UMANA SPEAKS OUT, UNFOLDS AGENDA FOR AKWA IBOM AHEAD OF 2015

AKS2015: Mr Umana Okon Umana unfolds agenda for Akwa Ibom

1.  Industrialisation and job creation

2. Creation of mass wealth and prosperity

3. Building of Ibaka Seaport, investment in agriculture

Obong Umana Okon Umana

4. Expansion of infrastructure, social services

The leading Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) aspirant in Akwa Ibom State, Mr. Umana Okon Umana has spoken of his plans for the state if he wins the party nomination and becomes the next governor of the state. Umana said he plans to achieve the objective of industrialisation of the state with the building of the Ibaka Seaport in Mbo local council area, purposeful investment in agriculture as well as expansion of infrastructure and social services.

In a session with journalists in Uyo, Umana explained how he will lead the state to achieve the objective of equitable progress and prosperity for all: “I have the experience and competence to run the state at the level of governor. I yearn for an opportunity to take the state to a new level of prosperity and peace. I have been involved in the last two administrations. I was a commissioner for finance in the administration of Governor Victor Attah and SSG under Governor Godswill Akpabio.
“I know how far we have gone and the areas we need to work on. Also, I am aware that we still have a lot to do especially in the areas of industrialisation and job creation. We must look beyond oil and derivation revenues as we reposition the state for the future.
“We must create wealth. And of course, we will make a conscious and deliberate effort to deal with the other soft issues of development like health, education and security in addition to the expansion of core infrastructure—road network, sea port, power, science and technology. Outside a robust industrialisation programme, we have to pay a special attention to the development of agriculture because this will create jobs and raise the standard of living of our people. We believe that we will have a paradigm shift but as I said, we will give you the full package of what we are going to do for the state.”
Umana spoke on other issues, including the position of the national leadership of the PDP to give all aspirants equal opportunity in the upcoming party primaries, his role in office as SSG, the town hall meetings organised in the state earlier in the year as well as transparency and accountability in the use of public funds.

He said the town hall meetings organised by the state government failed to address the real issue that interested Akwa Ibom people such as revenue and expenditure under the current government. “Even some of the salient issues that should have been addressed at the town hall meetings were not addressed,” Umana said.

“For example, nobody provided answers to some questions like how much revenue has accrued to the state. Even when some people alleged that Akwa Ibom has received over N2 trillion and that the performance of government was not commensurate with the level of resources, the ministry of finance or the ministry of information has still not provided a detailed revenue and expenditure report whereas transparency is a core requirement of good governance.

“We expected them the following day to publish everything to say this is what we have received so far; from statutory allocations, derivation, special releases from the excess crude accounts, from the Paris Club reconciliations, from all the recoveries from under-payments, reimbursements and recoveries after the return of oil wells, then they would tell us in total, this was what we received. 

“This is not asking too much of any government, because transparency is part of good governance. During the town hall meetings there was no such report and up to now there is none. All we were told was that all the people who asked such questions were unpatriotic or sponsored. Or that they used fictitious addresses and fictitious names.

“For performance to be properly assessed, it must be benchmarked against the quantum of resources. The minister of finance made the same point recently.
“I was the commissioner for finance during the administration of Obong Victor Attah and we had quarterly publications on the revenue and expenditure profile of the state. And it was for public consumption; you could walk into the ministry and pick it up. During the town hall meetings they were not able to provide the information. Even as we speak, they have not provided the information.

“There was also a question on the debt profile of the state but have we had any answer? These are the issues that ought to have been addressed during the town hall meetings, because they go to the roots of good governance. It is not late. As ordinary citizens, we have a right to know what has come in and how it was spent. It is our right to know.”

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The full text of the interview:

Sir, did the governor promise to hand over the 2015 governorship of the state to you?

It is academic. What is important is that I am in the race and I am committed. It does not matter who offered to support me in the past. I think that is now academic because whether the governor offered to support me in the past or he has changed his mind, is no longer important. What is important now is that I will be running for the office of governor because I believe I have something to offer in that regard, to make my contributions in order to better our state. I will not want to talk about whether the governor promised he would support me or whether he is no longer supporting me. That is all in the past. I will rather concentrate on the fact that I am committed. I appreciate the massive support I have continued to enjoy from the good people of the state. That is what is more important to me now.

Did you resign your position as SSG or were you forced out?

