across the south of the Niger Delta. His social name, Ofong enyene usung, steadily became a household name that was synonymous with perfect traditional healing, and which boosted his trado-practice. His relationship with the ancestors, perfect interpretation of traditional voices and strict observance of the cultural schedule, were some of the things that stood him out in the trado-medical and royal circles.
Going by his sweeping profile and huge patronage, other royal fathers within Ikot Ekpene Traditional Rulers Council, united to ensure that they diminished his royal fame and that of whoever would succeed him, at the instance of his death. They erroneously believed that if chance was given to him and his future successor, he would, undoubtedly, monopolize the royal empire of Ikot Ekpene and create an uncommon lineage that might give birth to a kind of family dynasty, thereby ridiculing the potency of other royal fathers of Ikot Ekpene TRC and, at the same time, sending them out of control of the over-stretched two clans.
Beyond these, Okuku Sunday Udo Ekpo Akaka was a no-nonsense man who, at all times, distanced himself from acts of injustice and oppression within his traditional jurisdiction and he did not compromise hypocrisy and selfishness, but always stood for the truth and care for the needy, irrespective of where the person came from. Another aspect of life that attracted ever-growing envy to Okuku was that while other chiefs solely depended on the government's monthly stipend as their only source of livelihood, his economic power was derived from various sources, namely, extensive farming, traditional medical practice, royalties, care by his well-established children and government's stipend. His self-made wealth, which made him completely independent stood him out and strengthened his royal voice throughout his reign.
After his death, it was decided that the village headship of Utu Edem Usung must revolve within the Akaka Dynasty, a decision that produced Doctor Ime S. Ekpo, his first son, a business mogul, as the legible successor of Okuku Sunday Udo Ekpo Akaka, as village head of Utu Edem Usung.
Dr. Ekpo's ascendancy to the royal seat did not go well with over 80% of Ikot Ekpene TRC members who felt that his popularity drawn from his international business connections, his financial strength, fearlessness and unbeatable traditional medical expertise would cripple their perceived authority and reduce their relevance. They lobbied around the then Paramount Ruler of Ikot Ekpene, Okuku Etim Akpan Udo Ntekpere, to revoke his certificate as village head of Utu Edem Usung but failed because His Majesty understood the nitty-gritty of traditional governance coupled with Chief Ime's cultural foresights and his suitability for the throne. During the famous reign of Okuku Etim A. U. Ntekpere, Chief Ime enjoyed some level of influence of His Majesty while other prominent members of the TRC were busy secretly plotting for his downfall. Their open displeasure came to limelight when, on
February 16, 1996, Dr. Ime Ekpo was conferred with the prestigious title of Obong Uforo Ikot Ekpene, by His Royal Majesty, Okuku E. A. U.Ntekpere, a title that was based on Chief Ime's achievements in community development. This latest development heated up their atrocious mindset against Obong Uforo and widened the gap of their hatred for him. They did all they could, to diminish his authority, especially, in matters of collective voice and responsibility, knowing fully well that Chief Ime would not compromise injustice in his traditional assignments and as a village head, he would not be influenced by any government's authority and he would certainly not be parading the government's corridors for any kind of favour. As a result, most TRC meetings were convened without his awareness. He was totally sidelined in the scheme of things as far as traditional issues were converned.
When Okuku Etim Akpan Udo Ntekpere died and Okuku Augustus Jonah Ekpenyong Asiak took over the seat, the era of total persecution, against Dr. Ime Ekpo, set in. Asiak was reportedly using his position as Paramount Ruler to lobby some politicians in the state, especially from Ikot Ekpene axis, including the former governor of the state, Chief Godswill Obot Akpabio, to fight Dr. Ekpo, especially on the issue of Otoro-Ubo clanheadship, which Chief Ime had emerged as the winner at the elections conducted among the village heads that make up the new clan. It was widely believed that it was Asiak's influence on Chief Akpabio that stopped the certification and recognition of Ekpo's installation.
Apart from battling his royal relevance, in recent times, politicians from Ikot Ekpene have connived with some royal fathers in the local government to disposses him of his properties and hard-earned estates in and around Ikot Ekpene believing that using government authority to take over his properties was the most effective strategy, which if successful, would bring down his fame and diminish his royal influence. But the power of truth has always prevailed.
After Asiak's death, His Majesty, Okuku Okon Udo Ukut came in as Paramount Ruler of the place. His traditional governance seems to be a replica of his predecessor's, in matters concerning the fate of the new clan and its uninstalled clanhead, Dr. Ekpo. This time around, His Majesty, Obong Ukut is allegedly combining the influence of his position as Paramount Ruler and his relationship with Governor Udom as inlaw, to discourage His Excellency from issuing certificate of recognition to the new clan and crowning the clanhead-elect, to start his duties as Clan head.
In recent times, public reactions, specifically, from the civil societies, have been trending the media wondering whether Udom whose governance philosophy draws authority from Only God, which only recently, metamorphosed to That same God, would allow his divine-driven governance to be dragged into the murky waters of sentiments, hatred, nepotism and moral prejudice. Governor, as a good Christian, should be reminded of what transpired in Pilate's palace court when our Lord Jesus Christ was arraigned before him.
Definitely, Pilate's verdict was probably not from his mind; scholars believe he was deeply influenced by the dictate of the Jewish crowd, thus: "Nail Him on the cross".
It would be unimaginable, unthinkable and positively atrocious that people wake up one day and hear the voices of another crowd chorusing and urging Governor Udom to nail Dr. Ime Sunday Ekpo on the cross and deny him his traditional rights.

