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BILLIONS 'BURIED' BY GOVERNOR UDOM EMMANUEL

By Osondu Ahirika

I'm profoundly sorry I can't easily trace and cite the source of the eulogy I'm going to replicate in this essay. It was a kind commendation to His Excellency, Governor Udom Emmanuel from a repentant critic who shifted from his cyncal view of the governor to a more moderate evaluation when reality stared him on the face.
Unedited, he wrote on his Facebook page in part, the following declarations:

"You have your shortcomings, your Excellency (who doesn't have?), but the fact remains that you will be leaving our State better than you met it.
I am happy that when one considers the number of buildings that were demolished on Oron/Airport road alone, and the buildings that were demolished at the Eket-Etinan, Uyo-Etinan and Etinan-Ndon Eyo roads and the huge outlays on compensation payments before the construction of the roads, one just has to commend your efforts.

Even your fiercest critics will smile when driving on the eye-catching 8 lanes Ring Road three or when flying Ibom Air. People can say what they like (as no leader can ever be loved by all, and no leader can please all), but our joy is that when they say "Udom Emmanuel has done nothing," we, your fans, will point to so many projects that you have initiated and completed in your tenure.

And your tenure will end in ten months hence, not today. There is enough time to complete a lot more.
I am praying fervently that God will guide you, and help you to complete most of your projects before leaving office next year. May you land well, your Excellency!"

I'm particularly interested in the second paragraph of the lifted quote above. It explains justifiably why people like us insist Governor Udom Emmanuel has performed exceedingly well. Many times when I hear people ask, "what is on ground to show for the huge allocations to Akwa Ibom State?", I have a hearty laugh at what ignorance can do.

Truth is, the billions this Government led by Governor Udom Emmanuel has buried underneath the earth and ghosted away in compensations is humongous and since its value cannot be physically seen or touched, nobody will remember. Indeed , with billions buried underground, nobody recalls the terrible flood problem at Nsikak Eduok by Edet Akpan Avenue intersection which troubled residents for years. The multi million naira construction of 1.5km Nsikak Eduok - Tropicana Outfall Drain which is a wholly underground drainage through Akwa Efak , across Udo Udoma Avenue all the way to Afaha Ikot Nkan behind the Ibom Tropicana has disappeared from memory. The flood gone, the drainage underground. We have forgotten how it was.

The intervention in Gully erosion at Etim Umana and St. Luke’s Hospital Anua in collaboration with World Bank Assisted Nigeria Erosion and Watershed Management Project (NEWMAP), no longer comes to mind. How will we recall or factor the collosal sums spent on this when it went mostly into the underground the concrete drains?

The same way we have forgotten the Ntak Inyang gridlock eased by Governor Emmanuel’s intervention. Recall that the Ntak Inyang axis of the Calabar-Itu road failed completely with a gully erosion breaking the dualized road in twain.

Commuters had a troubling experience as the road was completely impassable. The State Government had invested resources in providing a sustainable underground erosion infrastructure capable of channeling the threatening water to a safe exit. Done with handling the erosion, the reconstructed road was put back to use. Again, the money guzzling project took the huge investment down the drain. The people have short memory and we have moved on.

Then to what my unknown source wrote above. Have we considered the billions paid out as compensations to owners of property demolished to make way for the dualization of the 25.0km Uyo – Ikot Ekpene Road which he inerited from the previous administration? The compensation stretches to property demolished along the dualization of 20.0km Uyo – Etinan Road (Ikot Oku Ikono), the dualization of the 14.5km Uyo/Airport Junction – Okopedi Okobo Road, the dualization of 9.5km Ring Road III in Aka Nung Udoe Road and the 29 kilometres dualized (four lanes by width) Etinan-Ndon Eyo road. All these are built by Governor Udom Emmanuel o!