It was time for me to move on. The position of SSG is not a permanent one. You hold the position at the pleasure of the governor who appointed you. You may also decide to leave on your own. It is not a big deal. People were only worried about the invasion of the office by security personnel. The office was sealed up by security operatives who chased away bewildered civil servants for inexplicable reasons. I was out of the state at the time of the invasion. The incident was widely reported in the media. I have also read reports that the wife of the governor led security operatives to seal up the office. The story that the SSG's office had been sealed up by the Police and SSS was on AIT, Channels and NTA and so it couldn’t have been a mere speculation. I actually first saw it on the news bar of AIT. I believe the commissioner for information must have issued a statement or contacted those news channels and they had that story running for about three days. Of course nobody denied it. But it is all in the past now and I have moved on. I am grateful to Governor Godswill Akpabio who gave me the opportunity to serve the state. I also thank him for acknowledging my humble contributions to the development of the state.
Why are you running for governor?

I have the experience and competence to run the state at the level of governor. I yearn for an opportunity to take the state to a new level of prosperity and peace. I have been involved in the last two administrations. I was a commissioner for finance in the administration of Governor Victor Attah and SSG under Governor Akpabio. I know how far we have gone and the areas we need to work on. Also, I am aware that we still have a lot to do especially in the areas of industrialisation and job creation. We must look beyond oil and derivation revenues as we reposition the state for the future. We must create wealth. And of course, we will make a conscious and deliberate effort to deal with the other soft issues of development like health, education and security in addition to the expansion of core infrastructure—road network, sea port, power, science and technology. Outside a robust industrialisation programme, we have to pay a special attention to the development of agriculture because this will create jobs and raise the standard of living of our people. We believe that we will have a paradigm shift but as I said, we will give you the full package of what we are going to do for the state.

Did you authorise the petition to the National Human Rights Commission against the governor?

We haven’t come out to deny it. It is our petition but it was not just about me. It is not all about Umana Okon Umana. All of us who have been threatened, we felt the appropriate authority should carry out the investigations. All that we asked was that the issues should be investigated and we stated our reasons and that is not too much to ask for. It is not a crime to ask for investigations. If, for instance, you drive to Transcorp Hilton and you notice suspicious movements, you have the right to call the police to come and carry out further investigations. You are aware of the case of our director-general, chief Soni Udom, when armed men invaded his office but thank God he was not around. There were still many unanswered questions so we wrote to the appropriate authority so that the matter can be exhaustively investigated and dealt with. Of course, I had my own personal experience. In December, I received a threat letter, a copy of which I had submitted to the Police. I was asked to withdraw from the governorship race, or they will get me in Akwa Ibom, Lagos or Abuja. I did not pay too much attention to it because I had police protection. I was in Abuja when I got the reports that my security details had been withdrawn. It came as a surprise; a curious coincidence, that just a few days after I received that threat my security details were withdrawn and I was told that the order came from the governor. That gives us cause for concern. There were many other instances stated in that petition. Of course, we also said that against the backdrop of the several cases of unresolved murders and assassinations witnessed in 2010 and 2011 when elections were around the corner, it is possible there is a correlation, there may be some connection, and we felt that the appropriate authority should investigate and come up with a report and if some persons are indicted, I believe that the law will take its cause. So what we did was within the law.

What is your relationship with the current SSG like?

Of course it has to be cordial. The current SSG, Mr. Udom Emmanuel is a fine gentleman and from the first day I wished him well and prayed for his success in office. Attending his swearing-in ceremony was to underscore the fact that I had no ill feelings about my disengagement as SSG. If you occupy that kind of office you must know that one day you will leave. It is not a permanent office. Even the office of the governor is not permanent. It has an expiry date. For example, on May 29 next year the tenure of the current administration will end as provided for in the constitution. You serve and make your own contributions and move on. I did not feel bad that I had to leave as SSG. I was happy that I made my own contributions and I had to move on.

When you were serving in the present government, were you part of assassination plots?

Because I served in this administration so whatever transpired I must have been the one who gave the advice? No. That was not part of the mandate of my office. If you go and look at the ministerial responsibilities of the office of the SSG, I don’t think you will find any item on how to advise on killings, assassination or murder. It wasn’t part of my mandate so I only operated and acted within the mandate of my office. Let me also point out that it is the governor who is the Chief Security Officer. All the security chiefs report to the governor and it is the governor who is vested with the powers to run the state constitutionally. So the buck stops on his table. He must accept responsibility for the successes and failures of his administration. That is why nobody will talk about Umana or Udom but about the Akpabio administration. It is Attah’s administration, Isemin’s administration. Nobody remembers who was SSG during Obong Attah’s administration or the SSG in Isemin’s administration, because they were not elected governors. Leadership means you must accept responsibility for whatever you do. You don’t blame your subordinates, especially when you are vested with executive powers. When people talk about the Obasanjo administration in Nigeria, will they talk about Uffot Ekaette? Nobody will talk about him. It doesn’t happen anywhere. Nobody will even talk about the Vice president; nobody will talk about the deputy governor. This is because constitutionally, the powers reside in the office of the governor. Sometimes when I want to joke about it, I say it is only one person that holds the red pen. It is only the governor that has the powers to approve or disapprove; stretched further, he possibly has the powers of life and death because even for a convicted murderer to be executed, it is only the governor who can sign his death warrant.

