Pastor Umo Eno Gathers Experts On Arise Agenda Implementation

In his determination to ensure the full implementation of the Arise Agenda blueprint for the development of Akwa Ibom State, the Akwa Ibom State Governor, Pastor Umo Eno, has assembled subject experts in each of the propositions of the blueprint to assemble, discuss and come up with clear implementation guidelines.

The Governor who announced the gathering on Saturday during the Monthly Prayer Summit held at Latter House Chapel, Government House, Uyo, said the summit, under the aegis of Ibom Dialogue, would let experts in various aspects of the Arise Agenda to dissect it for effective implementation.

The Ibom Dialogue holding on Monday 24 to Thursday 27 July consider how the Arise Agenda, comprising Agricultural Revolution, Rural Development, Infrastructural Maintenance/Advancement, Security Management and Educational Advancement, will be navigated through for holistic development of critical sectors of the State.

He stated that the gathering will be devoid of political connotation but the intention is to bring Akwa Ibom people together to critically dialogue on the development roadmap of the administration and situate them in proper perspectives, in order to achieve set infrastructural development goals for the people.

Citing an example in the power sector, Governor Eno said as a manager of resources, he may not be an expert in all fields, but to ensure the state benefits optimally from the federal government policy on deregulation of power and achieve the power-for-all vision, it was necessary to bring subject matter experts on a round table to chat a way forward.

He said: “I will like to invite all of us for a Programme we have tagged, Ibom Dialogue, which will bring all of us together to discuss the Arise agenda of this administration; to examine and situate it in proper perspectives.”

“We will look at the key focal sectors and get subject matter experts to help us look at the A.R.I.S.E Agenda; to determine the roadmap that we have and how best we can achieve our goals using those roadmaps that we set for ourselves.

“The question is, do we have better options? Sometimes we don’t tend to have all the ideas. But we know what we want. There are people that have the experience and expertise and we are not ashamed to ask for a direction. A man who asks for direction does not miss the road, provided you ask the right people the right questions. That is what we must do with the Arise Agenda.

“Let us bring subject matter experts, let’s talk about power; how are we going to get power for all? How are we going to ensure that we benefit from the deregulation of power in this Country? I may not be an expert. I won’t claim to be one. But I am a manager of human resources. So it is necessary that we bring the experts together and get them to tell us steps and things to do. We can list them as a roadmap and then apply a timeline to it and make the budgets available.

“This is how to work. No governor will claim to know everything. But a governor succeeds when he works with the right people. That is what we want to do. Please clean up your calendar from the 24th. It is not a general kind of thing but for the people who are willing to contribute to the development of our State. It is not a political rally, but a critical professional gathering.”

He announced the state government’s plans to activate a Geographical Information System, GIS, that captures all lands and indicates ownership so as to expedite approval of Certificates of Occupancy, to deserving citizens and access property status at just a click of a button.

“A lot of people have been talking to me about the Certificate of Occupancy and I need to explain that there is no Governor anywhere, even when His Excellency Deacon Udom Emmanuel delegated the authority that I signed C of O as a Commissioner for Lands, it was impossible to finish signing.

“Some days, you signed and signed just to discover that your signature becomes undulated because in each file you picked, there are about four or five of them. So you can imagine how difficult it is.

“But there is good news on the way. That has been solved because before we left office, we started with the Akwa GIS, The Geographical Information System that captures all the lands in Akwa Ibom State and all of the ownership. And then, it makes it easier that a touch of button you sign the C of O that has been approved.

“We hope and trust God that we should be launching that sometime in August. We have worked very hard and also try to ensure that you verify your land directly from your phones, provided you pay the fund, not a lot of money though but it will be able to make it easier for us. When I launch the system, we will be able to sign as many of such documents as we possibly can”, Gov Eno assured.

The Governor cautioned leaders and members of dissolved non-statutory boards to disengage themselves from offices and desist from acting in their erstwhile capacities, reiterating his position in the June 21, 2023 official statement that such former appointees should handover to the most senior Civil Servant in the Board, except for statutory Boards or constituted Limited Liability Companies.

“I would also like to remind that we have dissolved all non-statutory boards.

“You see, I am not the type that always likes to make some noise and carry everything around me because power is transient. That is why people have a lot of problem exiting power. I want to remain a very normal person in spite of my position.

“I understand that some people still go to office and write memo and send to me even after we have dissolved the board. When your salaries don’t come, you will certainly know that we have dissolved the boards.”

“You know traditionally, on the 29th of May, when a tenure of an Administration ends, you don’t need to be told that your tenure has ended. That is why you don’t hear us announce the dissolution of EXCO because it wasn’t necessary.

“It is however saddened that some people were still going to work. And so that they won’t sue the Government for not paying them, which is why we announced that all non-statutory boards be dissolved.

“Please, handover to the next person, the next civil servant or any next person. Except you are in a statutory board or you are in the Constituted Limited Liability Company. Please do well to handover and understand that your time is up, and don’t think that your coming back is mandatory. 

Governor Eno who faulted the behaviour of some stakeholders for flouting his directive on nominations by Ward leaders for appointment as his aides, emphasized that such nominations must come from Ward Leaders to allow them free hand to nominate the ward members.

He explained that the decision was deliberate to activate the involvement of grassroots in the governance by adhering to “Power to the People” mantra of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and advised the stakeholders to heed his directive on the appointment.”