Press Statement By Uyo Senatorial District Media Practitioners Forum
The belief that “When one with honeyed words but evil mind persuades the mob, great woes befall the state”, finds greater expression in the recent hoax and mendacity churned out by a certain Ekemini Simon on the Mail Newspaper on March 01, 2022.
The smear campaign alleged among other things that the Akwa Ibom State Government was on the verge of sourcing for a N150 billion loan “under the cloak of other exceptional income: 13 percent derivation revenue arrears”. The writer also insinuates that the state is indebted to the tune of N3 trillion.
This politically- motivated publication has no iota of truth and doesn’t deserve any response from an intelligible mind- on account of its intent and purpose- which is to deceive the people of Akwa Ibom State and pitch them against the administration of Governor Udom Emmanuel. However, to protect the vulnerable and innocent members of the public, in order not to impair their collective trust and psyche towards the government, it is imperative that we briefly deconstruct these allusions.
First, most reliable sources in this respect show that there is no such approach for a loan of N150 billion as alleged by the writer, his sponsors and co- travelers. Hence the insinuation that government secretly took N184 billion naira loan is a lie from the pit of hell, as no financial institution will give such loan without having necessary legislative backings.
The N150bn loan allegation is not just a figment of the imagination of an idle mind, but a carefully thought out mischief to masquerade the truth in order to achieve a sinister motive- which is to demonise the Governor and project the aspiration of the sponsors of such gibberish.m We are not oblivious of fact that “a lie gets halfway around the world before the truth has a chance to get its pants on”, as observed by Winston Churchil, a former British leader and statesman. The use of an hominem fallacies to misrepresent reality is appalling and smacks of an unprepared mind.
For instance, alleging that Akwa Ibom State is indebted to the tune of 3 trillion is not only misleading but mischievous. It begs to ask, where is the source of the writer’s information? The pertinence of the question emanates from the fact that, “objectivity requires that the source of an information must be critically evaluated”. It must also be asked at this point, when did it become a crime for governments to source for loans, to finance critical infrastructure, granted there was such an intention?
Available records from the Debt Management Office (DMO) show that by December 31, 2014, the total indebtedness of the state was over 90 billion at an exchange rate 160 Naira per dollar. This figure is at variance with what is obtainable in Governor Udom’s administration when exchange rate for external loans stood at between 400 and over 500 Naira per dollar. If this is placed side by side with the little above 100 billion the current administration has taken as loan, it therefore puts the total indebtedness of the current administration at a little above 200 billion Naira- which is a mismatch with 3 trillion Naira alleged by the revisionists.
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If this is juxtaposed against the indebtedness inherited by the administration in 2015 and the current level of infrastructural renaissance in the state, particularly in the rural area, which hitherto was neglected, one would appreciate the fact that so much has been done in the state, to ameliorate the living conditions of people. This sends a clear warning to mischief makers to verify facts and figures before initializing their wild goose chase, because as Benedicto Croce puts it, facts don’t lie.
Again, it must be emphasized that the present administration in the state has witnessed about 3 major recessions since it’s inception in 2015, which terribly affected the revenue of governments, all over the world. The fact that the current administration had never failed in its primary responsibility, including payment of workers salary and pensions, deserves commendation. Also, the huge investment made in healthcare delivery to save lives and contain the during the peak of Covid- 19 pandemic cannot be discountenanced. The fact that the casualty rate was reduced to the minimum in the state due to early interventions by the state Governor, doesn’t obliterate its global pervasiveness.
Again, we in Uyo Senatorial District Media Practitioners Forum wish to advise the purveyors of this fraudulent prevarication to move on with the reality that Governor Udom Emmanuel has a preferred successor, who has been accepted by the generality of the people of Akwa Ibom.
The Bible tells us a story of how Noah, on God’s instruction, preached and admonished people to join his ark to avoid the destruction of the world by flood. Those who saw it as an infantile giggle were swept off by the flood, while the obedient ones were saved.
A successor has been preferred by the Governor, Mr Udom Emmanuel, and no one can deny him his right of choice. Rick Riordan gives greater currency to this, when he said that, “the right choice is hardly ever the easy choice”. It is only wise, logical, sensible and interlinked that all his supporters cue behind his chosen successor. While nobody will be swept by any flood in this respect, it is important to note that the “ark” still has space to accommodate everyone, before it sets out for its voyage/ the gubernatorial primaries and 2023 elections.
Finally, Uyo Senatorial District Media Practitioners Forum hereby warns every agent of mischief and the purveyors of this misinformation to desist henceforth from the witchcraft of manipulating the people of Akwa Ibom state by saturating them with falsehood- because they deserve to be told the truth.
The Forum would not hesitate to take legal actions against perpetrators of lies against the Governor of Akwa Ibom State, who has given the star quality governance and shared prosperity. It is only incumbent on the people to reciprocate such good gesture by supporting the administration in its succession agenda, to sustain the momentum of peace and development in the state.
Signed:
Pastor Michael Okon, Head, Publicity & Strategic Communication
