Campaign of Calumny by Akwa Ibom State Government against Ovong Ita Awak: THE JUST SHALL BE VINDICATED


RE: "WHY I CAN'T SUPPORT AKWA IBOM AIRPORT DEVELOPMENT DEVELOPMENT, NCAA DIRECTOR."


[By Ovong Engr. Ita Awak]


As should be expected in this season of politicking, one of the questions I was directly asked by the anchor person during my interview on Planet Radio, Uyo, on Saturday, 10th November, 2018, was to state what I have done, both as an APC chieftain and Director of Airworthiness Standards in the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA, to help realise the Obong Victor Attah vision of having an operational aircraft maintenance, repairs and overhaul facility at the A'Ibom airport.


In my response, I said that, judging from my first-hand experience with the Governor Deacon Udom Gabriel Emmanuel’s PDP government, I am convinced beyond doubt that the PDP government, in spite of it's advertised commitment to the radical industrialisation of the State, has not shown in the last three and a half years any tangible evidence of willingness to invest the State's resources to realise and/or achieve it's stated goal particularly as it affects the completion of the MRO facility situated at the Ibom International Airport. I went further to declare that knowing the patriotic zeal that drives Obong Nsima Ekere, and having been assured of his commitment to the development and economic emancipation of the State, it shouldn't take him, the APC governorship candidate in the 2019 election, up to three months after inauguration to channel the needed human and financial resources to get our collective MRO dream realised.


It has been brought to my attention that a few hours after my interview, some paid agents of the (Deacon Emmanuel's) PDP government in Akwa Ibom State, shepherded by one Aniefiok Macaulay, the SA to the Governor on Media, have been peddling blatant falsehood, maliciously distorting and totally misrepresenting what I said in that interview on the proposed "MRO" facility which is located at Ibom airport and other issues.


In one of their articles published on various platforms on the internet with the caption: *WHY I CAN'T SUPPORT AKWA IBOM AIRPORT DEVELOPMENT, NCAA DIRECTOR*, the media aides of the Governor, falsely and maliciously wrote: "The Executive Director (sic) of the Airworthiness of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Engr. Ita Awak, has vowed never to do anything to support the development of the Maintenance, Repairs and Overhaul facilities (sic) at the Akwa Ibom International Airport."


I want to state very unequivocally, and the truth of this averment can be attested to by all who listened to the interview, that what the PDP media reported of me on the MRO issue is untrue in all material particular.


I wish to use this opportunity to make further salient assertions and clarifications on the matter of the proposed MRO facility in A'Ibom State and the humble role providence has privileged me to assume.


1. Consequent upon a directive by the Director General of the NCAA, I had the privilege, acting within my capacity as the Director of Airworthiness Standards, DAWS, of NCAA of writing a letter on the 30th of January, 2018, to the Executive Governor of Akwa Ibom State “requesting him grant access to NCAA Aviation Safety Inspectors for an inspection of the facility the State government proposes to use as an MRO and to discuss with the Governor to see the possibility of upgrading and utilising the facility as an option towards achieving the objective of having a world class maintenance facility in Nigeria." The Governor's consent was transmitted to NCAA on 7th February, 2018.


2. On Thursday, 1st March, 2018, I led a 4-man team of NCAA Aviation Safety Inspectors on a visit to the proposed MRO facility. The management of Akwa Ibom Airport Development Company, AADC, and H. E. Obong Victor Attah took the inspectors around the building and site.


3. At the debriefing, the Governor, the SSG and H. E. Obong Victor Attah were told the critical role which the facility could play in the aviation industry in the West African sub-region if the government will summon the will to complete and equip it. An unfinished building and/or hangarage cannot be said to be an aircraft MRO facility. For a facility to be so called, aside from the building/housing, it has to be, depending on the aircraft it is envisaged to maintain, repair and overhaul, be specifically equipped, tooled and populated with the properly skilled and credentialed technical personnel.


