Abasiandikan Nkono is Akwa Ibom State’s representative on the Governing Board of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC). In this interview with TONY ANICHEBE, he speaks on a wide range of issues concerning Akwa Ibom State, Niger Delta region, and Nigeria
In the recent past, Akwa Ibom State government never had a smooth relationship with the NDDC. What is the situation presently?
When you are opportune to be in government, you have to help as much as you u can. Your leadership must reflect the fear of God and love for humanity. Ego was the order of the day in the last government and that did not take us anywhere.
The biggest losers were Akwa Ibom people because the money which would have been deployed for public good must have been spent unnecessarily on defence of positions or litigations. It is a known fact that more money is wasted during crisis than in peace time. I am a principled person and thank God, we have a man with the fear of God as governor.
On assumption of duty, he has shown love to pensioners by paying gratuities and pensions, and that got my heart. He has human sympathy and has practised what God directed, that we love our neighbours the way we love ourselves. Again, he won’t be governor forever. Secondly, he took off fantastically well in education.
If I have opportunity to be governor, I will so much upgrade the public schools that no parent would ever send his or her child to private schools. I will ensure that the quality of education and facilities in public schools are not compared with what is obtained in any private school.
I went to Christ the King School to see things for myself and also visited a primary health centre in Nsit Atai Local Government Area to appreciate what the governor is doing. He is not just doing a good job, but with quality materials and that is what is expected from a good leader.
He has brought tangible political inclusion via bipartisan politics into his government by embracing other political parties. He has high regards for Mr. President and gives him his due respect. He also acknowledges the vital position of the Senate President and also as an indigene of Akwa Ibom and gives him his due regards and respect.
He acknowledges that our son is holding that revered position and must be given maximum support regardless of political party affiliation. He is a very humble man, very unassuming and relates very well with everybody, both the rich and the poorest of the poor.
He is one man who knows that life is transient and political office too. The word of God says humble yourself under the mighty hands of the Lord, so that He might exalt you in due season. I believe the humility of the governor has brought him this far and I pray he sustains it.
The public perception is that jobs handled by NDDC are either poorly delivered or abandoned. What is your take on that?
That perception may be because of the way certain foundations were laid. But I can assure you that the present board, led by Mr. Chiedu Ebie and efficiently run by Dr. Samuel Ogbuku as Managing Director alongside others, is here to change the narrative.
At several fora, they have made the world to know that NDDC no longer operates on transactional basis but now operates on transformation scale.
We are out to optimize our models as an interventionist agency and ensure the completion of any job awarded by this new era with serious monitoring team that oversees the progress of any awarded project at every stage. The emphasis is to ensure usage of quality materials and delivery of job on time.
Our proposed meeting with contractors is in tandem with the mandate to address every challenge and close all loopholes to see the efficient delivery of projects within allotted time. There is no room for persons that lack capacity to deliver jobs. There is also zero tolerance for failure and uncompleted projects.
The board is building an agency that people and financial institutions would be proud to deal with and honour its obligations The NDDC managing director has always assured that his mantra is to build quality signature projects in the Niger Delta.
How does this reflect on the people of Akwa Ibom State? From time to time, he has been talking about projects that will attract global acclaim. In our earlier meetings, we had resolved that the new board must stand out and be a complete departure from the past.
In NDDC, we have resolved to do projects that are globally rated. Don’t worry about Akwa Ibom people; they will have their fair share of the projects. We are also building a sprawling permanent site for the agency here in addition to other projects and we will soon move over there.
You closely worked with Senator Godswill Akpabio in the past. How will you rate his performance in the last one year as the President of the Senate?
The Senate President is a special and rare gift that comes to the human race once in a long stretch. That is why I sincerely pity people who fight him because they don’t know what God has given to them. This is a man who thinks about others more than himself.
For every 10 discussions I have with him; eight have to do with human empowerment and development. As Senate President, he has empowered so many people with jobs; many have also received employment letters. He has given these appointments across ethnic groups too.
