ATTAH, AKPABIO RIFT: Real Reasons Why The Peace Deal Crashed

 

I built an Airport, MRO, best runway, IPP, ICT park etc. – Victor Attah

Attah Twisted the Facts, Gave no credit to his Successor – Godswill Akpabio

The peace deal believed to have been brokered by Bishop Ekuwem and others between former Governor Victor Attah and the sitting Governor Sir Dr. Godswill Akpabio may have been thought of by many political pundits as the end of the almost five years political limbo which existed between the duo of a mentor and a ruling god-son in a State believed to be named after God.

 As astonishing as the revelations rolled through the insights given by Governor Akpabio when he met with Journalists recently  in what was to be a tour of some projects sites in the state, but failed because of other very pressing engagement which the Governor had and he eventually gave room for questions on issues about the state.  The governor jokingly asked that if there were nothing to ask because of his uncommon approach to transforming the state, he was ready to listen to gossips peddled about people in the state.

 Of all the questions asked by Journalists, two issues preoccupied the mind of the state chief executive.  One was on the issues tackled by the Information Commissioner to governor Akpabio, Mr Aniekan Umanah,  concerning a write up by former governor Victor Attah entitled “Insights into Onshore-Offshore Dichotomy” in which the former governor vehemently stated that despite the mere N600million he used to get every month from federation account(because Akwa Ibom was then classified as non-oil producing state), he was able to “build an airport with a maintenance hangar and the best runway in the country”.

 Akpabio’s information boss in capturing Victor Attah’s claims quoted in a pamphlet that was circulated to Journalists entitled, “Re:Insights into Onshore-Offshore Dichotomy – Arc(Obong) Victor Attah  Twisted some Facts”,  thus; “I built an Independent Power Plant(IPP) of 191 megawatt capacity; I built Le-Meridien Hotel with a Marina resort and a golf course…I built housing estates, hospitals, schools; I built roads;  gave the people pipe borne water and rural electrification.  I started a University of Technology and an Information and Communication Technology (ICT) park with a major incubation centre; I initiated a design for the deep-sea port at Ibaka…”

The idea of “twisting the facts” could have called for the question from The Punch Correspondent, but governor Akpabio took time to explain that he had nothing against former governor Victor Attah.  He said Obong Attah was his mentor and boss and that he held him in high esteem and can never insult him, but wondered why he[Obong Attah] should over-stretch political disagreement for so long a time.

Governor Akpabio recounted the first peace deal in which Arc. Obong Attah refused supporting his second term bid but rather, as a PDP Board of Trustees member, went to publicly gave support to an AC candidate against him. 

He said the second peace deal was when arrangements were made for him and Obong Attah to meet on 23^rd December 2012 .  He said the following day while the peace meeting was going on, two hours into that peace deal it was brought to his notice that Obong Victor Attah’s letter on the “Insights into Onshore-Offshore Dichotomy” was already circulating via some national tabloids.

He said that much as there was no need for such a write up, he would not have bothered himself if Obong Attah gave credit to the contributions of his successor as regards the completion of some of the projects he[Obong Attah] started.  Governor Akpabio queried, “if I had left the airport at the level governor Attah left, would there have been an airport today for Akwa Ibom State?”. He stated clearly that his mentor would have said he started some projects as the Airport, the MRO, and other projects and that his successor completed them.

 He wondered what Obong Attah would have said if he had ventured to complete the Ibom Science Park which he said over 80% of the contract sum was paid and yet work done did not reach 40%.  He said he took over 17 rooms completed in Le’Meridien Hotel out of 163 rooms and completed same, as well as the golf course which he had to stop activities and got same expanded to international standard.  Governor Akpabio wondered what his offence could be in keeping, tendering and championing the dreams and ideas of his former boss to fruition that he should be so rebuffed even during the burial of the wife of Obong Attah.

He told Journalists that Obong Attah wrote to him informing government of the demise and burial arrangement of the former first lady of the state, sought security arrangement from the state for the sake of personalities he said would attend the burial, but that he was shocked that Obong Attah rejected the N25m sent by him to assist in the burial arrangements, refused to enlist the condolence message sent by the state in the burial programme, refused the condolence message to be read even in the church by him, his Deputy, or a church clergy and even refused to grant him space as the state governor to say a word or two.  He said he summed up courage as the state governor to attend the burial both at the church and Attah’s place.  He said he was shocked that only two past governors and himself were in attendance as against what he was told that personalities from all over the country would be in attendance.

Speaking further, governor Akpabio said he came as the governor of the state for a “serious business to change the psychology of the people of Nigeria about Akwa Ibom State”, adding that he could be judged after 2015.  “I came here with anger to develop this state”, the governor said.

When asked to comment on zoning of governorship in 2015 as a beneficiary of same gesture, governor Akpabio said he was not ready to be “cornered by any Journalist” on that matter as he had spoken on the matter earlier and would not want to repeat himself.