Udom's administration versus Otoro-Ubo Clan

Since 2015, when Mr. Udom Gabriel Emmanuel became Akwa Ibom State Governor, publc commentators, critics, human rights activists and social writers across Nigeria have been brainstorming on the stagnated status of Ikot Ekpene traditional institution despite its long history as the political capital of Annang ethnic nationality. Although, the town attracted the colonial interest for experimenting local government system snce 1951, its traditional structure has ever remained ridiculously retroggressive weighed down by some internal forces. In order to effect judicious and fair representative governance across the 31 local government areas of the state, since its creation in 1987, successive political leaderships have been established on a simple tripod-three senatorial districts-to create equitable and unbiased representation among the different geo-ethnic diversities.
New local government areas have been created from the original ones, to bring sustainable development nearer to the grassroots. Each administration from the existing tripodal structure brings in varying policy measures that suit its capacity and political philosophy. The strength of actualizing certain projects in the state is derived from the accrued internally generated revenues and the allocations from its natural resources. By implication, these allocations and revenues, which include the tax-payers' sweat, for the sake of transparency and accountability, must impact the infrastructural and general economic lifestyle of the people of the state. Ethnic politics must not be allowed to influence sectorial developments. The ethnic background of any leader in the state must not be allowed to influence employment opportunities, contract awards, admissions into academic institutions or promotions in any office. The establishment or location of institutional structures in any part of the state should be done with fairplay and on merit, rather than building on selfishness, greed, nepotism, hatred and divisiveness. The spirit of unity should be the guiding post in our struggle for greatness and relevance.
Unfortunately, since the present democratic dispensation took the centre stage in 1999, allegations of moral fraud and social miscarriage by our leaders have marred
our corporate identity as a people. Our dignity as a people chosen and ordained by Akwa Abasi Ibom has diminished. Our social values have decayed and, our hopes have shattered on the altar of inter-ethnic disharmony and mutual suspicion among our leaders and elders creating an uncertain future for the upcoming generations.
Weapons of character assasination and uncalculated blackmail are used at alarming proportions. We are not united as a people defined by a common identity-language, cultural heritage and lifestyle. We don't promote our brother's talents and socio-economic attributes. Our pride as intellectually-rich and as a land of cultural fortunes is fading out.
Akwa Ibom State has 31 local government areas. These local government areas are further divided into clans and, for political reasons, into wards and units. The more local government areas, the more clans, wards or units we have, the more development we take to the local communities. It is therefore, the responsibility of every administration to ensure that meaningful developments are drawn to the grassroots by encouraging the creation of local or rather, traditional governance structure to stimulate positive development in the local communities. This gives a sense of belonging and impact of dividends of governance.
When Mr. Udom Emmanuel assumed the mantle of leadership in 2015 as the democratically-elected governor of Akwa Ibom State, he promised to restructure the traditional institutions in the state, irrespective of the senatorial district. Hopes were high and expectations were geared towards embracing a new era of traditional revolution in the state. He made state-wide consultations with royal stakeholders to achieve his envisaged goals in the restructuring project, which included, creating of new clans and villages and making the state's Traditional Rulers Council a model in traditional matters.
But perhaps, surrounded with selfish and greedy advisers and mistrusted cabinet, Mr. Udom's steps allegedly lost their focus and steered towards only his ethnic home. He hurriedly created more clans and villages within the Ibibio land. All of them have been issued certificate of recognition and inaugurated as functional clans without reservations. Sons and daughters of Ibibio extraction stood with their son ( His Excellency) and lobbied to ensure that the restructuring project of the place traditional institution was fully achieved.
But back to Ikot Ekpene, the story takes a different shape. Otoro-Ubo clan, the
third clan in the place, after Amanyam and Urban clans, had been created for many years now. Elections for clanheadship of the place was credibly conducted and the winner emerged quite on merit but the fate of the clan remains uncertain till today. The clanhead-elect, Doctor Ime S. Ekpo, has been expecting the hour of his certification, recognition and turbaning, to assume the royal leadership of his clan.
It is believed that some negative forces in Udom's government, specifically, from Ikot Ekpene extraction, may have been playing behind the screen, against the actualization of this envisaged goal, diametrically opposed to how the Ibibio sons and daughters lobbied to achieve a common goal, for sensible traditional development in their place.