The Etinan-Ndon Eyo road t is currently the longest dual carriage road in Akwa Ibom State and its features include two Cable-stayed bridges at Ekpene Ukpa in Etinan and another one at Ikot Akpan in Onna, three roundabouts, streetlights across its entire length, standard median, and drainages on both sides. It's a very wide road, and each lane can accommodate four cars on its horizontal width. The compensation sums which runs into billions have gone with the wind. We see the beautiful world class infrastructure. Nobody remembers the component cost of compensations alone. The huge compensations paid for the dualization of the 19.5 kilometres Eket- Ibeno Road dualization project and the Etinan- Eket dual carriage way road project have all been waved goodbye. We don't just remember.

Have you been to Eket LGA recently? No? Visit Eket and you will see how Governor Udom Emmanuel has spent money due to the ongoing massive remodeling work within the city and its environs. Commencing from the large circus at the heart of Eket with massive underground drainage, to the Eket/Etinan Road project and to the reconstruction of the gigantic 2nd largest stadium in the State also located also in Eket, you will marvel at the huge investment sunk into Eket remodeling project. Again, hundreds of millions was poured into the underground drainage system and for compensation of demolished property that gave way for the remodelling. We won't easily remember that.

For this piece, let me end with the 9 kilometres IBB Flood Control Project which cuts across 17 communities in 3 Local Government Areas. The project which is executed by the Akwa Ibom State government in conjunction with World Bank will be inaugurated soon

The project which has been completed has completely eradicated every form of flooding in Uyo metropolis and it's environs which engrossed the State capital for almost 30 years since her creation. We enjoy the welcome relief this new dawn has brought. The problem is, the billions went underground and in compensations for property demolished in the right of way. We will soon forget this too.

https://www.facebook.com/100003028090920/posts/pfbid02JMsUcpLpNzsbZsuxsgioEGREU87RWvFuCNFgB2fy4yd4KZr8YeubXz2QS5eVzmtl/?d=n

Lalasticlala front page

aribisala0:
https://punchng.com/fg-approves-ibom-deep-seaport/

They are you grant maritime for security and dredging approvals

NigeriaIsDoomed:
Akwa Ibom miserable haters oya crawl out from your dirty holes and converge here to do what you know best how to do.
Big fools......

Cc: Graysons
okeysoninv

I find a new Akwa ibom thread for you lick the link https://www.nairaland.com/7258410/gov-emmanuel-inspects-intl-worship#115284857

Truthisunique2:
Omo this project no make sense

There are so many churches in the state and you can still have landmark project with a human resources own

Oga this is not a church but a cathedral ok

NigeriaIsDoomed:
Akwa Ibom miserable haters oya crawl out from your dirty holes and converge here to do what you know best how to do.
Big fools......

They will all run away . We are progressing while they are hating

PointZerom:
Don't let Tinubu claim responsibility

All the governors before and after him didn't perform but him alone.

Late Jakande is bitterd

Akwa Ibom has never been an APC state na

Richy986:
Most of them are ignorant and loud about it.

Federal Government as refuse to place their part for the port to kickstart

Bankright:
Akwa Ibom is beautiful

You can say that again

More

Test run....
Guess the location...🤔#AkwaIbomTwitter #CompletionAgenda pic.twitter.com/U9EhA9f48x

— Richard Okon (@okon_sir) July 31, 2022

Akwa Ibom Ayaya ❤️
The new ongoing 10lanes construction in uyo roundabout fountain water completed. The beauty of Udom 3 roundabout at night
Beautiful night view of the new 3rd ring road in Uyo.

We can say the Governor is doing great job.

Mynd44 front page

maxlev1:
Hahaha calm down bro. I know u are angry based on his assertion that most of our youths depend on betting and Pos business for survival. Even me do not agree with him on that particular point. Betting & POS biz is rampant even in PH as well afterall they are legitimate business which is better than crime and rituals. Well his subsequent posts was abit better. It is good to note that poverty is deeply rooted in every state in the country because our economy is very bad. This is as a result of wrong policies from the federal government. Our state government have done well trying to industrialize the state to the best of its ability. From this we will benefit from immensely in the next couple of years hopefully when we have a good federal executive that will improve the economic standard of the country through good policies and general decision making.

well served and detailed

saintkeppy:
.

