THE CONTROVERSIES AND FICTIONS ABOUT THE PURPORTED MOTHER OF ALL CONSTITUENCY BRIEFINGS BY SENATOR GODSWILL AKPABIO.

By: Sixtus Tom

While in school, we were told that good students are those with good retentive memories. Reminiscence of the July 6th  2017 Constituency Briefing and Empowerment Programme of  His Excellency, the Senate Minority Leader, Senator Dr. Godswill Akpabio CON, held at Ikot Ekpene Township Stadium makes you a good student indeed.

Remember, that Constituency briefing was branded 'THE MOTHER OF ALL CONSTITUENCY BRIEFINGS' by Elder (Hon) Aniekan Umanah. Elder Umanah is the Immediate Past Commissioner for information and Communication in Akwa Ibom State. He served as the Secretary General of the briefing' central planning committee  and the chairman, media and publicity sub-committee.

 Weeks before Ikot Ekpene Township Stadium was agog on the 6th of July, both local and national dailies front pages were totally inundated by news and advertorials about the event. Journalist had enough to write on, broadcast channels had enough to screen for viewers. Bloggers utilised the opportunity to feast on that for their audience to be carried along. All Thanks to the ORACLE OF INFORMATION. Of the truth, I didn't expect less from a man so versatile in the communication profession. A man that intermix Public Relations, Advertising, Marketing and Journalism to communicate the kernel and crux of any event cum programme for the public's total awareness.

Akwa Ibom State is known globally today as the state of uncommon transformation, all thanks to the communication skills of Umanah while serving as the Commissioner for information and Communication in the Akpabio's administration as the State Governor. This is no news because we all know this facts. Sorry for bringing it in.

The heart broken questions are, did the July 6th, 2017 Constituency Briefing worth all that humongous publicity? Was the Constituency Briefing, the mother of all Constituency Briefings as branded by Elder Umanah?

The event which enveloped Sir Emem Akpabio as the chairman,  central planning committee, recorded in attendance, Law makers from both the higher and lower Chambers of the Nigerian Legislative houses as well as past Governors of states in the federation. Remember the questions, "did the event worth all that?"

I was physically present at the event for observation. Ask me what I saw, the controversies and fictions of the events is unfolded today.

I was a witness to the presentation of 11 (6.5KVA) generators, 24 (5.5KVA) generator, 699 (2.5KVA) generators,  55 Block Moulding Machines/Lister Engines,  113 Computers and Printers, 194 Sewing Machines, 154 Grinding  Machines, 58 Tricycles (Keke), 10 Cassava Processing Machines, 30 Home Grinding Machines, 40 Industrial Sewing Machines, 20 Cars, 10 Buses and 40 Cargo Tricycles to Beneficiaries drawn from the 10 LGA that make up the senatorial district. Also, I was a witness to the presentation of 4 Tractors to Cooperative Societies in the Senatorial district.

Does these qualifies the event to be the Mother of All Constituency Briefings? This, I keep asking.

Again, on August 14th, just two days ego, The Senate Minority Leader again, paraded personalities in the state to Independence Hall, Abak. There, he presented Scholarship Cheques of Hundred Thousand Naira (=N= 100,000) each to 250 Students. He also presented Bursary Cheques of Hundred thousand Naira (=N= 100,000) to 22 Students Per Year of Study drawn from the 10 LGA of the Senatorial District.

The Bursary cum Scholarship Cheques presentation by the Senate Minority Leader affirmed the words of the Immediate past Commissioner for information and Communication of Akwa Ibom State, Elder Umanah that "Education is the root of our  future societal development".

In answering the heart broken questions whether or not, the dual history historical events is worth the branding "Mother of all Constituency Briefings". The Akwa Ibom State Deputy Governor, Mr. Moses Ekpo MFR quipped, " this is the first time a Senator from this senatorial district is doing a thing of this kind. Bringing out 27.4million naira to secure the educational future of our students in the senatorial district added to all the cars and machines he donated at Ikot Ekpene Township Stadium in the 6th of July.  This is the first of its kind "

If more meaning should be given to the words of Mr. Moses Ekpo, it will mean that since the emergence of Democracy, no Senator in Akwa Ibom State, or, you can say Ikot Ekpene Senatorial District has ever done such or  Mr. Ekpo and the people of Akwa Ibom State have never witness such senatorial briefing. We should have said that if we had time to analyse his words but no, we lack such time.

Just as I was present at Ikot Ekpene Township Stadium and Independence Hall Abak to witness the gargantuan Empowerment of the Senate Minority Leader, I have also witness some WHEELBARROW EMPOWERMENT by Nigerian Senators in our brothers sisters States. I know you are a testimony to this as well.

If the donation of WHEELBARROWS to constituents by a Senator, if the a State Governor can empower his citizenry with WHEELBARROWS, then the Constituency Briefing and Empowerment Programme of the Senate Minority Leader is indeed, THE MOTHER OF ALL CONSTITUENCY BRIEFINGS.

On the tumultuous publicity given to the events, 'me think' the publicity was a good roof in a perfect building. If it's so, then the  name "Oracle of Information" best describe the chairman of the Media and Publicity sub-committee.

With this, I tell you that the only  controversies and fictions of the Mother of all Constituency Briefings and Empowerment Programme of the Senate Minority Leader, Senator Godswill Akpabio CON is the fact that it was more than what it was conceived to be.