Plots against Udom's 2023
senate, successor gather momentum
Powerful forces within Governor Udom Gabriel Emmanuel's administration have been working secretly against the incumbent governor to actuaize his 2023 senate ambition and his choice of a successor when his tenure expires on May 29, 2023. Most worrisome is that these secret players are in Udom's government and have been the direct beneficiaries of Udom's political goodwills but they hide behind the curtain showcasing fake loyalty to grabb juicy positions in government for their personal aggrandisements.
As a litmus test to gauge the public reactions first, and to know his true discipleship, last month, Governor Udom openly announced his successor, Mr. Umoh Eno, in the manner that took many stakeholders of his party, by surprise. Many of the party's faithful and state commissioners who were already nursing gubernatorial ambition were caught pants-down in bewildment launching their reactions on the media-print, electronic and social-with the view to discountenancing the authority in His Excellency's executive pronouncement. Paid adverts condemning Udom's choice flooded pages of the media. Professional commentators and opinion writers were engaged at alarming proportions, at least, to weaken the momentum of Udom's announcement.
Unknown to them that their reactions constituted an advantage to Governor Udom who, through the development, had known who truly gave him sincere loyalty and who were just playing out some doctored scripts.
In his characteristic boldness and armed with his That Same God philosophy, Governor Udom refused to yield to all the attendant noices and bowel-begging intimidations and vowed to ensure that his choice would remain undisputable.
Three days ago, a group loyal to Obong Bassey Albert (OBA) comprising some commissioners, special assistants and advisers, in Udom's cabinet was sighted at the residence of Obong Bassey Albert in Uyo for a meeting that lasted for over six hours late in the night. Two serving senators, six commissioners, four royal fathers and some top members of the People's Democratic Party, were among those that
attended the secret meeting. More astonishing was that most of these people were close confidants of Governor Udom Gabriel Emmanuel and they were the internal engines of Udom's government. "We are all out to ensure that Udom fails at the polls, no matter his financial commitment to twist the election results", a special adviser to Udom told changenews2013 but begged not to be mentioned.
According to a source, one of the highlights at the meeting was that they would all come out to throw their weight behind Obong Bassey Albert to disgrace Udom's chosen successor at the polls. This teamwork, according to one of the former commissioners in the state who attended the meeting, is the only weapon to dismantle Udom's camp and bring his dream to null.
With the growing plots to frustrate Governor Udom's ambition and bring his politial relevance and hard-earned career to the lowest ebb, one migt be left to wonder who is truly for Udom or against him. Or who Udom should dine with a long spoon or a short one with.

Udom's Trouble Doubled

Although, Governor Udom Emmanuel of Akwa Ibom State may seem quietly comfortable with his personal calculations towards 2023 general elections, observers believe that his hopes may be thrashed into the bin as his forefront loyals and confidants join different camps.
Last week, changenews2013 gathered that Udom's recent announcement of his preferred successor, Mr. Umoh Eno, did not augur well with the internal caucus of the state's Chapter of the People's Democratic Party, PDP. According to the source, Governor Udom lacked respect for the PDP family of the state in general, and people from whom he derives his political strength. "It's a display of arrogance and disrespect for the Governor to singlehandedly proclaim somebody with low political relevance without consultation with the people that matter in the state's politics", the source added. Another source who spoke from the office of the secretary to the state government, on condition of anonymity said: "The Governor is risking his chances for senate and his political relevance is dangerously approaching a null value". "He will regret his actions sooner or later", the source added.
A potentially authoritative source informed our correspondent last week that Engineer Etido Inyang, one of his forefront loyalists and chairman of Ibom Power, told a cross section of the political wing of Ikot Ekpene youth that although, he is physically seen in Udom's camp, his mind and spirit are for his best friend, Obong Bassey Albert, OBA, whose political profile, according to him, attracts trust, transparency, accountability and patriotism. "The Governor cannot impose somebody who is politically unpopular on the people of Akwa Ibom State, sit down and expect that he will use our resources to influence the machinery of the electoral umpire, Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, for victory; that can never happen again", Inyang was quoted saying. "You young boys, I have my own choice in mind, and I want my choice to be your own choice". When asked who his choice was, the Ikot Ekpene-born politician schematically declined comments but told them that his choice would
soon commence state-wide consultations with stakeholders, to enable him fine-tune his chances and strategies towards 2023 general elections.
In order to cement Etido Inyang's variance with Udom's choice and his resolve for OBA, throughout last week, Mr.Etido was seen frequenting Obong Bassey Albert's residence in Uyo at late hours of the night, for some undisclosed reasons. Evidence of Engineer Inyang's alleged preference for OBA to Umoh Eno, Udom's choice, is seen in his refusal to send congratulatory and goodwill messages to Mr. Umoh Eno after Udom had anointed the latter as his preferred successor.
The silent senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Senator Christopher Ekpenyong is alleged to have joined the rank and file of the pro-OBA group having lost out with Udom on his choice of Umoh Eno as his successor. To a cross section of Akwa Ibom youths, specifically, from Ikot Ekpene senatorial district, the former deputy governor under Governor Victor Attah, said: "The governor has no political will to bring out his successor without the consent of people that made him what he is today". "It's an insult to the people of Akwa Ibom State", Senator Ekpenyong fumed. "I have joined the voices in my group to say "No", to imposition of candidates on our people. "It's undemocratic and we will deal with Udom", Ekpenyong said.
"I am giving OBA 100% of my support for governorship, he is my choice, he is our choice", Senator Chris affirmed.
Udom's trouble seems to have gathered momentum since last week, when opinion sampling revealed that over 89% of his loyalists have deserted him by dumping his choice of successor and supporting Obong Bassey Albert as the next governor of the oil-rich Akwa Ibom State. Chris and Etido have been on separate secret consultations with stakeholders, committing their personal resources to ensure victory for OBA's governorship ambition come 2023 general elections.
Although, full identities of other proponents for OBA's legibility for governorship were sketchy as at press time, it was revealed that none of the commissioners who were sacked by Governor Udom recently is comfortable with Udom's choice of the next governor of the state.
"It's the same thing that happened to Senator Godswill Obot Akpabio that will happen to Udom next year". "It is those that are close to him that will betray him and disgrace him at the polls", a source in the office of the secretary to the state government, said but refused being named.