4. To all intents and purposes, it is the sole responsibility of the Governor and the government of Akwa Ibom State to take the lead and prioritise the investment of the needed resources for the actualization of the MRO project.


5. Given the obsessive mantra of the Akwa Ibom State Government on "the radical industrialisation of A'Ibom State", it is fair to assume that a positive endeavor such as the MRO facility, which has drawn the interest of relevant national bodies, would be the object of positive propagation of the Government’s media team rather than being deployed as a reductionist tool in the debate and effort to physicalize this national dream to the detriment of the country’s aviation economy.


6. As the recording will undoubtedly show, there is nowhere throughout the interview where I said or "vowed" never to do anything to support the development of the maintenance, repairs and overhaul facility at the A'Ibom airport." Indeed, the direct opposite is the truth. And I trust that in good conscience, H. E. Obong Victor Attah, Dr. Emmanuel Ekuwem, the current Secretary to Akwa Ibom State Government, SSG, Mr. Akan Okon, the Commissioner for Special Duties and Aviation Development and Capt. Mfon Udom, the Accountable Manager of the proposed Ibom Air will all attest to the fact that DAWS has always treated their requests promptly and professionally and without any prejudices whatever.


It is my sincere hope that Governor Udom Emmanuel will caution his media aides and order them to stop forthwith their ill-advised campaign of calumny against my person.

THE JUST SHALL BE VINDICATED: Campaign of Calumny by Akwa Ibom State Government against Ovong Ita Awak


RE: "WHY I CAN'T SUPPORT AKWA IBOM AIRPORT DEVELOPMENT DEVELOPMENT, NCAA DIRECTOR."


[By Ovong Engr. Ita Awak]




As should be expected in this season of politicking, one of the questions I was directly asked by the anchor person during my interview on Planet Radio, Uyo, on Saturday, 10th November, 2018, was to state what I have done, both as an APC chieftain and Director of Airworthiness Standards in the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority, NCAA, to help realise the Obong Victor Attah vision of having an operational aircraft maintenance, repairs and overhaul facility at the A'Ibom airport.


In my response, I said that, judging from my first-hand experience with the Governor Deacon Udom Gabriel Emmanuel’s PDP government, I am convinced beyond doubt that the PDP government, in spite of it's advertised commitment to the radical industrialisation of the State, has not shown in the last three and a half years any tangible evidence of willingness to invest the State's resources to realise and/or achieve it's stated goal particularly as it affects the completion of the MRO facility situated at the Ibom International Airport. I went further to declare that knowing the patriotic zeal that drives Obong Nsima Ekere, and having been assured of his commitment to the development and economic emancipation of the State, it shouldn't take him, the APC governorship candidate in the 2019 election, up to three months after inauguration to channel the needed human and financial resources to get our collective MRO dream realised.


It has been brought to my attention that a few hours after my interview, some paid agents of the (Deacon Emmanuel's) PDP government in Akwa Ibom State, shepherded by one Aniefiok Macaulay, the SA to the Governor on Media, have been peddling blatant falsehood, maliciously distorting and totally misrepresenting what I said in that interview on the proposed "MRO" facility which is located at Ibom airport and other issues.


In one of their articles published on various platforms on the internet with the caption: *WHY I CAN'T SUPPORT AKWA IBOM AIRPORT DEVELOPMENT, NCAA DIRECTOR*, the media aides of the Governor, falsely and maliciously wrote: "The Executive Director (sic) of the Airworthiness of the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Engr. Ita Awak, has vowed never to do anything to support the development of the Maintenance, Repairs and Overhaul facilities (sic) at the Akwa Ibom International Airport."


I want to state very unequivocally, and the truth of this averment can be attested to by all who listened to the interview, that what the PDP media reported of me on the MRO issue is untrue in all material particular.


I wish to use this opportunity to make further salient assertions and clarifications on the matter of the proposed MRO facility in A'Ibom State and the humble role providence has privileged me to assume.


