My Dear Good People of Akwa Ibom State, i feel deeply privileged to write
to you dear brothers and sisters. My inspiration to communicate with you
via this medium and at this time is buoyed by the spirit we share together;
the never-say-die and can-do spirit of the Akwa Ibom Son and Daughter.
The whole world appreciates that we are a very passionate, talented,
ingenious and hardworking people. We radiate so much positive energy in
every field of human endeavour. Our leaders, past and present have
channeled our collective industry to where we are today but sadly still a few
others are bent on diverting that defining energy for less productive uses.
My name is Udom. I am the second son of Gabriel Emmanuel Nkenang. My
Father was a school teacher and an Elder of the Qua Oboe Church, a native
of Awa Iman in Onna LGA. I believe that God has a purpose and a plan for
everyone. From my very humble beginnings, it is only through the grace of
God that I could be where I am today. I am a 1988 Accounting Graduate
from the University of Lagos. A Chartered Accountant too and trained with
PriceWaterhouseCoopers. I have attended a few other schools to widen my
knowledge and improve skills. I have been to the Institut Européen d'
Administration des Affaires(INSEAD) in France, the Columbia Business
School, USA, the Wharton Business School, USA, the London Business
School and a few others. I am a fellow of the Institute of Chartered
Accountants of Nigeria, Fellow of the Institute of Financial Management and
an Associate of the Chartered Institute of Taxation of Nigeria. Before my
present appointment, I was an Executive Director on the board of Zenith
Bank PLC from December 2006, Member of Executive Committee and
Member of Board Risk Management Committee. I joined Zenith in 1996
from Diamond Bank Limited and was the pioneer Manager of its Lagos
Central Branch. I have served in several capacities therein. I have served as
Chief Financial Officer of Zenith Bank PLC, Group Head of Income
Optimisation, Financial Control & Strategic Planning Department, General
Manager of Zenith Bank PLC. I have also been in charge of the
Telecommunications Sector, Income Optimization and Financial & Strategic
Planning Group of Zenith Bank Plc.
With the above credentials and at 47, I am faced with two choices: to work
for myself or to deploy the skills to serve my people. The latter is an easier
choice for me. When i confided in a colleague in the UK on my plans to
drift closer home and shut the door to the fully air conditioned ambience of
the bank behind me, he saw it as utter madness and a leap into
uncertainty . My response was that, if God in His infinite wisdom decided to
make me an Akwa Ibom Son, there must be a purpose. That purpose, in my
view, could not be fulfilled by living a comfortable private life and
legitimately aspiring for higher professional glory. I believe that on the
judgment day, God will ask how I used the talents and gifts He bestowed
upon me to serve Him by leaving society better than I met it. It is not an
accident that God decided that I should come from Akwa Ibom
State. Never.
I volunteer to serve against all that is personally convenient and politically
logical. What is personally convenient and secure in a society like ours is to
mind my private business, make profit and most likely, settle abroad. But
that will only make me happier and safer as a person. This option may
continue to leave my people less richer and stunted in growth especially
with the catching up we have on our hands. Over the years, I have battled
with the conflict between what is personally convenient and what may be
socially desirable. I have weighed the personal risks, risks of being
damaged and ‘rubbished’ by the inelegant characters who have taken over
the terrain, risks to personal life, risks to my reputation, as the desperate
people will do everything to throw mud. I have never wavered in this
conviction. I have talked to myself, "Udom, you know what is Right, do it". I
have finally reconciled the risks and sacrifice required by focusing on the
service that is possible; a service that can change the fortune of a people
and give hope to present and future generations.
I believe that only the best team is good enough for Akwa Ibom State.
Politics remains the major platform for changing society. As I argued
elsewhere, there can be no sustainable wealth creation without sustained
interest in politics. Given our state of underdevelopment, I believe that elite
indifference to politics is a crime against humanity. Politics and governance
are too serious and too important to be left to anybody. If those who have
what it takes to make the society better refuse to stand up to be counted on
the excuse that they are not politicians or too big or too clean to be
‘rubbished’ in the murky waters of politics, they must forever be contented
with the consequences of mediocrity and misrule. Akwa Ibom State
deserves to field its first eleven in the game.