Non-Certification of Otoro-Ubo clan:
Is Governor Udom Under Pressure?

When Mr. Udom Gabriel Emmanuel of Akwa Ibom State received the mantle of leadership as the democratically-elected Governor of the oil-rich Akwa Ibom State in May 29, 2015, reactions heated up the polity of the state condemning and supporting his choice as Akpabio's successor. When he unveiled his policy measures and agenda coupled with his Only God philosophy, he became a God-sent leader prefering the title "Deacon" and premising the transformative governance of his predecessor.
At the inauguration of his leadership structure at the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium, the banker-turned politician, standing side by side with the out-gone Governor, dressed in the PDP customised suit and flanked by the party's top echoleon family, promised the people of the state an all-inclusive administration that would build on the structure of his predecessor. Top on the agenda of his new regime were, the departure from the retrogressive governance mentality to a dynamic and legal regime where all projects by the preceding administration would be completed, revamping insecurity and providing employment opportunities for the youth teeming population, changing the status of the state from civil service to economically viable standard, total industrialization of the state, restructuring the traditional institution, free and compulsory education at all levels and establishing a standard political consciousness to pave the way for a sustainable democracy.
Governor Udom's agenda for a more vibrant traditional institution stood out, and was not unconnected with his respect for elders and the royal stool in general. In advancing his preparedness for a refurbished state council of chiefs, Deacon Udom Emmanuel made a state-wide consultation with the royal fathers in all the 31 local government areas to enable him establish practicable standards and ethics as obtainable in other states of the federation. Driven by the spirit of Godliness, Mr. Udom ensured that his efforts did not severe the doctrines of traditional practice bearing in mind that his ascendancy to political limelight was hugely achieved through individual efforts of the royal families in the state. One of such loyal royal fathers who gave maximum support to Udom's victory was Dr. Ime S. Ekpo, the villagehead of Utu Edem Usung in Ikot Ekpene and Chief Executive Officer, Incarnate Holdings Limited.
It could be recalled that during Mr. Udom Emmanuel's campaign for governorship, Dr. Ekpo had fallen apart with most of his kinsmen for supporting Udom's candidacy. His support was quite evident in his sincere commitment of his charitable and philanthropic dispensations to mobilize his subjects and those loyal to him, even outside his traditional domain. During this time, his royal palace was converted into a campaign ground for Udom when Akpabio and other stakeholders consulted His Highness from time to time and urged him to throw his weight behind Udom. Chief Ime S. Ekpo's mobilization teams were drawn largely from the entire Ikot Ekpene senatorial district prompting him to commit his personal resources to aid Mr. Udom's victory. Some of the oppositions that vowed to see Udom's fall at the poll and who became Doctor Ekpo's foes, from Ikot Ekpene axis, have, ever since, refused to resolve their differences with the royal father. He bore the cross for giving his support to Udom and standing by him throughout the period.
On several ocassions, Doctor Ekpo was allegedly accused of lavishing his resources on Ibibio man and betraying the Annang ethnic nationality alongside threats to his life and investments. But he damned all consequencies and forged ahead to see that Mr. Udom won the election massively and convincingly.
His personal sacrifices for Udom's candidacy and physical support for his election, against all odds, have so far attracted grudges and personal hatred from a lot of people within and outside his royal kingdom.
Most astonishing is that, unknown to Udom, it is the majority of those that kicked against Doctor Ime's support for Udom that have found favour in Udom's government today and are offered juicy positions in his adminstration.
When Otoro-Ubo clan was created and Akpabio-led administration failed to issue certificate of recognition for its take-off and to function as the third clan in Ikot Ekpene, where Doctor Ime S. Ekpo comes from, public expectation was that the coming in of Governor Udom Emmanuel would usher in a fresh hope for the new clan, for certification and recognition banking on Dr. Ekpo's selfless support for Udom's victory.
Understandably, Governor Udom's first term in office was pre-occupied with a blueprint for the completion of his predecessor's uncompleted projects, including even the Otoro-Ubo clan's certification and recognition project.
Election for clanheadship of the new clan was conducted and Dr. Ime Ekpo, Udom's fortune-teller and supporter, won with a wide margin, but those who had opposed to Chief Ekpo's support for Udom during the election, and are now on
Udom's payroll, as Advisers or Commisioners, are allegedly mounting stumbling block against Dr. Ekpo's chances for certification as clanhead of Otoro-Ubo. They have come out with full force label Chief Ekpo with all unprintable names and characters that are capable of presenting the monarch in a negative light. It is likely that they are trying to use people close to His Excellency to blackmail the royal father so that the issue of Otoro-Ubo clan, its eventual certification and recognition and installation of Dr. Ime S. Ekpo as its clanhead are swept under the carpet.
In a bid to cement their resolve against Dr. Ekpo's chances for Otoro-Ubo clanheadship, they have threatened to frustrate Governor Udom's chances for senate and his right for choosing a successor. Can Governor Udom easily bow to cheap pressure?