1. Consequent upon a directive by the Director General of the NCAA, I had the privilege, acting within my capacity as the Director of Airworthiness Standards, DAWS, of NCAA of writing a letter on the 30th of January, 2018, to the Executive Governor of Akwa Ibom State “requesting him grant access to NCAA Aviation Safety Inspectors for an inspection of the facility the State government proposes to use as an MRO and to discuss with the Governor to see the possibility of upgrading and utilising the facility as an option towards achieving the objective of having a world class maintenance facility in Nigeria." The Governor's consent was transmitted to NCAA on 7th February, 2018.


2. On Thursday, 1st March, 2018, I led a 4-man team of NCAA Aviation Safety Inspectors on a visit to the proposed MRO facility. The management of Akwa Ibom Airport Development Company, AADC, and H. E. Obong Victor Attah took the inspectors around the building and site.


3. At the debriefing, the Governor, the SSG and H. E. Obong Victor Attah were told the critical role which the facility could play in the aviation industry in the West African sub-region if the government will summon the will to complete and equip it. An unfinished building and/or hangarage cannot be said to be an aircraft MRO facility. For a facility to be so called, aside from the building/housing, it has to be, depending on the aircraft it is envisaged to maintain, repair and overhaul, be specifically equipped, tooled and populated with the properly skilled and credentialed technical personnel.


4. To all intents and purposes, it is the sole responsibility of the Governor and the government of Akwa Ibom State to take the lead and prioritise the investment of the needed resources for the actualization of the MRO project.


5. Given the obsessive mantra of the Akwa Ibom State Government on "the radical industrialisation of A'Ibom State", it is fair to assume that a positive endeavor such as the MRO facility, which has drawn the interest of relevant national bodies, would be the object of positive propagation of the Government’s media team rather than being deployed as a reductionist tool in the debate and effort to physicalize this national dream to the detriment of the country’s aviation economy.


6. As the recording will undoubtedly show, there is nowhere throughout the interview where I said or "vowed" never to do anything to support the development of the maintenance, repairs and overhaul facility at the A'Ibom airport." Indeed, the direct opposite is the truth. And I trust that in good conscience, H. E. Obong Victor Attah, Dr. Emmanuel Ekuwem, the current Secretary to Akwa Ibom State Government, SSG, Mr. Akan Okon, the Commissioner for Special Duties and Aviation Development and Capt. Mfon Udom, the Accountable Manager of the proposed Ibom Air will all attest to the fact that DAWS has always treated their requests promptly and professionally and without any prejudices whatever.


It is my sincere hope that Governor Udom Emmanuel will caution his media aides and order them to stop forthwith their ill-advised campaign of calumny against my person.

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TO ALL FRIENDS WHO CARE

People Democratic Party(PDP) in their FACEBOOK PAGE asked Nigerians in a PROMO CONTEST to Nominate “A Patriotic Nigerian” who in our opinion has inspired many since Independence. The Nomination with the “HIGHEST LIKE” in the comment section) wins and is rewarded with the Freedom of Choosing a PDP Governor of choice for a DINNER (Guess package included).
YOUNG, DESTINY A.(www.facebook.com/engryoung) nominated LATE PROF CHINUA ACHEBE, the Author of “THINGS FALL APART” and "There was a Country"

To help him grab the WIN, kindly boost his No of Likes by liking his COMMENT startin with: Prof Chinua Achebe: Born ..... here

http:///17VfgCa

Read more about it here: http:///17PyfeF

Just do it for ur guy bros

PDP is searching for most Patriotic Nigerian to Honour.

I have nominated Chinua Achebe
Pls click the link: http:///17VfgCa like d comment made by YOUNG DESTINY A. nominating Chinua Achebe as Most Patriotic Nigerian in the PDP Promo Contest. Thank you.

