Akpabio: Challenges Facing a Democratizing Nation (Posted: April 5, 2010)

By Aniekan Umanah
Honourable Commissioner, Akwa Ibom State for Information & Social Re-Orientation

Being the text of a keynote address presented by His Excellency, Chief Godswill Akpabio, Executive Governor of Akwa Ibom state at the Lagos Nigeria Union of Journalist, NUJ, Conference on Tuesday, March 30, 2010

I consider it an honour to be invited by the Lagos State Council of the Nigerian Union of Journalists (NUJ) to present a keynote address at its annual conference. A fundamental axiom of democracy is that citizens must be informed if they are to play an active role in the growth of their country. Free and responsible media are critical sources of information for citizens who want to choose the best leaders for their country and make sound decisions about the issues in their nation. Undoubtedly, the Nigerian media is one of the most vibrant in the world and it goes without saying that the democracy that we enjoy today was made possible due to the untiring effort of the media. For your contribution to the evolution and development of our nascent democracy, and indeed the country,I salute you.

The media today is frequently described as the Fourth Estate of the Realm, an appellation that suggests the press shares equal stature with the three branches of government created by the constitution. Few institutions are more important than a free and independent press. Such freedom requires the public, elected officials, and civil society organizations to support truth, fairness, and balanced reporting and to insist that the media honour the principles that empower them.

Thomas Jefferson in his famous letter to Edward Carrington in 1787 said �The basis of our governments being the opinion of the people, the very first object should be to keep that right; and were it left to me to decide whether we should have a government without newspapers or newspapers without a government, I should not hesitate a moment to prefer the latter.� This postulation of the one-time President of the United States of America underscores the importance of the media.

Let me commend the Press for being a pillar of light when the nation found itself in the dark tunnels of military dictatorship. The scribble of your pens may not have sounded as loud as the boom of the guns, but the echoes of your work lasted longer. We honour all of you who watered the tree of our liberty, some with their sweat and some with their blood. Today, as we remember the martyrs, let us immortalize their heritage by preserving what they lived and died for.

For the nightmare is over. Never again shall guns bought by us, be turned on us. Never again shall we be ruled by men without our consent, and who care less about our interest. Never again shall the sun of our liberty be eclipsed by the smokes of gunpowder. For experience has made us to conclude that civil rule is the best for any society.

I want to commend the organizers of this conference for their foresight in the choice of the theme of this conference. There is no doubt that our country is presently facing serious challenges in her democratization process. But let me quickly add that for me, I see democratization as a process, not a destination. Every democratic nation faces one challenge or the other but it is how these challenges are resolved that makes the difference between a democratic nation and one that is ruled by the whims and caprices of those in power.

Every Nigerian has an idea of what is wrong with Nigeria, depending, of course, on his or her experiences, perspective, learning, training and calling. To the respected literary icon, Professor Albert Chinua Achebe in his book The Trouble with Nigeria, "The problem with Nigeria is simply and squarely a failure of leadership." To the renowned Nobel laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka, the problem is that Nigeria is �like a quilt-work of allegiances, alliances.� To the eminent former Secretary to the Federal Government, Alhaji Shehu Musa, the problem is that "We need to improve on our resource management to be able to achieve eradication or even reduction of poverty level."

The challenges facing Nigeria are enormous. Poverty is one of them. With a GDP per capita of $852, Nigeria has one of the lowest GDP per capita in the world and below the average for sub-Saharan Africa. Botswana has a GDP per capita of $7,270. South Africa has $5,724, and Cameroun has $1,110 (Source: Global Property Guide). The media therefore has a duty to ensure that we are truly emerge the giant of Africa, not only because of our size, but the prosperity that God has endowed us with.

There is a unanimity that we have to live together as one nation. But recent developments in the polity, like the crisis in Jos and other parts of the country has made it imperative for us to take a look at how we can strengthen the bond that holds us together and restore confidence to all and sundry within the over 250 ethnic nationalities that make up Nigeria. The defining question when we consider the problem with our country is whether we have been able to forge a nation out of the over 250 ethnic nationalities that make up Nigeria?

An affirmative answer to that question would imply that a Nigerian can live anywhere and not be discriminated against because of his ethnic origins or religious persuasion. It would imply that if there is a riot in any part of Nigeria, another Nigerian would not be a target by the rioters for simply for being from a particular part of the country. To build a nation and make our country work we must ensure that all Nigerians are not only safe anywhere in Nigeria, but feel safe where ever they are. This could not have been at more auspicious time than now that the National Assembly is engaged in the process of constitutional amendment.

