WHY WAS THE COMMISSIONER SACKED? - Omen Bassey - Sirealsilver

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WHY WAS THE COMMISSIONER SACKED? - Omen Bassey

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The trending issue on facebook this evening is the unexpected ouster of the Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Mr Udo Ekpenyong.


A terse statement signed by the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr Charles Udoh said Mr Ekpenyong was sacked as a consequence of "a minor cabinet reshuffling" effected by Governor Udom Emmanuel. Curiously, the "minor reshuffling" is so minor that only one unfortunate cabinet member was its casualty.
Even more curious is the fact that the "minor reshuffling" took place a few days after it was widely reported that the state government gave a paltry One Million Naira(#1m) as take off grant to the newly sworn in Local Government Chairmen. And the aggrieved Chairmen reportedly held the sacked Commissioner responsible for that ill treatment.
Not a few commentators believe the Commissioner was axed by the Governor because of a perceived poor handling of the transaction with the Council helmsmen. The state government is said to be embarrassed by the leakage of that information.
I don't think this should worry the Governor because the illegal appropriation of Council funds by the state government is not a secret in the state. When the state government pays monthly Dakkada stipends to supporters across the state ; when it donates Dakkada rice and cash at Christmas, it does so with Local Government funds. There's actually no government at the Local level in Akwa Ibom State.
On the other hand, pro government facebookers and bloggers argue that Mr Ekpenyong was sacked for disrespecting Senator Godswill Akpabio.They cite a recent meeting in Ukanafun Local Govt Area where the former Commissioner refused to stand up at the order of the former Governor. Is this enough to warrant the sack of the Commissioner, assuming he was doing well in the discharge of the responsibilities of his office?
I'm sure the rumour mill will churn out more interesting stories in the days, weeks and months ahead on this subject matter. In all these, the state government is the ultimate loser. How can you sack one Commissioner and you term it "a minor cabinet reshuffling"? Are we all dumb? Where is the "reshuffling" there?
Nobody queries the Governor's power to fire those he hired but we deserve to know why he took the decision. Otherwise we will believe any version of the rumours and there's nothing they can do about it. Neither of the initial two reasons stated above portrays the government in good light.
If the man didn't obtain the consent of the Governor before dispensing the take off grant, why not state that as the reason for his dismissal? Or was the take off grant more than #1m? Why give take off grant to a "government" which is entitled to and supposedly receives its own statutory allocation from Abuja?
Would the take off grant complement or substitute their statutory allocations?
Or why would you sack a Commissioner simply because he "disrespected" someone who insisted he must be sacked? Reports even said the man said he couldn't stand up for the Senator because he was ill. If this account is true, it reminds us of that better forgotten era when public officers knelt to talk to a Governor and his wife. We must hurry and join the civilized world.
Since Governor Udom Emmanuel hasn't deemed it necessary to inform the state of the reason he decided to give such an unpleasant new year's gift to the former Commissioner, I can assure him that the man will tell his wife, siblings, friends, associates, neighbors etc why he was sacked. And they will in turn tell their acquaintances until it arrives the doorstep of "strangers". Of course, that will be entirely his own version. Remember, he who is already down can't fear a fall.
So, the real reason for the removal won't be a secret for too long. It's just that as it travels from one mouth to another, there will definitely be additions and subtractions. That could have been reasonably avoided if the state government knew that citizens deserved that information. For now, each person chooses which version to believe. Some will even believe all.
But why is government shrouded in such level of secrecy? Much as certain information about government and governance must be classified, I believe it's been excessively done in this clime. We make governance look esoteric and it's one of the reasons we fail. In other climes, the reason for the "minor reschuffling" would be given even if it's not laid completely bare.
You sack only one commissioner and you want us to believe it's an innocuous,routine cabinet reshuffling.Which averagely intelligent citizen believes that? Why have we elevated falsehood to statecraft?
If you think you have a good,civilized reason for sacking the Commissioner, why not make it public even if you withhold certain details for security or other reasons?
The decision to withhold information is meant to protect someone. And in the instant case, I'm tempted to ask who is the state government protecting between itself and the "reshuffled" Commissioner?
Omen Bassey.
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WHY WAS THE COMMISSIONER SACKED? - Omen Bassey Reviewed by sirealsilver on January 05, 2018 Rating: 5 The trending issue on facebook this evening is the unexpected ouster of the Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Mr...

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