By Anny MICHAELS
Many have come to know Distinguished Senator Bassey Albert Akpan (OBA) as a man who strongly believes in the philosophy that ‘’There is no exercise better for the heart than reaching down and lifting people up’’. Again, for the vibrant Senator, Service is the game changer.
For a fact, the Senator is indeed a man very committed to service, it is an attribute that has become his signature and one in which he is the head of logistics. This passion over the years right from the banking hall when he worked in various banks to when he conscientiously served as honourable Commissioner of Finance to his current bid as Distinguished Senator has been so glaring standing him out as a very valuable politician worth celebrating.
Trust journalists for digging deep, when some journalists had cause to interact with him recently, one of them: Victor Agbenson of the political desk at Radio Nigeria, Abuja asked ‘How come the Senator is so passionate about loving people? He responded by saying ‘’It is an attribute you can’t take away from me, even beyond politics this is me. I love people and I take delight in making people happy”. That to me is the best l have ever heard of a politician from this clime. With such a comment from the people’s servant you can appreciate where I’m coming from with regard to this piece.
In my survey, the Chair, Senate Committee on Gas is one of the lawmakers from Akwa Ibom with a tastefully furnished Constituency office annexed to a state of the art hall built deliberately to assist constituents ease their social and economic interactions at no cost at all. Events such as weddings, child dedication, community service, entrepreneurship impact meetings and allied gatherings holds from time to time at the hall.
For many constituents who have had cause to use the liaison hall at no cost “Senator Albert has shown to Akwa Ibom North East (Uyo) Senatorial District that leaders can add value to the people by this very gesture, imagine that they would have spent between N250,000 to N300,000 to rent a hall for the event but that stress has been taken off by the Distinguished Senator. One of the constituents, Sunday Ukpong noted ’’We can only ask for God’s continuous blessings and grace for him to do more. OBA is a good man”.
There is this school of thought that Senator Albert is exceptional among leaders in this clime given his tremendous life touching initiatives. He probably may not be the most blessed financially from Akwa Ibom State but his connect with the people knows no bound.
Some students in Universities across the country numbering 130 from Akwa Ibom North East (Uyo) Senatorial District are able to acquire university education again at no cost at the instance of the Senator. What we are talking about here is complete payment for school needs for the beneficiaries throughout their stay in the university and school upkeep allowances per semester. This is amazing for those Students.
No wonder prominent citizens like the Senate President, Dr Bukola Saraki recently described Senator Albert in superlatives “Senator Albert is a highly esteemed member of the 8th senate of Nigeria’s National Assembly and I have promised to extend my hand of fellowship to him and I urge him to join in the urgent mission to rescue our nation from the strong holds of poverty, insurgency, joblessness, nose diving economy and infrastructure decay’’.
Also in their estimations about the Distinguished Senator is the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) in a letter signed by Seye Awojobi, its Registrar /Chief Executive said it was not surprised at the election of Senator Albert as Nigeria at this time Nigeria needs men like the Senator who is committed, focused and have the right pedigree. The commendation letter in part reads “As a former banker, we earnestly count on you to continue to display the highest level of self-discipline, integrity, professionalism and ethics which are the hallmark of the banking industry in the discharge of your responsibilities at the upper chamber and always”. The institute added that Senator Albert is a Distinguished member of CIBN.
It is also not surprising to see the former Deputy Senate President, Senator Ibrahim Mantu, CFR describing Senator Albert this way “Your election into the highest law making body in Nigeria gives you the rare opportunity to contribute your quota to the development of our fatherland. It is also an expression of appreciation of your contributions to the development of your people; there is therefore no doubt that your wealth of experience as a seasoned politician will provide you the necessary foundation and capacity to make laws that would effectively impact on the lives of the less privileged members of our society”.
Worried by the bad state of the Ikot Ekpene-Itu-Calabar Highway on assumption of duties, Senator Albert as his first motion in the Senate called on the federal government to halt the total collapse of Ikot Ekpene-Itu-Calabar federal highway which provoked the Senate into immediate action as it had to set up an Ad-hoc-committee on works to inspect the road and other federal roads that are in a state of disrepair and report back to the Senate for appropriate legislation which was done and today some palliative measures have been undertaken, the road is also accommodated in the 2017 budget and hope is in sight to having it totally repaired.
The Senator at the moment has two bills to his credit. The National Youths Employment Development bill 2015 which seeks to repeal the National Directorate of Employment Act of 2014 and in its place establishes the National Youth Employment and Development Agency Act 2015 to provide for the promotion, co-ordination and employment of youths in Nigeria. According to the Senator, the bill will expand the scope of NDE to strengthen its operations for optimal performance.
The other bill is the Nigeria Industrial Revolution Bill 2015 which was read for the first time at the Senate chamber on 14th October, 2015. OBA as he is fondly called explained to his colleagues that the bill seeks to establish a legal and institutional framework for the implementation of the industrial revolution plan and the National Enterprise Development Programme of the federal government to provide for their implementation, continuity and sustainability.
His current bill and the third in his robust legislative engagement is the bill on gas flaring which is receiving on-going legislative processes especially as Chair, Senate Committee on Gas Resources. This is coming as a fulfillment of his promise to some journalists sometime ago during a media parley that his committee will explore legal and institutional frameworks for oil and gas operations in Nigeria towards devising a strategic document that will complement the existing gas policies and dynamic implementation of the gas master plan.
It is also joyful to report that the Petroleum Industry Governance Bill has been passed by the Senate and legislative processes is ongoing on the Petroleum Administration bill. The Senator believes in the globally accepted module of empowerment today which is education, that wise the beneficiary has the opportunity to be educated, he can generate a lot for himself, build capacity and empower others. One is therefore not surprised that he won the 2016 Patriot Award on Scholarships beating Senator David Mark and two other prominent politicians from the North through online voting sequel to his N15m annually spent on scholarships to indigent constituents in tertiary institutions across the country.
Noteworthy is the fact that the Senate Press Corp recently honoured the Distinguished Senator as the South South Senator of the Year. The Apostolic Church Nigeria also recently followed suit and honoured the Senator with an Ambassador of Light Award in recognition of his tremendous impact on society. There is also a significant impact in other aspects of empowerment ranging from entrepreneurship in agriculture, business, hotelling, eateries and other areas of enterprise.
For the above reasons and many more not reported in the media, the Distinguished Senator sees service to the people as the game changer even as he strives to d
Happy Birthday Distinguished!
For the above reasons and many more not reported in the media, the Distinguished Senator sees service to the people as the game changer even as he strives to d
Happy Birthday Distinguished!
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