Another critical area that needs urgent intervention is the power sector. Businesses, which run on generators, have high overheads costs and may not be able compete in the global marketing place. The need to address the deficiencies in the National Power Output and to provide for rapid industrialization, led us in Akwa Ibom State to embark on Independent Power Project. Located near the Aluminium Smelting Plant at Ikot Abasi, the project which we inherited from the last administration has recently been completed.

The plant would lead to uninterrupted power supply in the state. With a capacity of 191 megawatts and given the fact that Akwa Ibom State needs just 75 megawatts, we have 126 megawatts to share with other states. We have already obtained a power generation license for the plant and we would have been counting days before we shout �uhuru!� hoping that transmission and distribution problems would be resolved in good time by the federal government. Other states can borrow a leaf from our effort in Akwa Ibom as we look forward to a time that Nigeria will have uninterrupted power supply.

There is also the need to consolidate on the post-amnesty challenges in the Niger Delta. It is regrettable that the just demand of the Niger Delta people for greater accommodation in the Nigerian polity had been hi-jacked by miscreants who had taken it to embarrassing heights of brigandage and banditry. After successful disarmament of the militants there is an urgent need to address the issues of rehabilitation and reintegration of the folks which led to problem in the first instance through massive developmental projects in the region. I am aware that the Acting President, Dr Goodluck Jonathan is not resting on his oars to consolidate on the gains of the amnesty programme of the federal government.

Another consensus among Nigerians is that in the next election our votes must count which brings us to the issue of free and fair elections. This is a challenge not just to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) but to all Nigerians: the media, politicians, and the civil society organizations. But we should also move further to demand the strengthening of our democratic institutions such that the nation would not be left to the whims and caprices of an individual but that the system will work no matter who is there.

In Akwa Ibom State, we have attempted to give meaning to democracy. What we are trying to do is to lay the right foundation for the industrial growth of the state. There was something the 16th President of United States said. At the stage he met the American economy, he said I will study politics and war so that my people, my children will have the freedom to engage in industry and commerce. And he said my children will engage in industry and commerce, so that their children will have the prosperity to engage in literature and arts.

So, I met a state where as a Governor, I needed to study a lot of politics and war on development , so that my people will now have that freedom to engage in industry and commerce, and the moment my children engage in industry and commerce, my grand children will have the prosperity to engage in literature and arts. So, in a nutshell, we are engaging in a war against poverty; war against decaying infrastructure; war against decayed healthcare facilities; war against hunger; war against marginalisation; war against illiteracy and very recently, war against kidnapping and militancy. That is the situation that I find myself.

We have attempted to make life more meaningful for our people through investment in massive infrastructural development across the state. In less than three years we have built 170 roads, three fly over, a 3.7 underground flood control project, the first of its kind in this clime; we have built and dualized federal roads;we have built and completed an ultra-modern Governor�s lodge in a record time of 14 months; we have connected 850 rural communities to the national grid electricity projects in a campaign to make sure no community is in darkness in 2011; We have delivered CAT 2 International Airport with a 3.6 km runway expandable to 4.5 and an MRO facility.

To guarantee the right of Akwa Ibom child, we promulgated a Child Rights and Protection Law. Whether an orphan, a destitute or the homeless, government has given hope to every Akwa Ibom child through that law. Nobody can stigmatize a child by calling the child witch. Nobody can stop our children from having education. Education is a right enshrined in the law and I�ve declared free and compulsory education from primary school level to senior secondary school. It is now a criminal offense for a parent or guardian that has a child of school age, not to allow that child to be in school.

The unique feature of it, different from what was practised in Western Nigeria is that to avoid illegal fees, I pay parents/ teachers association levy and paying N100 per child per term to the school headmaster for logistics, and I�m paying N300 per child per term to the school principal for logistics in secondary school. I�m paying NECO and WAEC fees. We have provided free healthcare to our children and pregnant women and as a way of empowering our youth, we are collaborating with some international companies in deep sea wielding to take our youths away from the creeks.

In all we are positioning the state as the busiest economic business hub in the gulf of guinea.

Finally, I want to urge the media to remain very vigilant and not lent your pages and airwaves to agents of destabilization. Journalists should therefore not destroy this democracy we all fought for. They should not lend themselves to be used by unpatriotic elements to wage private battles and write and promote malicious and dishonest petitions. Let the media practice the social responsibility theory of the press, and remain noble Praetorian Guards of our democracy. Let the media be the conscience of our nation and help to heal all our open wounds.

I hope deliberations and recommendations from this conference would lend yet another voice and provide additional input for the growth of our nation.Thank you for your attention and God bless you all.