Who is Achebe?
Born Albert Chinualumogu Achebe, 16 November 1930 – 21 March 2013 was a Nigerian novelist, poet, professor, and critic. He was best known for his first novel and magnum opus, Things Fall Apart (1958), which is the most widely read book in modern African literature.
Raised by his parents in the Igbo town of Ogidi in southeastern Nigeria, Achebe excelled at school and won a scholarship for undergraduate studies. He became fascinated with world religions and traditional African cultures, and began writing stories as a university student. After graduation, he worked for the Nigerian Broadcasting Service (NBS) and soon moved to the metropolis of Lagos. He gained worldwide attention for Things Fall Apart in the late 1950s; his later novels include No Longer at Ease (1960), Arrow of God (1964), A Man of the People (1966), andAnthills of the Savannah (1987). Achebe wrote his novels in English and defended the use of English, a "language of colonisers", in African literature. In 1975, his lecture An Image of Africa: Racism in Conrad's "Heart of Darkness" featured a famous criticism of Joseph Conrad as "a bloody racist"; it was later published amid some controversy.
When the region of Biafra broke away from Nigeria in 1967, Achebe became a supporter of Biafran independence and acted as ambassador for the people of the new nation. The war ravaged the populace, and as starvation and violence took its toll, he appealed to the people of Europe and the Americas for aid. When the Nigerian government retook the region in 1970, he involved himself in political parties but soon resigned due to frustration over the corruption and elitism he witnessed. He lived in the United States for several years in the 1970s, and returned to the U.S. in 1990 after a car accident left him partially disabled.

President Jonathan joins Prof. Achebe’s family, his friends, colleagues, past and present students, admirers and all who have learnt indelible lessons of human existence from his award winning works of literature in mourning the legendary author.

As he mourns however, the President is consoled by the knowledge that Prof. Achebe will live forever in the hearts and minds of present and future generations through his great works which brought him enduring international fame and countless honours.

The President believes that Prof. Achebe’s frank, truthful and fearless interventions in national affairs will be greatly missed at home in Nigeria because while others may have disagreed with his views, most Nigerians never doubted his immense patriotism and sincere commitment to the building of a greater, more united and prosperous nation that all Africans and the entire black race could be proud of.

He recalls that with maturity and global stature, Prof. Achebe fearlessly spoke the truth as he saw it and became, as he advanced in age, a much revered national icon and conscience of the nation who will be eternally honoured for his contributions to national discourse as well as the immense fame and glory he brought to his fatherland.

On behalf of himself, his family, the Federal Government and all Nigerians, President Jonathan extends heartfelt condolences to Prof Achebe’s family.

He prays that God Almighty will receive Prof. Achebe’s great soul and grant him eternal rest from his outstanding earthly labours.
Mr. Jonathan said he was consoled by the knowledge that Prof. Achebe will live forever in the hearts and minds of present and future generations through his great works which brought him enduring international fame and countless honours.

In November 2011, Prof. Achebe turned down Mr. Jonathan’s attempt to offer him the title of Commander of the Federal Republic. It was the second time in seven years he was rejecting the offer. In a statement, the respected writer explained that "the reasons for rejecting the offer when it was first made have not been addressed let alone solved.”

When he turned down the offer the first time, in 2004, he said he had been watching events in Nigeria “with alarm and dismay…particularly the chaos in my own state of Anambra where a small clique of renegades, openly boasting its connections in high places, seems determined to turn my homeland into a bankrupt and lawless fiefdom. I am appalled by the brazenness of this clique and the silence, if not connivance, of the Presidency."

He was at that time rebuffed by the Olusegun Obasanjo government, which responded that Achebe chose to turn down the offer, he did “not deserve” Nigeria.

Similarly, when he turned down the offer in 2011, President Jonathan called the refusal "a regrettable decision which may have been borne out of misinformation as to the true state of affairs in Nigeria,” and urged Prof. Achebe, who had been wheelchair-bound for two decades, to “visit home soon and see the progress being made by the Jonathan Administration for himself".

On the same wheelchair for which Prof Achebe has spent more than 20years, OUT OF PATRIOTISM, he wrote his last book on earth ” There Was a Country” How Patriotic could one have been?

Today, this Patriotic Nigerian is gone and deserve to be honoured.