Did i mention one facility, you can't read to comprehend, thats your problem, There are more Offshore Facilities that Carters for more than 20K ExxonMobil workers &other coys, I have stated clearly, that AKS indigenes working with Total, Shell, other Oil&Gas Services coys takes off from PH, &they're few in number, they only return once they're done with the job.

I have asked the you the cost of flying from Airforce Base to Offshores AKS on a daily, you haven't answered me.

Your ignorance has further been exposed on AKS relevance in Oil&Gas industry.

Look for your info, ExxonMobil started operations in Offshores then South-Eastern State (AKS&CRS) in the 70's.

It was the Indigenous Military Governor Brigadier U.J Esuene, of then S-Eastern state an Eket man gave ExxonMobil the much assistance to settle where they're now, the Terminal, as Exploration & Production (E&P) had already begun, AKS indigenes were gainfully employed in different areas of the company, some secured contracts with the company long time ago, while the headquarter of the company still remains in Lagos.
I don't really have Time I would have list all the Offshores Facilities (Rigs) named in our local dialect, including the Deepwater facility christen ERHA Deepwater Development operated by ExxonMobil, deploying Subsea Technology in an FPSO facility, which has the capacity of storing 2.2million barrels with processing capacity of 210,000 barrels of crude oil per day.

Now back to Obj you mentioned that gave AKS relevance in Oil&Gas sector, you make me laugh at your ignorant again, now let me school you, that issue was all about revenue from Oil&Gas produced Offshores, FG said States can only get revenue derivation from Oil&Gas produced within the boundaries of the States, Offshores within the Gulf of Guinea belongs to FG, States like AKS were receiving peanuts from FG despite very rich in Oil&Gas, Our former Erudite former Governor, Arc Victor Attah took the case to court, other Governors within South-South geopolitical zone joined in the case &lost at the Federal High Court, infact at a point, AKS were not receiving Federal Allocation, the State was surviving with only IGR couple with loans,
To cut the story short, it was the highest Court, THE SUPREME COURT, ABUJA sometime in 2004 or there abouts, gave the judgement that abolished the obnoxious Onshore/Offshore dichotomy, so that States who produces Oil&Gas can share in the revenue from its resources, atleast 13%.
A bill was sent to that effect, then President OBJ Assent to it, so it can become an Act!

That (13%) of what you produce monthly is sent the States in the South-south &the entire Niger-Delta region, thats what they are using to develop their States.
So it is not on the basis of AKS being relevant in Oil&Gas recently, but revenue from Natural Resources Almighty God gave the State, which FG saw other wise.

Before the historic supreme Court judgement, AKS have been seriously balling in Oil&Gas business, Exploration &Production since 70's till date.
We have AKS indigenes who are still in active service, both Technical & Managerial roles in ExxonMobil.
Vice Chairman, ExxonMobil Worldwide, Udom Inoyo, an AKS indigene, retired recently from active service after over 30years in the company.

If you were to be manager, Logistics & Transport @ExxonMobil you would have cost the company more money in your unwise decisions by flying workers from Airforce Base, Port Harcourt to Edop, Ekpe or Asabo Offshore Platforms measuring over 100KM Offshores, when there is Qua Iboe Terminal right there at Ibeno, where choppers takes off &Lands @the Terminal.

I like to engage discussions with informed &intelligent personalities, so sorry you ain't fall into this group, so sorry!

you’ve succeeded to sending that guy to Oblivion lol

okeysoninv:
cont. Writing rubbish. How many chopper services is there in akwa ibiom to cather for tens of thousands oil workers and other staffs for offshore facilities at aks. Chevron workers at warri even makes use Port Harcourt Chopper's service talk more of aks that's relatively new in oil industry. Your spilling what you don't know. How many helicopter companies are there in eket . Mind you apart from air Force agip also have heliport at agip base pH. I repeat most of aks oil workers are base in ph.