Governor Udom risks losing out as powerful hands offer conditions

As the hand of the clock is ticking towards 2023 general elections, powerful hands in Ikot Ekpene, Akwa Ibom State, are mounting pressure against Governor Udom Gabriel Emmanuel's senate ambition, his choice of successor and his general political relevance offering conditions for a reverse, but the banker-turned politician may refuse to yield unless he decides to gamble with his conscience.
The powerful hands believed to be from the royal and political classes have been sleepless devicing means of winning the heart of Governor Udom against some indigenes of the state on personal ground. The group has vowed to ensure that the good policy framework, which Governor Udom Emmanuel had put on ground is totally grounded unless the latter dances to their tune, but the architect of transformative governance may refuse to yield to their pressure going by his body language in recent times. Mr. Udom Emmanuel has been severally quoted as maintaining that his administration would not promote disharmony between groups and between people to remain politically relevant in the state's political space.
The conditions offered by the group, according to a source close to Ikot Ekpene TRC, who did not want his name in print, were: the Governor should bury the issue of issuing certificate of recognition to Otoro-Ubo clan and subsequent installtion of Dr. Ime S. Ekpo as the clanhead of the new clan in Ikot Ekpene; the Governor should not facilitate the process of opening the 4-Points by Sheraton for business claiming that the conditions offered by the host communities did not favour the generality of the people of Ikot Ekpene.
A first-class royal father in Ikot Ekpene who claimed to be closely related to His Excellency was quoted as beating his chest that over his dead body that he would allow Governor Udom to issue certificate of recognition to Dr. Ime S. Ekpo, the clanhead-elect of Otoro-Ubo clan. He claimed he was
fully equipped to influence Udom not to recognize Dr. Ekpo's legibility for clanheadship. Authoritative sources have revealed that the royal father is actively consulting and mobilizing some political stakeholders in and around Ikot Ekpene to discourage His Excellency from reconizing and certificating Otoro-Ubo clan alleging that Dr. Ekpo could do anything fettish to ascend the paramount rulership of the place if offered the chance for clanheadship of the new clan. He told a section of the place's Traditional Rulers Council that if Udom should issue certificate of recognition to Dr. Ekpo, as clanhead, he would use his last kobo to urge some members to withdraw their support for Udom's choice of successor, his political relevance and his ambition for senate.
It is quite obvious that the myopic machinations of these self-styled political and royal merchants have severed the economic and social fortunes of the colonial city. The dysfunctional 4-Points by Sheraton situated in the heart of the city and non-certification and recognition of Otoro-Ubo clan with the installation of the clanhead-elect of the new clan constitute a colossal setback in the city's attempt to depart from the stagnated past to a dynamic future.
Politicians and some greedy royal fathers are using the dormant status of the hotel to make money between the owner-communties and government. It has been established that the government has paid a lot of money to the host communities, either as Trust Fund or Compensation but such money has only been known on the pages of the media. Any person that may tend to expose the anomaly or refuses to identify with the retrogreesive attempts, is seen as the worst enemy to the government and, indeed, unfit for either a royal or political relevance.
They are all armed to the teeth to poison the Governor's mind against issuing certificate of recognition to Dr. Ime S. Ekpo, one of the 3 one of the 3 candidates of the last election for Otoro-Ubo clanheadship, who polled 6 votes as against the other 2, Chief David of Utu Ikpe and Barrister Alban of Nsiak who polled 1 and 2 respectively. Dr. Ime S. Ekpo won and remained the clanhead-elect of Otoro-Ubo, but a section of the royal fathers in Ikot Ekpene and some politicians loyal to Governor Udom have always ganged up to frustrate Dr. Ekpo's dream for ascndancy. During the
reign of the former Paramount Ruler of Ikot Ekpene, late Okuku Augustus Jonah Ekpenyong Asiak, issue of certification of the clan with its clanheadship severally severed the relationship between the then Governor, Chief Godswill Obot Akpabio and the former when the latter reportedly cursed Akpabio if he dared give formal recognition to Dr. Ekpo as Otoro-Ubo clanhead. This issue generated a lot of heat and concern among the royal fathers from other local government areas of the state who felt Asiak was taking the matter too personal and was washing his 'dirty linen' outside. One of the royal fathers who was at the meeting was quoted as interrupting Asiak: "Your Royal Majesty, this is your son; if you have any problem with Dr. Ekpo, take the matter home and settle it amicably, not here".
An outstanding member of Ikot Ekpene TRC who preferred anonymity told journaists last week that some royal forces from the local government had vowed to apply any means to tame the governor to frustrate Dr. Ime's hope for ascendancy. According to the source, the royal authority had reportedly threatened that if the governor refused to yield, he would mobilize against his ambition for senate and his choice for successor.
Worried by the untoward scenario, public commentators are of the opinion that should Udom succumb to sentiments from a section of the citizenry, the social value of the state is at great risk and his open-door policy would suffer jeopardy in the long run. Again, it would be unwelcome if Udom, the Chief Executive Officer of a state like Akwa Ibom, would be acting by the dictates of people who are on his payroll, rather than standing by his power and words.
Apart from forces from the royal class against Dr. Ime S. Ekpo, the political family is also sharpening its sword to nail on no just cause.
If Governor Udom Gabriel Emmanuel, an ideal technocrat, respects the tenets of democracy, which are ascertained by legible elections won by the candidates with the highest votes, he may not want to sweep the victory of Dr. Ime S. Ekpo under the carpet who won very convincingly, so that nemesis may not play out in the forthcoming 2023 general elections.

