Udom and the Buhari Succession Race

Governor Udom Emmanuel of Akwa Ibom State should not allow himself to be distracted by elements within and outside Nigeria said to be drafting him to join the race to succeed President Muhammadu Buhari in 2023. The investment banker-turned politician can be easily enticed by characters that don’t have what it takes to make him President.

In the race for the 2007 Presidency, the then Rivers State Governor, Peter Odili, was more formidable than Udom, and was on his way to succeeding President Olusegun Obasanjo, when his presidential train was derailed. Before the derailment, Port Harcourt, the Rivers capital city, was busy receiving top visitors across the globe that came to identify with the then indomitable Odili.

What happened and the emergence of the late Umaru Yar’Adua who was not even in the race, is now history. That Udom played his card well with customers from the North when he was in the bank is not a guarantee that they will rally massively to make him Mr. President of Nigeria in 2023.

Rather than nurse a presidential ambition, Udom should busy himself with reconciling with so many aggrieved fronts at home. For instance, the media in the state will be very hostile to Udom. He might not know it, his media handlers have not been helpful to his political future. He needs the mercy of God to overcome the hurricane that will be hitting him.

How can Udom in his wildest imagination agreed to be cajoled into the presidential race when potholes are developing on the streets in Uyo, the state capital? For those who have Governor Udom’s listening ears, they should candidly counsel him to start perusing all deals he and his administrations were and are involved in since 2015. It will not be surprising to some of us if the anti-corruption agencies harass him to account for his stewardship. The state under the watch of Udom like the administration before, certainly has some cases to answer with EFCC.

And, the foxy game the governor is playing with his successor will open another front for his attack. The governor aspirants with the PDP are just playing along with him. They are aware of the Udom ‘anointed’ and the worrisome exit plan of Governor Udom to APC to enable him pursue his CBN Governorship, and Vice Presidential dream. The state is suffering so much because of Udom’s exit plan. These days, Udom has become an absentee governor.

Perhaps, Udom is deluded with the fact that his perceived failure as the governor of Akwa Ibom is because like he personally admitted last June, his biggest challenges in running the state is that he does not have control of important policies like the fiscal policies which are “handed down” by Abuja. But, is it the fiscal policy that assisted him to make capital flight out of Akwa Ibom possible for the benefitting contractors? Some of the construction firms in the state are said to be used as fronts for capital flight. When electioneering campaigns begin proper, PDP will be on the spot to explain a lot of things.

In the meantime, those pushing for Udom to succeed Buhari say they want him in Aso Rock to replicate his industrialisation policy and use his creative financial and economic ingenuity to salvage the Nigerian economy. Reports say this was part of reactions that greeted the governor’s live interview when he appeared as a Guest on Brekette Family Radio Live Talk Show in Abuja, hosted by the Ordinary President, Ahmed Isah on Brekete Family on Human Rights Radio 101.1 FM, Abuja, where the Governor spoke on his achievements in the last six years and on the State of the Nation.

Following his arguable numerous achievements in the last six years as governor, his hosts, Ahmed Isah and other phone-in callers called on him to get set to contest for the office of President come 2023, promising to mobilize ordinary Nigerians to contribute funds to finance the electioneering cost. “Now we are begging you. Soon we’ll lead a massive protest if you refuse to heed the plea of Nigerians. The country is bleeding. We need someone like you to use the knowledge of what you have done in Akwa Ibom to salvage the country, Isah declared.

Interestingly, in a statement the governor however asked those clamouring for him to run for the presidency to rather pray over their demand to seek God’s blessings and direction while he concentrates on completing the mandate Akwa Ibom people gave him through the ballot.

Listing his achievements in office as governor, Udom said the time has come for leaders to think outside the box on how to run the economy, a factor he said inspired him to conceive the idea of developing the three gateway of land, air and sea in Akwa Ibom. He explained that apart from linking all the local government areas with access roads including the neighbouring states, his administration has expanded on the vision of his predecessors to develop the Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul facility at the Ibom International Airport to allow for all aircraft within the African continent to be serviced, maintained and overhauled in Akwa Ibom, a feat he noted will bring foreign exchange to the state.

According to him, his administration is looking beyond oil which explains why he is currently test running the multi-million dollar coconut refinery in the state of which five foreign countries are currently in Akwa Ibom to understudy the idea, technology and expertise in order to replicate the same in their home country. He explained that despite the price of crude oil per barrel at the International energy market, a litre of virgin coconut goes for $6 which means coconut oil is more costly and profitable than crude, this he said was another way his administration is diversifying both the State’s economy and it’s revenue profile.

He regretted that despite Akwa Ibom sitting on top of over 31.1% of oil and as reserve in the country, the state has no presence of any petrochemical project which is why he has built Nigeria’s seventh tallest building named the Dakadda Towers with 21 floors to provide accommodations for investors and multinationals as well as the Luxury Estate which will be built to accommodate foreigners from all over the world.

He warned of a great economic crisis due to the impending food scarcity following banditry and farmers/herders crisis that has impeded the ability of farmers to go to their farmlands to cultivate food, warning that with a country of over 200 million citizens, the looming food crisis is one national crisis that be better imagined than experienced and that the time to act is now.

On power, he revealed that his administration is targeting power for all but regretted that despite producing enough power for consumption, the power so generated cannot be adequately transmitted to end-users, and called on the federal government to rise beyond partisanship and grant him license to distribute the power generated by Ibom Power so that citizens and residents of the state can enjoy uninterrupted power supply.

“If the power Ibom Power generates is adequately distributed, engineers in the power sector have assured me that my people would by now be enjoying up to 21 hours of power per day”, he said.

He noted that if power is available, affordable and accessible to small and medium scale businesses, the average barber or salon owner will run his or her business at a reduced cost and make more profit. He announced that his administration also made available an interest free loan of N2 billion for market women, announcing his intention to add more funds to it to make it a revolving loan to stimulate the growth of SME’s in the state.

Continuing, he said, his vision is to ensure the state has a modern health system that will cater for the health needs of citizens and residents which explains why he has revamped and equipped ten General Hospitals in the ten federal constituencies and link it up to education which is why his government is investing massively in making education free at the basic level as modalities have reached advanced stage to make the Vocational Training Center in the state functional so as to equip students with skills needed to make them self reliant upon graduation.

On agriculture, Udom said the state is investing massively in encouraging people to cultivate vegetables and that a tomato processing plant has been set up to ensure harvested tomatoes are processed and marketed to curb waste, improve storage and create wealth for farmers in the state.

Subscribe to our newsletter for latest news and updates. You can disable anytime.