Shut up Eket have Mobil airstrip and even at that most personnel’s fly from Uyo airport now

saintkeppy:
.

Unfortunately, you have ridicule yourself by rubbishing yourself the more because you don't read, a typical Nigerian youth syndrome, who is so quick to quote without reading properly, I pointed out in my comment that MOST OF AKS OIL&GAS ARE LOCATED OFFSHORES

Telling the whole wide world that departure centre of Akwa Ibom workers is Port Harcourt makes me shake my head in how ignorant you are.

Telling me that 80% of Oil&Gas Akwa Ibom indigenes lives in Port Harcourt further shows your ignorances.

Now Look:

Departure Location of Oil&Gas workers generally not only Akwa Ibom indigenes working within Akwa Ibom State especially ExxonMobil, is at Qua Iboe Terminal (QIT) choppers takes off &Lands at the Terminal.

Do you consider the cost of shuttling workers between Port Harcourt &deep Offshores Eket daily or 2-weeks intervals? Do you know the cost?
ExxonMobil also have a particular bus stop in Uyo, i think Aka Road, where a company coaster Buses picks all its workers living in Uyo to Eket daily. Those VIP experts lives in Eket Town.

Since you are too ignorant, the choppers that takes off from Airforce Base along Aba Road, Port Harcourt City, are those working in Rigs Offshores Port Harcourt, in rare cases they go further to Offshore in AKS, it is a general thing it's not only Akwa Ibom Oil&Gas workers occupies the choppers, they move specifically, it is either Total Staffs or Shell Staffs, or catering services & Oil&Gas services companies who has work to deliver mostly Offshores Port Harcourt.

ExxonMobil happens to be the biggest E&P operating in Akwa Ibom here, they shuttle via Chopper or Vessel from Qua Iboe Terminal(QIT) AKS &BRT(Bonny River Terminal) Rivers State, note the two Terminal are owned&operated by ExxonMobil. They had Logistics & Transport contract with Bristow Helicopters, some companies patronize Caverton Helicopters, Chartered Vessels etc.

So telling me 80% of Oil & Gas workers working in AKS are based in Port Harcourt is Laughable, they live in Uyo, Eket, few in Port Harcourt, those in Port Harcourt are mostly Total, Chevron, Shell, Agip, &ExxonMobil BRT, NLNG cos NLNG make use of the chopper too fro&to PH to Bonny Island.

Others based in PH, are those working with Oil-Gas services whose offices are mostly in Port Harcourt, like TransOcean, Schlumberger, Weatherford, Saipem etc reasons is most IOCs are based in Port Harcourt, they want to be close to their clients.

If ExxonMobil needs their services like maintenance or repairs, etc, they will take off from Port Harcourt, some times they navigate using Vessels to cut cost, once they're done with the contract job, they return to PH, their services are different & they don't based in AKS.

I have ExxonMobil friends based in Calabar, Cross River State. After 2-weeks Offshores Eket, they reunite with their families.

Next time read properly before rushing to comment "rubbish"

This is when you are talking, away from your abusive attitude towards your people , I think you have a wide knowledge of what’s really going on. Nice piece , that wimp you quoted feel everything that from PH and END there .. My younger bros work in shell and he flies from Attah international airport in uyo .. Some Mobil guys that live in Akwa ibom but work in ESSO offshores facilities fly from Uyo airport while we offshore JVO and Usan fly from QIT Ibeno . Only a handful third party fly from PH ..

saintkeppy:
.

Before you quote me highlight where I'm wrong in my post &let me thrash it properly, I like to put the records straight as well as Posting the reality on ground.

1. First, I did not state, the companies you listed up there does not exist.

Some of them are not busy as we expect, apart from the American gaint ExxonMobil, Total or maybe Shell, then indigenous Oil coys like Sterling Oil, Oriental &Moni Pulo,

others are mushroom not busy with serious E&P, how many barrels of oil produced in a day?