I keep asking myself "Udom, isn't there something fresh you can inject into
this game? What are you doing? Wake up and throw in your hat. I have
read that my background as a banker is a grave setback to my aspiration
but I think and strongly too no one should be in doubt about my proven
integrity in handling public sector resources and hence that Akwa Ibom
State’s money is safe with me. In a sense, I am volunteering to pay to
serve! I consider it a divine call to serve, to deploy the entire God given
talents and gifts, experiences and skills He has exposed me, to rescue my
people. Akwa Ibom State and Nigeria have made enormous investment in
me, and I believe this is the time to pay back through selfless service. This
next phase of our journey is significant, especially on the heels of an
uncommon renaissance of our great state. We need to consolidate and
fashion out policies that will make life meaningful and offer hope for the
future. The important thing is that we must begin the journey, and someone
must sacrifice to lead the way. In the end, if we fail, I will still be a much
fulfilled person. I can then sleep in good conscience and satisfaction that I
did not abdicate responsibility or refuse a call to serve my people. I will not
feel guilty for failing to volunteer my services. I will then happily and boldly
tell my Creator on the last day that I tried my best to make Akwa Ibom
State better than I met it.
My Dream for Akwa Ibom State is predicated upon the potentials and
capabilities of the State (human and material resources) and hopes to
minimize its weaknesses in order to create wealth, create jobs, reduce
poverty, and re-orient the values of the people. We hope to achieve these by
investing in, and empowering our people; creating an enabling
environment for, and actively promoting the private sector as the engine of
growth and job creation; rescuing our cities from decay and hence
salvaging the wasting assets in these cities to lay a foundation for a fresh
start; envision a new, expanded and befitting capital city for Akwa Ibom
State; and finally lay the foundation for sustainable prosperity by jump-
starting the emergence of a modern city in Akwa Ibom State that will attract
world talent and capital to State. The vision is to link up Akwa Ibom State
as a City State, prosperous and green. Our growth lies in the strengthening
of our keys sectors, Agriculture, Health, Education, Law, Housing, etc
I doff my hat and wish to acknowledge the good works of the previous
governments (especially since the current democratic dispensation started
in 1999). In particular, Arc Victor Attah and Chief Godswill Akpabio have
each served the state to the best of their ability. Each of the administrations
has done its best, especially in terms of roads and sundry projects. Since
development is cumulative, we intend to build upon their works and I
commend and congratulate them. We must as a people stop the blame
game and pointing fingers. We have been fortunate to have two enthusiastic
and pan Akwa Ibom leaders whose hunger and thirst to make Akwa Ibom
better is unquenchable. It would benefit us more and save our mean
resources if we built more united fronts rather than embark on mud
slinging, blackmail and cheap tactics. Akwa Ibom State never gets better for
it.
The average Akwa Ibom mind is tuned to believe in the 'we can’ philosophy
and great powers will come to our aid! Oliver Wendell Holmes once said
that “Once a mind has been stretched by a new idea, it never returns to its
original shape” . It is in the same vain that the English publisher, Lady
Catherine argued that “Nothing ever built rose to touch the sky unless some
men dreamt that it should; some men believed that it would, and some men
willed that it must” . I am convinced that God has willed that this dream is
one whose time has come: there is no going back!
Building the Greater Akwa Ibom State will challenge all of us to give our
best to the State. I have volunteered myself. I call on you to also volunteer
to serve the State because it is not an accident that God decided that you
should come from the State. The hour has come: what contribution do you
want our people to remember you for? Everyone’s contribution is welcome.
There will be a special office to coordinate the contributions of our brothers
and sisters in the Diaspora. We cannot always double speak from abroad.
We cannot do it alone either. We will need the collaboration and
cooperation of other states in Nigeria, especially our neighboring states
(Cross River, Abia, Rivers) as well as the strong support of the Federal
Government, and the international development partners We must strive to
get more from our oil revenue and push our darling state to its pride of
place. we understand that we have lost decades and need to catch up and
excel in a very short time. Speed is critical and we will need to accomplish
72 hour tasks in every 24 hours. Our children cannot wait, and Akwa Ibom
state can no longer wait. I offer myself for the continuous service to my
people. God bless Akwa Ibom State.
LAST LINE: What you have read above was not written by me but by my
young friend, Aniekeme Finbarr who has a way of putting words into my
mouth. He has delivered a good piece though, "my beloved son, listen to
him".
Follow @aniekemefinbarr on Twitter
