Today is a very significant day in my life,
in the life of all Ibibio people and indeed, I believe, in the life of Akwa
Ibom state.
Let me start by reminiscing – by remembering
an earlier reception that had been held for me by Akwa Ibom professionals in
Abuja at the Ladi Kwali Hall at the Sheraton Hotel and Towers, on Friday August
22, 2003. I had not so long before, been sworn in for my second term in office
as the governor of this state which was then beginning to show its greatness
and to claim its rightful place in the political equation of this country.
The address that I presented at that occasion
was titled “It is well with my soul”. In that address, I had quoted the
president of Akwa Ibom professional who, at yet another previous occasion, organized
to celebrate the re-appointment of Obong Uffot Ekaette, CON, as the Secretary
to the Government of the Federation, had this to say:
“We of Akwa Ibom Professionals will now be celebrating our leaders in their
lifetime. We will honour them; we will appreciate them; we will acknowledge their
achievements in the open; we will sing and chorus them to the high heavens; we
will never be tired of doing so”.
I am not sure how many celebrations have
since been held or how many choruses have been composed, which is why today has
to be seen as a very unique and special day.
Let me start by tell you about something that
happened in 1987. I was living in Kaduna and about the middle of that year, I
received a message from the Military President, General Ibrahim Babangida,
GCFR. He sent to ask me if I was no longer interested in a state for my people.
This happened because for a long time I had, with respect and within the limits
of friendship, harassed him to create a state for us. When it did not happen, I
gave up. This message therefore came as a bolt from the blue. I was shocked,
but ecstatically surprised. I was asked to present yet another request for a
state which I did. Sometime after that I was invited to the office of the
Coordinator of National Security (CONS) at 12 Awolowo Road, Ikoyi, and was
asked to draw a map of what I thought should constitute the new state.
After that I waited and then on 23rd
September 1987 came the announcement that Akwa Ibom and Katsina States had been
created. My joy knew no bounds. Of course, the first thing I did was to sit
down and compose a letter to our beloved benefactor, President Ibrahim Badamasi
Babangida who had graciously created a state for us.
Before I tell you the content of that letter,
I want to tell you another story. In 1994, by election, I became a Delegate to
the Constitutional Conference which started that year and ended in 1995 under
General Sani Abacha, GCFR. At the time of going to the conference, derivation
stood at 1% with another 3% being given to OMPADEC for the development of the
Niger Delta. I do not have to recount the battles that were fought within that
Conference but suffice it to say that at the end of it all, it was declared that
derivation will stand at not less than 13% and dichotomy shall not apply.
You can therefore imagine the shock and
disbelief that greeted us when, after being sworn in, we were still receiving
derivation payment at 1%. If the battle within the Conference to raise the
percentage was brutal, the fight to get President Obasanjo, GCFR, to implement
it was vicious. When, at last he was forced to accede to the 13% payment, he
reintroduced the obnoxious principle of dichotomy between onshore and offshore
oil production.
This hit us with the force of a tsunami that brought
on the next phase of the battle. With your total support, we found the strength
to stand firm and fight on till God, in His loving mercy, came to our rescue by
way of a Bill from the National Assembly to which the President assented.
When President Obasanjo signed that Bill,
even though it was he who had started the whole debacle, I felt so overwhelmed
that I sat down and composed a letter to him.
The letter that I wrote to President Obasanjo
on that occasion was the exact letter, word for word, that I had in 1987,
written to President Ibrahim Babangida at the time that he created a state for
us. Today, I present again, the exact same letter to you for this unusual
honour that you have done me, the Ibibio race and the entire people of Akwa
Ibom State.
By now you must be quite curious, so let me
read your letter:
-
My soul magnifies the
Lord
-
and my spirit
rejoices in God my savior;
-
because He has
regarded the low estate of His handmaiden. Yes, from this day forward all
generations will call me blessed;
-
for He Who is mighty
has done great things for me, Holy is His name;
-
and His mercy reaches
from age to age for those who fear him;
-
He has shown strength
with His arm,
He has routed the proud hearted.