You should be able to State in your reports or Topic, how many barrels of Oil they produce to suggest how big or busy they are.

Working&Earning from your Offshore job does not portray the generality of majority of Akwa Ibom State youths are gainfully employed.

The reality on ground is, majority of youths in Akwa Ibom State are jobless, this is Real. &it has shown in National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) rating.

Akwa Ibom State, indeed Uyo, the state capital, has the highest number mini buses, tricycles, cos no white collar or blue collar(industrial) jobs available in the State.

Youths picked up Transport business as a means of making ends meet, majority engaged themselves via Hired Purchase arrangements instead of staying idle.

When next you're back from your Offshore work, drive round Uyo &see the number of Betshops &POS kioks on major roads &Streets of Uyo Metropolis.

Most businesses like Supermarkets are owned by Igbos, how many of our indigenes owned shops in popular markets like Electronics &household @NEPA line?, Building Materials @Ifa Ikot Okpon? Mechanic village where auto spare parts are sold? Or even Ladies accessories like weavon, wigs @ Oku street, phones &its accessories even clothings, boutiques, Igbos living in the State contribute reasonable % to our IGR, infact Uyo indigenes are even selling their old family compounds/properties on major Roads to the Igbo which some have so far developed it to highrise structures accommodating shops&office complexes, in all this, they also employ our youths where the need arises.

Part of my side hustle a property agent, most of my clients are Igbos requesting for affordable Lands&physical properties to buy.

Our people are also trying their bit, i have observed, their investment is basically Hotels, Petrol service stations etc, but the chunk of the money in circulation are from civil servants&Politicians

If the Oil services companies were to be located in Uyo, you would have seen how AKS develop rapidly, reduced unemployment a lil bit, H.E Governor Udom is trying his very best by attracting industries via Foreign Direct Investment (FDI), what other previous government did not do, we may not see the dividends now, but definitely, gradually we will reap the benefits later, but before we expect, the State Government should Institute an interest-free loans to the teeming youths, market women, who are ever ready to do business, monitor the usage, let it get to the down-trodden, Unemployed graduates in the State to cushion the effects of monster hunger&unemployment.

Please note, I criticize constructively, I can't see black &then I call it white.

So my brother I do not hate my State, I do not have any state to call my own, Akwa Ibom State is my State I want to see the State make progress steadily, devoid of unemployments, hunger etc.

That is my Take!

you are abusive and I don’t like your person … Look at the way you are badmouthing a state and people you call your own with such insensitivity.. Abeg let die this talk before you get me angry .. Takecare

maxlev1:
Bro some of your analysis is true. I happen to be in a similar shoes with u being that I, a mechanical Engineer by discipline, skilled, certified and experienced in some oil and gas related areas have been working under several oil and gas contractors at different times until the covid shit. Also the takeover issues of certain locations at Mobil btw NNPC & Seplat have brought abt more delay in slowing down things for third party contractor with projects. I did like us to relate more on a personal level on regards to oil and gas. Maybe u suggest to me on what medium I can reach u mail or WhatsApp.
Back to your write up. Apart from some companies which contracts are subleted to through 4th party system and in turn hide from the host communities due to the obvious reasons we know of, Other companies have very high percentage of Akwaibomites in their workforce. The truth is even if all our people constitute as 100% workforce in all the oil and gas companies operating in our state, it won't change much because the total number of oil workers are quite low compared to the total population. The economy is just so bad my brother.

God bless you , imagine the fool saying that Akwa ibom are not working with those companies, as if we are fools to allow company come to our state and explore without we having a dominant work force presence

Lalasticlala front page

saintkeppy:
.

Uyo the State Capital is Administrative &Business City. Civil servants, politicians, few business men running the show in Uyo.

Most of AKS Oil&Gas is located Offshores.