Ikot Ekpene TRC:
The real reasons why Otoro-Ubo Clan has not been recognized

It's oftentimes worrisome that in spite of the profile and political history of Ikot Ekpene, even before Lagos became a colony in 1861, sustainable economic growth, political stability and sound traditional infrastructure have been denied the place ever since. While the successive administrations of the state, in the democratic setting, have only been scratching the attempts to provide just a romantic landscape for the place, to conform with the people's economic lifestyle and infrastructure, both the micro and macro economic resources keep on decaying at a proportion unfathomable by modern estimation.
For easy traditional administrative purpose, Ikot Ekpene, with the total number o 47 villages are divided into two clans-Amanyam and Urban. Each clan is headed by a clan head who doubles as the village head from that paticular clan. Clanheadship is held and produced through election held among the village heads of that clan where legible candidates are voted for. The overall winner becomes the clan head, without any political influences or sentiments. Clanheadship is not hereditary but on merit and credibility.
The Paramount Ruler is the royal father and custodian of ancestry of the local government. He is also vested with economic development, planning and security for the people of Ikot Ekpene.
So far, Ikot Ekpene has had six Paramount Rulers. The present Paramount Ruler is Okuku (Obong) Okon Udo Ukut. The first Paramount Ruler of Ikot Ekpen was Chief Ikpeme Akpan, from Ibiaku Ntok Okpo in the present Ikono local government. Ikono was in the former Annang Province. After his death was Okuku Akpan Enang, and Obong Cosmas Okon Akpan became the third Paramount Ruler while Ntekpere, Asiak and Ukut became the fourth, fifth and sixth Paramount Rulers respectively.
In the political administration, Ikot Ekpene has maintained the office harmoniously
rotating among the the different political components of the local government area. In the pre-military Traditional Rulers Council of Ikot Ekpene, there existed a remarkable distinction between political authority and traditional voice where the TRC had an edge in controlling and managing trsditional matters. The situation remained fairly harmonious until the military era set in when the entire traditional architecture was toppled by the military dictatorship giving it the monopoly of the entire system. And, with the remnants of the military constitution, which dictates our leadership structure, the royal authority has become ridiculously relegated.
Under the present democratic dispensation overwhelmingly considered experimental, the situation becomes worse by the day. The politicians have become the decision-making engines for the survival of the traditional institution.
Before former Governor Godswill Obot Akpabio became Akwa Ibom State Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, a proposal was already made for the creation of Otoro-Ubo Clan, from Ikot Ekpene local government area. The new clan was created and certificated. Chief Umo Inyang Esang became the pioneer clan head of the new clan with full authorities to control and manage the royal matters of the clan. But years later, and after his death, the strength of the certification diminished and gradually fizzled out probably due to some local politics.
During Akpabio's tenure as Akwa Ibom State Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, the local authorities of the place rekindled the issue with the view to giving it a renewed certification and recognition, and with a new clan head.
Three candidates finally emerged after careful selection by well-appointed delegates from the clan. Barrister Alban, villagehead of Nsiak; Big Daves, villagehead of Utu Ikpe and Dr. Ime S. Ekpo, villagehead of Utu Edem Usung were billed for the election for Otoro-Ubo clanheadship. At the hotly contested election adjudged to be credible and fair, Chief Alban polled two votes, Big Daves polled one vote while Dr. Ime S. Ekpo polled a total of six votes.
With these results, Dr. Ime S. Ekpo had won the election and was legible for decoration as ClanHead of Otoro-Ubo.
The new clan being certificated would bring the total number of clans in Ikot Ekpene to three making it possible for paramount rulership of the place to be rotated on a tripod-Amanyam, Urban and Otoro-Ubo.
When Akpabio became Governor of the state, many clans were created and the ones already created were given certificates and recognition. But the then Paramount Ruler of Ikot Ekpene, late Augustus Jonah Asiak was captured as as confronting Governor Akpabio and physically warning him not to issue any certificate of recognition for Otoro-Ubo clan claiming that if Dr. Ekpo was certificated as the new clanhead of the place, Otoro-Ubo would produce the next Paramount Ruler of the local government. According to reports, Okuku Asiak went further to allege that with Dr. Ime's financial strength and international connections, he (Dr. Ekpo) might even eliminate him before his time thereby quickening his ascendancy to the throne.
Some political forces have also played out in the non-recognition and certification of Otoro-Ubo clan. The Executive Chairman of Ikot Ekpene Local Government Council may have been at loggerheads with Dr. Ekpo due to the latter's refusal to relinquish most of his choice properties in Ikot Ekpene for government projects. He claims that almost two-thirds of the landed properties in Ikot Ekpene metropolis are owned by Dr. Ekpo and, with his sweeping wealth profile it would be difficult to tame him if he is eventually made clanhead, talkless of being a Paramount Ruler. He has no option than to join sides to frustrate Dr. Ime's dream for the royal seat. Just recently, it is rumoured in some quarters that the deepening controversy on the true ownership of the location of Total Filling Station in Ikot Ekpene may have been formented by Engineer Etido Inyang who has joined sides that Dr. Ime's growing financial profile and influence may not go well with him if he is eventually given a higher traditional title in Ikot Ekpene.