There are other false stories that we may have to deal with here because they are interrelated, all pointing at leadership and the requirement to take leadership responsibilities. For instance, there have also been stories that Umana Okon Umana was very powerful as SSG, that many commissioners were sacked on his instructions. I have read that in some of the papers. It is absolutely ridiculous. It is ridiculous because it is only the governor who can hire and fire. If I had the power to sack a commissioner, was it also possible that I would put a gun to the governor’s head, get him to nominate people of my choice to replace those sacked and force him to sign the letters to the House of Assembly for their confirmation. It is totally ridiculous. It shows you that people just sit down and tell stories. That particular story came from one former commissioner for agriculture, Prof. Etok Ekanem. I wish him well but I think it was clearly in bad faith. He should know better as somebody who served in the State Executive Council. Only one person has the power to hire and fire. People like Prof Ekanem should not unwittingly show disrespect to the exalted office of governor by ridiculing Governor Akpabio. There was also a story that I nominated my successor, Mr. Udom Emmanuel who is also my cousin. Please, the man is not my cousin. I am not related to him in anyway and I did not nominate him for appointment as SSG, but that is not to say that I have anything against him.

So please, there is a chief security officer in the state, that is why if we have insecurity or if people are not satisfied they will raise issues, they will raise questions and direct their complaints to the governor. He is the only person saddled with the responsibility to secure all of us, not the Attorney General, who though is the chief law officer is not the chief security officer. So when people raise issues on the security of lives and properties and direct it at the governor, it is because he is the chief security officer.

Is it true that you and other aspirants want to form alliance against the government interest?

Well, I don’t know why government should have a special interest in who aspires to the office of governor. All we are asking for is that all aspirants be given a level playing field. This was the situation in the past when Governor Attah was in charge. Even when the incumbent governor contested the primaries against 57 other aspirants, the governor then did not interfere. There was no issue of threats. We didn’t hear Governor Attah telling other aspirants or delegates that they will die or that they would not be allowed into the venues where the primaries will be held. There was nothing like that. Everybody was allowed to make consultations, reach out to the delegates and the party office was open to all aspirants. Chief Sonny Udom was the PDP chairman for Ikot Ekpene senatorial district and he can confirm this. The party was there for everybody and there was no discrimination. The then party chairman Chief Otu Ita Toyo opened his doors and received all aspirants. He was not barred from taking calls from certain aspirants. It is just normal that the aspirants will talk to themselves. There is nothing wrong with that. It is all part of politics. The aspirants can decide to form alliances.

Assuming that the ruling party does not give you the ticket, what will be your next option?

I will do my best to win, believing that the delegates will support me to be the flag bearer of our party the PDP. So I will be contesting to win and I believe that with the consultations going on, I already have massive support from all over the state. I am looking forward to my victory at the primaries so the issue of plan B does not arise.

What is your opinion on zoning?

I want to agree with the gentleman who said that the governor himself in the past had dismissed zoning. He did that on national television when the minister of information held the town hall meeting in Uyo during the Good Governance Tour. When the question was put to him about zoning, Governor Akpabio said he was not a product of zoning; that in 2006 there were 58 contestants from all the senatorial districts. Then, the party did not bar anybody so there were aspirants from all the three senatorial districts. That was in 2006. Again in 2011, we had Frank Okon from Eket Senatorial District; we had Imo Udoh from Uyo Senatorial District. I think Frank Okon is still in court, still contesting the outcome of the 2011 governorship election and some of his supporters are still very optimistic that he would be declared governor by the court. So if he is declared governor, for example, are you still going to talk about zoning? So it shows the level of insincerity and absurdity, underscored by the fact that until I left office the issue of zoning did not arise. Again you ask, what a curious coincidence that the whole zoning idea came up only after I left office? Why? It is for you to find out. Beyond that, we have been told that there is no equity and justice because Eket has not produced a governor; Uyo had had it through Obong Victor Attah; that Ikot Ekpene is there now having produced this governor and so for equity and justice it should be the turn of Eket Senatorial District. That is one side of the argument. But there are others who have also argued that Eket Senatorial District had governors in the past in the old Cross River State. Esuene was there for nine years and Isong who was elected, served for 4 years. Nobody from Uyo zone was governor at that time. So if you want a holistic equity and justice, are you going to turn back the hand of the clock to compensate the people of Uyo senatorial district who had no governors at that time? It is also instructive that the current managing director of NDDC is from Eket Federal constituency. So where is justice and equity,and what kind of justice and equity are you talking about?