Most oil workers are in Oil Services companies(Contract staff) they come deliver their jobs then return back PH, they're different from E&P companies, but some people will not understand, I'm a Petroleum & Gas Engineering graduate, I have worked in a few Services coys before the covid sh!T scattered everything, Oil companies that are in Akwa Ibom State are Exploration & Production (E&P), but when services or maintenance are required they hire or contract experts which most are Port Harcourt based companies, interestingly, Port Harcourt happens to be Africa's Oil&Gas Capital, long time ago with much factors in their favour.

Reasons are: Services company wants to be close to their Clients being E&P companies.

Port Harcourt is centrally located between Eket, Warri&other oil locations in Bayelsa State, proximity to move equipments&workers via road or by sea as the case maybe, as a result, Services companies don't see the need to operate another branch in those locations I mentioned above, simply to avoid paying mutiple Taxes to States &over-head cost of running an extra branch.

They prefer to mobilize from Port Harcourt to all those oil locations & return back to base in Port Harcourt, that's why Trans Amadi Area in Port Harcourt is an Oil&Gas district in the city, where they have offices&yards.

Services companies strikes deal to carry out different services to E&P companies like ExxonMobil, Total, Agip,Chevron, Shell, etc
Deals include but not limited to
• Drilling, designing of drilling fluids
•Well completions
•Well logging
• Pipelines
•Maintenance & Repairs of Facilities, Oil rigs both Onshores&Offshores.

Most of those companies the OP mentioned above recruit secretly, sometimes they recruit from Lagos then send down to AKS to work, they pick very few from the State, some Offshore workers can check out after 2weeks then travel to meet with their families in Port Harcourt, truth be told, there's no jobs for teeming youths in AKS, what they have are Betshops, POS outlets, politicians, Igbo business men helping in contributing to the IGR, Let us call a spade, a spade.

AKS is ranked 2nd in unemployment in the country in the mist of plenty, high Allocation, high IGR, oil&Gas companies.


There are oil capitals across the world e.g
Aberdeen in Europe
Houston, Texas in Americas
Dubai or Singapore in Asia
Perth in Australia

What is this one even saying ..
Oga am currently working offshores so I know what am saying up there . You may be right in some of your points but not on some .. Third party companies (contractors) are the only one coming from PH and few staffs both CS or Regulars , the rest are in the state .. Akwa Ibom as employment percentage agreement to all companies operating in the state . So your data of employment and fake news of Akwa ibom been a POS or Igbo IGR is from a place of hate ..

okeysoninv:
developed kee you there.

kee your senselessness

okeysoninv:
ibeno na Bush, it's what ur comparing to Bonny. chai akwa ibiom man

shut up Ibeno is heavily developed

okeysoninv:
lol come to Bonny light is available 24/7

This one na fool oo, him no know say Ibeno town Bonny mate get 24/7 light supply .. Bonny even the use meter while Ibeno no the used meter na free to air

okeysoninv:
rubbish what is in ikot ekpene. how many multi Nationals are there. una even get light mtchweee. akwa ibiom should be competing with bayelsa. una too lack behind in all indexes

How many light una get mumu

okeysoninv:
Eket can never reach reach Bonny , eleme, onne , oyigbo in all ramifications.

lol Bonny na Ibeno mate Oga , Eleme and Onne too dirty so na Oron and Abak go match there ..
Oyigbo na Ikot Abasi mate be that ..

When you get better city we fit compare am to Eket and Ikot ekpene ..

Few pix of ikot ekpene

NigeriaIsDoomed:
Of course Uyo is the Singapore of Nigeria if you didn't know.
Poor man! I am in Uyo at the moment, come there let's tour the city.
I want to cure your ignorance and don't be afraid of your expenses cuz I will take care of that.
I will be here till next week.

Perhaps all the residents of Akwa Ibom use Keke to work and live on trees. Poverty is truly a disease!

I know you are too poor to accept my challenge so let me post few aerial view screenshots of some of the luxury estates in Uyo.
These are from Shelter Afrique, Ewet and Asongama in Uyo.

Leave that fool , he may not even come from PH but one of this depilated state in the country