Negative Parasites in Udom's
Government Destroy Ikot Ekpene
It is on record that Ikot Ekpene, a steadily developing town and land of history and cultural heritage in the south of the Niger Delta of Nigeria was preferred by the British colonialists, for experimenting local government system in West Africa as far back 1951. Among other reasons, the introduction was to bring governance nearer to the grassroots and enhance local populace participation in policy-decisions and eventual development in the region. Also, the imperial authorities' choice of the place for the project was clearly not unconnected with strengthening the frontiers and broadening the horizon of the socio-cultural institutions of the region thereby systematically weakening the monopoly of the British imperial forces in the political space of the place.
With its successful experimentation, an initiative, which was enhanced by the political consciousness and socio-cultural doctrines of the people, other countries in West Africa fell in love with the system and integrated it into their political governance structure.
But almost seven decades after the inauguration of the system, Ikot Ekpene, the cradle of the system, has failed to depart from the pre-colonial status and embrace meaningful modernity, a situation believed to be enhanced by physical elements of unpatriotism and negative parasitism, which are within the government of the state at all times. Business opportunities in the place remain a monopoly of strangers. Over 80% of physical properties in Ikot Ekpene are owned by the Igbo while our people who use their ill-gotten opportunities to dine with the government lavish their resources in creating enmity with their brothers and sisters at home.
These elements find themselves in any successive governments and seek unsolicited relevance, for self-aggrandisments. In any government they attach themselves, they make sure that they apply all means to assassinate the characters of other people before the government of the day to get favours, not minding any unforeseeable implications. Unknown to the government under which they perfect their ill-conceived manipulations, they share their loyalty with the oppositions leading to
outright betrayal of confidence with their 'pay masters'. In the actual sense, they are practically unproductive to the government that feeds them. All they offer to the governor of the day are lies and propaganda making them number one blackmailers and domestic champions who cannot impact the governor's political life and propel him to the next level. In the actual sense of the word, these people cannot allow the governor to succeed in making the successor that would maintain the political lineage of succession in governance. They build up a solid cabal that secretly mounts strict oppositions to His Excellency's visions and focus rather than enhancing them for maximal transformation.
Such executive betrayers and destructive elements are seen as political prostitutes who parade the corridors of every successive government in Akwa Ibom State seeking for relevance.
From the administration of governor Godswill, they remain either as advisers or commissioners and they are too cunning for a progressive society. But they team up with their secret cabal to pull down the incumbent like what happened to Akpabio that made them to become what they are today. Just as they ridiculed Akpabio and eventually betrayed and pulled him down at the polls, Governor Udom's will not be an exception. Now, as they are dining with Udom, their concern is how to destroy and condemn other people to make money.
Based on their deceptive skills and manipulative acumen, successive governments in the state often rely heavily on them and the government of the day is deceived to believing that they are worth associating with and they can contribute meaningfully to the development of any community.
The way they lock others out of important decisions and access to the governor further reveals their hypocrisy. They block other people's fortunes and bar their opportunities but show their cabal members the favours they don't even earn and deserve. Their open display of arrogance, hypocrisy, clumsiness, greed, nepotism, executive irresponsibility suggests they are thickly diseased with misdeeds.
The reason Ikot Ekpene is not growing is that these people in government who are from the senatorial district are outright blackmailers and betrayers who manipulate their ways into juicy positions for their personal aggrandisements. Their service lack momentum sounding good on papers but a disaster in practice..
They lack the electoral capacity to deliver up to 100 people for the incumbent's re-
election.
Watch out for the full list of these negative parasites in governmet, from Ikot Ekpene senatorial district in particular, with their profile, in the second part of this publication

Which is cheaper for and most practicable in Nigeria: Democracy or Impositocracy?
HINTS: (A) Democracy is the government by the people, for the people and of the people.
(B) Impositocracy, according to scholars, is the latest brand of government where the aggregate franchise of the voting masses in choosing their leader is positively irrelevant.

You may wish to support your answers with evidence and how each system works in any society.