In Akwa Ibom alone, thousands of people have collected letters of employment but many kept sealed lips. In terms of human empowerment, Senator Akpabio stands out and I sincerely thank God for his life and pray for such grace too to reach out to others.
He has the confidence of Mr. President and has represented the President at so many events, especially the very important ones. At the National Assembly, he has stabilized the place, ensuring that it is peaceful and rancour-free. In just one year, he has done so well.
What are the criteria used by the NDDC in allocation of projects to states covered in its operations?
It is mostly quota that determines what goes to states but you cannot overlook the area of interest. If you are the managing director, you will also want to attract the best to your area, just like a governor would want to do. There is competition. Therefore, the criteria include using quota.
Secondly is the comparative advantage of such a project which X-rays the acceptance of such projects and economic value to those concerned. These are the considerations before citing projects, like the current Operation light up the Niger Delta, which we know is appreciated by everybody. Few weeks ago, we were in Abia State, a very interior area, and the whole place is now lit up.
People hardly know when it is day or night there and they run their businesses freely. In Akpasak Estate where I reside, the whole place is lit up and people discuss and move freely up to 2 am and the glory goes to God and the NDDC.
Given the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway by the present Federal administration, what is the fate of the East-West Road which is yet to be completed?
There is nothing to worry about that. The projects carry indices of development, comfort and transformation. Even though the East-West road construction has been awarded and still ongoing, the coastal highway in the magnanimity of Mr. President has come to stay.
Both are to make life easy and make movement of human and goods less stressful. In terms of execution and delivery, the coastal highway is different setting from the existing East-West road.
You are an appointee of the Federal Government and it is glaring that the nation is battling with serious economic challenges. What is your take on the current situation?
I see President Tinubu as a man with guts. There was a time Nigeria was importing ice cream, tissue papers and toothpicks and I asked myself, how can we survive with such behaviour when we have raw materials here to produce these items by ourselves?
However, Nigerians will soon appreciate the enormous jobs the President is doing to turn around the economy for the good of all. Before now, we have been an import dependent economy, yet God has blessed Nigeria with crude oil. But we have to look beyond it to improve our economy. People lamented over the removal of fuel subsidy yet it was beneficial to the masses. The bad side of subsidy is that it enriches a tiny cabal.
That is the network the President has succeeded in dismantling and the former beneficiaries are not finding it funny at all. Things will soon get better, the refineries will soon start working at full capacities and once production gets to its peak, the price of fuel will come down. The President has started well and I pray for God’s courage and wisdom upon him.
The foreign exchange market is another area he is battling to grip well because few people are controlling it and wish to keep manipulating it at will. But the President has waded in to dismantle the cabal too for the growth of the economy.
What is your message for the people of Akwa Ibom State?
My message for our people is that the governor has started well with good governance, working closely with all and putting up good energy for development. I want to encourage him.
I was impressed that he was there at Tropicana Entertainment Centre recently to revisit that public project. When that complex is finally completed, many conferences will be held there because it has the capacity to accommodate the crowd. The five-star hotel within the complex will be very beneficial too.
The dry park and the theme park will be very beneficial for recreation by children during holidays. It was a vision well-conceived and when completed, it will generate lots of revenue and shoot up the Internally Generated Revenue of the state.
So, I will advise our people to give the government the needed cooperation. Our people should rise up and help the governor to develop tourism and mechanized farming which I have advised the governors of Niger Delta region to embrace to help suck up many unemployed youths roaming the streets.
In Akwa Ibom, we have the longest shoreline of about 129km. If a quarter of it is developed, it will help the state. So, the governor should liaise with the Senate President to meet Mr. President to see to the realization of the Ibom Deep Seaport.
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Akpabio stands out. He has the confidence of Mr. President, At the National Assembly, he has stabilized the place, ensuring that it is peaceful and rancour-free. In just one year, he has done so well
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Akpabio’s Leadership Has Brought Stability To The Senate –Nkono
