Akwa Ibom state governor, Umo Eno, has addressed critics accusing him of aligning with Senate President Godswill Akpabio of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
Speaking during a media parley over the weekend to mark the state’s 37th anniversary, Eno reaffirmed his unwavering commitment to the People’s Democratic Party (PDP).
He urged concerned PDP members, who fear he may defect to the APC due to his relationship with Akpabio, to stop misjudging him.
Eno emphasised his respect for Akpabio, a former governor and current Senate President, but made it clear that while he respects Akpabio’s position, he remains firm in his loyalty to the PDP and is determined to secure a victory for his party in the upcoming local government elections.
Eno said: “The first thing we get from building this relationship is the peace we are all enjoying. Maybe that’s why some people feel that I am neither here nor there. I am a PDP person, I am working for PDP, and as a state, we will continue to support the party. But we must differentiate between party issues and governance issues.
“We are going for election now, and I am working for my party, the PDP and we are campaigning, and we will win. Some people have accused me of my body language. I don’t have body language, you misread me. There is no body language, I am working for the PDP, and we have shown the people that we can be trusted.
“There is no local government that we are not doing something in this state, and there is no comparison, you can’t. I want voters to be the ones to decide; compare what is done to what you are saying and look at what is left.
“I am not raised to be the kind of politician that makes a lot of noise that goes about insulting people and starts a fight. If we start that, let us not forget that the other party has people who can make that trouble and the state becomes ungovernable and we have issues everywhere.
“You must know the nature of the kind of leader you have elected. By the grace of God, if I put my mind to doing anything, I achieve it. But I am not the kind of leader that makes noise, I am not given to that noise.
“Let’s continue to maintain a cordial relationship, let’s continue to respect the people that God has put in charge of us. I have a tremendous amount of respect for the Senate President, and I will continue to do so. That does not mean that we don’t disagree when it comes to party issues.
“The truth is, it does not matter the party, to be the number three citizen in the country is not something you just take for granted. We are blessed as a people and I can tell you that a day will come and I will tell you what this collaboration is doing for us. That is why we collaborate with people,” he stated.
On the Ibom Deep Sea Port Project, the governor said that the State alone cannot carry the weight of the project.
“Ibom Deepsea Port is on course. No state government can develop its seaport by itself. No need to beat about the bush. All the state government can do is to consistently look for investors and partners.
“We needed to get back to the team of the Deepsea Port to work. When we came in some of our partners and consultants were owed so much for the work they had done. So we had to make sure we cleared the debt and paid them to get them back to work.
“You would have also observed that we are opening up the road linking to the Seaport itself. We continue to work in that direction. The federal government has made budgetary allocations, but we also know that budget is one thing, to release is another thing.
“We believe part of the benefits we will derive from the robust relationship we are building with the federal government is to able to support some of the projects they are doing in the state.