In spite of her civil service status, Akwa Ibom State is steadily becoming 'Malaysia of Nigeria'. She boasts fine traditional cuisines, some of which have reflected in international journals, romantic lifestyle, especially, her women who are alleged to have possessed the almighty power of holding their men to ransom through the evil force popularly known (in the local parlance) as KOP-NO MI, literarily translated as "You must do whatever I tell you to do".
In recent times, business of roasted chicken, grilled fish, well-sauced pork meat, fried and peppered snail and liver have 'connived' with her sweet fresh palmwine to threaten the wallet of every visitor to any town in the state. All these may sound convincing when sourcing for sustainable legacies of democracy but do they address the critical issues faced by the citizens of the state? There's no doubt that the toothpick industry has taken care of this aspect in the state development agenda.
Back to the state's successive governments since the state was created in September, 1987. Without mincing words, Akwa Ibom State enjoys the biggest federal allocation, from crude oil, but then, she cannot boast of any functional industries to accommodate the enthusiasm of the teeming youth population of the place, except those on the radio and other forms of media.
Unfortunately, bulk of the state's income, including the internally generated revenue are channeled to positively frivolous and irrelevant projects, at the detriment of the jobless population.
Just last week, Governor Udom Gabriel Emmanuel of the state was under fire for wasting the state's money to build what he called "Christian Worshipping Centre". When the opposing voices were mounted on him that worshipping God does not depend only on building a mansion but taking care of those in need and taking them back to Christ through love and good deeds, he branded them, "Witches and Wizards.
Hello, fellow nairalanders, is the situation where poverty looms under plentifulness not an analogy to a man living by the riverside but bathes with his own sputum?

Nigerian businessman and philanthropist, Mr.Saturday Amos Ukpong Atotoh, has canvassed revolution in the country in order to return it to the path of development.

He spoke on Tuesday when CHANGE team, visited him in his residence in Ikot Ekpene, Akwa Ibom State.

Mr. Ukpong, 57, and dealer in petroleum products said the country was in dire need of leadership, insisting that it would not get sincere leaders unless a bloodless revolution took place.

He explained that the revolution would have to be in form of re-orientation and change of attitude by Nigerians.

“What we need today in Nigeria is leadership, not only Nigeria but also the rest of Africa needs good leadership. We want leadership, not ruler-ship,”
he said.

“We want leaders, not rulers; leaders with the fear of God. Leaders will not lie, leader will accept in public what they have accepted in secret, leaders with a vision, not a blurred vision, leaders will look at the lot of common man with the eyes of a patriot, not with the eye of a privilege few.

“We want leaders who believe that…… not those who will want to sit tight and remain there until death do us part like church marriage. We must have such leaders to turn the table…..revive the past glory of Nigeria. In order to have such leaders, we must have a revolution.

“I know the word revolution scares you. We must have a revolution. I am not calling for bloody or violent revolution, No. I am not calling for Tse-Tung revolution in China where over 70 million people were killed. I am not calling for the kind of revolution led by Mahatma Ghandi with his philosophy non-violent resistance. I am calling for bloodless, non-violent revolution.

“I am calling for a change of attitude, re-
orientation. Who will have to bring about this? You are the answer. You are the panacea to our ills. You are the solution to our problems. You are the vehicles of change. You are the vanguard of this revolution. The future is yours. You shall mark it or mar it. You can make it or mar it.

“If you succumb to the machinations of greedy and irresponsible political leaders, you will inherit a bad future and you will be bad leaders in the future. Make no mistake about this – you are the future leaders, whether anybody likes it or not. You are the change, you are the future; you are the answer.”

Mr. Saturday Amos warned that the new breed of leaders in Nigeria could not provide effective leadership without the old generation of leaders.

He said, “But let this thing get into your head – you need the elders. As I said earlier, you alone
cannot make it, listen to the elders. Seek their advice. In all countries of the world, there is always what they call an invisible government.

“There are some elderly experience people who are not interested in getting any position or money but they are interested in their own country. They want to see their children and their grand children become good leaders, respected leaders. These are the people that sit together and discuss the country and advise the government. In every country in the world they have this. We must have this too.”

The statesman noted that throughout history, the most successful organisations were the ones that had the combination of the young and old generation running them.

According to him, “New breed without the old breed will breed greed. Throughout history, you find out that the best or the most successful organisation has this kind of combination – the old and the young. The old cannot do it alone nor can the young. You need a combination of the two to complement each other.

“In the same vein, we have to go into history. The purpose of history is to know the past in order to adjust the present and plan for the future. If you ignore the old breed you are wiping out a whole generation and therefore creating a vacuum. Nature does not want a vacuum. Life is a continuous thing. There must be continuity.”

Mr. Amos recounted that the nation had challenges in the First Republic but that those challenges were overcome because the leaders then were patriotic.

He said, “Because of the importance of history, it is necessary to go into the past. How did we start? What was the First Republic like? Who are our founding fathers? What did they do?

“The First Republic, the only problem that we had was a youthful era. We had problems. But because of the attitude of the founding fathers and leaders, because of their patriotism, we were able to overcome and we remained one. And those founding fathers worked together.”

He asked the country’s leadership to focus
attention on the agriculture and education.

Mr. Saturday Amos who is a stakeholder in the All Progressives Congress in Essien Udim, Akwa Ibom State, lamented that Nigeria was not meeting the requirement of world standard, which prescribes that the developing countries devote 23 per cent of their annual budgets to education.

“Two things are necessary in developing our country – agriculture and education. As I said earlier, if any country can feed itself, more than half of its problems are solved,” he said.