What is your opinion on the Town Hall Meeting and the outcome?

It seems to me that the pre-determined outcome of the town hall meetings was to pick somebody from Eket Federal Constituency as the favoured candidate for the 2015 governorship race. The meetings were stage managed to ensure that the position of governor was zoned to one particular person and yet we went through the pains and the expenditure of the town hall meetings, whereas the outcome was already pre-determined. When the notice for the town hall meetings was issued the reason given by the commissioner for information was that the governor will have the opportunity to present his score card and also listen to the people on the performance of his administration. There was nowhere in the advertorial published by the ministry of information preceding the town hall meeting where it was stated that there was going to be a referendum on zoning or on the selection of a governor for the state before the primaries and general elections. There was no such thing. But in the end it was clear that the town hall meetings were held to promote the interest of a particular aspirant from a particular federal constituency; and also to promote the senatorial ambition of the governor. The outcome of the town hall meetings was an attempt to subvert the Constitution and the will of the good people of Akwa Ibom State. The country was shocked to hear sycophants chanting the mantra that the governor should unilaterally produce his successor because he had done well. They forget that Govenor Akpabio was elected to govern the state and not to produce a successor. There will be no need for the primaries and elections if Governor Akpabio has already appointed his successor. These sycophants have embarrassed us greatly and they have brought the office of governor into disrepute because Governor Akpabio swore to uphold the Constitution. Even some of the salient issues that should have been addressed at the town hall meetings were not addressed. For example, nobody provided answers to some questions like how much revenue has accrued to the state. Nobody provided answers. Even when some people alleged that Akwa Ibom has received over two trillion Naira and that the performance of government was not commensurate with the level of resources, the ministry of finance or the ministry of information has still not provided a detailed revenue and expenditure report whereas transparency is a core requirement of good governance. We expected them the following day to publish everything to say this is what we have received so far; from statutory allocations, derivation, special releases from the excess crude accounts, from the Paris Club reconciliations, from all the recoveries from under-payments, reimbursements and recoveries after the return of oil wells, then they would tell us in total, this was what we received. This is not asking too much of any government, because transparency is part of good governance. During the town hall meetings there was no such report and up to now there is none. All we were told was that all the people who asked such questions were unpatriotic or sponsored. Or that they used fictitious addresses and fictitious names. For performance to be properly assessed, it must be benchmarked against the quantum of resources. The Hon Minister of Finance made the same point recently. I was the commissioner for finance during the administration of Obong Victor Attah and we had quarterly publications on the revenue and expenditure profile of the state. And it was for public consumption; you could walk into the ministry and pick it up. Until the town hall meetings ended they were not able to provide the information. Even as we speak, they have not provided the information. There was also a question on the debt profile of the state but have we had any answer? These are the issues that ought to have been addressed during the town hall meetings, because they go to the roots of good governance. It is not late. As ordinary citizens, we have a right to know what has come in and how it was spent. We have a right to know how much they spent on personnel cost, how much they spent of pensions, how much they spent on capital projects, sundry donations and so on. It is our right to know. So to call all those people who ask such questions unpatriotic, was not fair. We saw the communiqué after the town hall meetings. It was an exercise in double speak because they said that the governorship has been zoned but aspirants from other senatorial districts can still contest, in other words, no zoning.

The national chairman himself has consistently maintained that the race should be open and that there will be a level playing field. That also answers the questions on whether I have the confidence that the party can provide a level playing field for all aspirants. We are consoled by the statements of the national chairman of the party that the primaries will be free; that the party will choose the most popular candidate. So we have full confidence in the national leadership of our party because the national chairman speaks for the party. After the drama of the town hall meetings, we heard from some government officials that the people of Akwa Ibom state have spoken. Then we also had another stakeholders’ meeting by the real people of Akwa Ibom State. I hope you watched it on AIT. At that meeting, nobody was stopped, nobody was barred. Everybody had the opportunity to air his views. For example, Chief Okwong, who spoke on behalf of the Oron Federal Constituency made a case for an Oro governorship in 2015. Those who spoke on behalf of Uyo Senatorial District said because we had a tradition that the race should be open, let it be open. Everybody presented the position of their people and they all disagreed to agree. That was the kind of thing we expected, but in the government town hall meetings, people went there with tele-guided positions and if they suspected that you would say something different, you were not be invited to the meetings. Still on zoning, they say that those who go to equity must go with clean hands. In the issue of Ikot Ekpene Senatorial District you could see that throughout the town hall meetings, even when they visited Abak Federal Constituency, nobody raised the issue of zoning for that particular area that has not produced a senator. It was all stage managed.