-
He has put down the
mighty from their thrones and exalted the lowly,
-
The hungry He has
filled with good things, the rich He sent empty away
-
He has come to the
help of Israel His servant mindful of His mercy, as He spoke to our fathers, to
Abraham and to his posterity forever.
The Magnificat
– the
most beautiful, the most powerful and spontaneous out pouring of a pure heart
in gratitude for God’s manifestation of His love for His people.
So today I thank God, I thank you the Ibibio
people and I thank all the good people of this great state for this reception.
I dedicate it to the glory of God, to the upliftment of the Ibibio race and to
the restoration of this state.
But who are the Ibibios. If you are expecting
to hear me say that the Ibibios are a great people who have registered a number
of firsts; who have achieved this; who have accomplished that and accomplished
the other; much as all that may be true, I am afraid that on this occasion, I
will disappoint you.
I want instead to remind you that, in spite
of our numbers, we have in the past been described as an ineffectual majority. We
have also been described as an atomistic society perpetually at war with
itself. Even more insultingly we have been compared with the tiny leaves of an
African Oil Bean tree, numerous enough to fill the basket but totally useless
when it comes to wrapping even the tiniest parcel. We have shown righteous
indignation at these insults but, undeniably, there is need for an examination
of conscience perchance we had provided the reason for the abuses.
In 2007, when I left office as governor, a
thinking governor and one of the best performing governors, I had put myself up
as an aspirant to vie for the presidency of this country. Some of the people
who had campaigned with me are here today. Many of them were not from this
state and there is no doubt that we had gained wide acceptability throughout
the country. Sadly for me, for Ibibio people, for AKS and I dare say, for the
entire country, that effort was aborted. Two years later, one of our
distinguished sons boasted, on the pages of several newspapers that he played a
major role, infact he claimed that it was by his efforts that my ambition was
aborted.
Even though I knew that it was an empty
boast, I still had to wonder how he thought he had benefitted, how he thought
Ibibio people or Akwa Ibom Stae had benefitted by my not becoming the president
of this country.
If we do not want to continue to remain where
we are and continue to have these insults and abuses hurled at us, we must
learn to accept that, in a dark room, my candle does not burn brighter simply
by my putting out the other person’s candle. On the contrary, the more candles
we can light, the greater will be the brightness in that room. And in that situation,
even the obscure one among us may become visible and recognized.
Since leaving office, I have frequently been
asked if I have any regrets and my answer, without hesitation, has always been
no, none at all. I have also quite often been reminded that success without a
successor amounts to failure. So with the benefit of time, I must now confess
that I do have one painful regret. The one regret I have is that, though I left
office with a successor, I left office without succession.
Today, our resolve must be that collectively
we shall make a succession plan. Collectively we shall choose a successor to
implement our succession plan. The collective will of all of us, and only our
collective will, shall prevail.
As I look round, I see a number of faces here
of people I know are aspiring to the high office of governor of this state. A
large number of those aspirants are from Eket Senatorial District. This is as
should be expected because of sequential logic that after Uyo and Ikot Ekpene
it should be Eket. But there must be a level playing field for all aspirants.
This is particularly true at this time when
there is such a crying need to give hope back to our people; to restore their confidence
in their government and to rebuild the state. zoning will certainly be a major
consideration but at a time like this, certain other compelling determinants
cannot be sacrificed on the altar of zoning alone.
Once again I must thank you. I will remain
eternally grateful to you for this great honour. I accept the leadership role
that you have conferred on me with all humility and determination to serve you
to the best of my ability as God gives me strength and wisdom. And may the
Almighty God for whom this state is named continue to be our constant
companion.
Thank you.
Obong Victor B. Attah
Ubok
Udom Ibibio
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