Governor Udom Emmanuel
By Omen Bassey
If the pictures I'm seeing on social media are anything to go by, it
means Akwa Ibom literally moved to Abuja to witness His Excellency,
Governor Udom Emmanuel being honoured by Leadership Newspapers as
Governor of the Year.
Earnestly, I have nothing against the
award.I believe such recognitions can motivate recipients into more
service and greater achievements.
My problem is, who bears the cost of transporting, accomodating and
feeding the hordes of government officials and party men who travelled
to Abuja to witness the ceremony? Was bringing a large crowd a
pre-condition for eligibility for the award? I personally consider the
bulk of the funds spent in Abuja by the army of witnesses from Akwa Ibom
as a loss to the State.Maybe Economists can prove me wrong.
I
believe that it would have been more cost effective for the Governor to
travel with an insignificant number of government officials, friends and
family members while other interested indigenes of the State would
watch the proceedings on television.
If he considered it worthwhile, he
could have celebrated with certain officials of government and party
leaders upon return to the State.
I'm writing this as a concerned
Akwa Ibomite because we cannot afford another round of profligacy in
managing our lean resources. There's so much yet undone and hunger is
walking tall in the State.I believe government at this time does not
have surplus money for any kind of jamboree.
We lost so much to
such ventures in the past.We even thought ourselves prosperous until a
little economic downturn exposed our underbelly as a very poor state
with no economic foundation. We can't deny that we have more unemployed,
poor and hungry people in the State than those who are living decently.
This, to me, calls for absolute, deliberate and prudent management of
every kobo which accrues to the State coffers.
We must
completely do away with a primitive political culture which promotes
backwardness and poverty.Akwa Ibom State and Nigeria must move with the
rest of the world which views governance with absolute seriousness.
We cannot continue in the same counter-productive ways which arrested
our development, made us an object of mockery before the rest of the
world and expect a different outcome. If we do not breakaway from the
unproductive past, we will never be free from its consequences.
Please let our standard of performance in government be global not local.Afterall, the world is now a global village.
This is my humble opinion.
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