The good people of Akwa Ibom State have seen through all of these deceptions. All we are asking for is that there should be a level playing field for Akwa people to decide. When Governor Attah was there, he allowed a level playing field. I can recall that Chief Godswill Akpabio served as commissioner under Attah and resigned voluntarily to contest the governorship primaries. He resigned the same day as Dr Udoma Ekarika. Akpabio was not supported by the governor, but was not victimised. Even after he left office he still had his police escort and he was still protected by the governor. The governor did not say I withdraw your police details because you are not my candidate. He was not called ‘Absalom.’ Governor Attah did not say Akpabio will die. He was allowed to relate with his colleagues, other commissioners and even his colleagues were allowed to choose who they wanted to support. That was how it was. Nobody was harassed; nobody was intimidated or threatened. Above all nobody was killed. There were no campaigns in churches. We cannot recall one example of Governor Attah going to churches to harass and threaten the people of Akwa Ibom State and to warn them that his preferred candidate had to become governor no matter whose ox was gored and regardless of what the choice of the people was. Our plea is that we should go back to those glorious days when we had peace in Akwa Ibom and when every aspirant could move and consult freely. As an aspirant, Chief Godswill Akpabio was able to go everywhere. He consulted everybody; he consulted Akwa Isop Ima-Isong Ibibio, he consulted Ibibio Elders Forum, he consulted Ifim Ibibio; he went everywhere. None of those leaders received a call from Gov. Attah, warning them and asking them why they received the governor’s enemy.

We are not asking for too much. All we are asking for is that every aspirant should be given an equal opportunity and then let the people decide. Let the aspirants engage the people of Akwa Ibom State and the delegates and ask them for their support. That is the way it should be. The governor should not be in the picture at all because the governor should be a father to all. But when the governor is coming out very strongly and he is campaigning in churches for a particular aspirant he would be bringing himself out and what would happen? In politics, the aspirants would attack each other to gain grounds. If the governor presents himself or his subordinates present him as the aspirant, the other aspirants might make the mistake of also attacking the governor, thinking that he is an aspirant. We don’t want that to happen to the exalted office of the governor. So, the governor should stay out and allow the aspirants to slug it out. The governor who is no longer an aspirant in the governorship race should stay out. He is not the one to lead campaigns to churches. My advice is that the governor should steer clear and there should be a level playing field. He should be able to allow other aspirants to consult him the same way he was able to consult Governor Attah.

On NDDC appointment

I have also read all kinds of stories about NDDC job. You cannot reject something that is not there. That is the truth. Unless there is a concrete offer you can’t say you rejected it. You only have an offer when your name goes to the Senate. Was my name submitted to the Senate for the position of NDDC MD? If my name was never sent to the Senate, then there was no offer. So, I couldn't have rejected something that wasn't there. That's the truth. But again, this is academic. It is neither here nor there. I could have had my own private position, but I am not at liberty to tell you that because whether I would have taken the job or I would have rejected it, that is personal to me. But you know when they want to rubbish you, they tell all kinds of stories.

On Pension and other issues

First, pensions. I understand there are stories making the rounds that the funds meant for pensions were diverted by me when I was in office. Again that is absolutely false, because to begin with, pension administration is not under the office of the SSG. The way pension is structured at the federal level is the same way it is structured in the state. Pension matters fall under the office of the Head of the Civil Service. It has nothing to do with the SSG's office. So if you have any questions or allegations about pension funds, please submit them to the appropriate quarters, which is the office of the head of civil service. Until I left office as SSG, I did not deal with any correspondence concerning pensions. None came to my office, and rightly so. I had nothing to do with pensions and I don't know who is spreading the rumours and falsehood.

The other one had to do with the issue of minimum wage. The rumour being that I was against the interest of the civil servants during the negotiations for minimum wage. This also had nothing to do with my office. We have statutory offices that deal with such issues. Those offices include the office of the head of civil service, the bureau of establishment, the budget office, the ministry of finance, and the bureau of labour. Those are the offices that make up the team for the negotiations. It had nothing to do with me, either personally or with my office. But when the team concludes their work, they submit their report to the office of the governor, who would then take a decision on the matter. That is the way it works. So when you hear some of these stories, you just have to dismiss them because they really make no sense.

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