Poll Rates Fashola, Akpabio Most Respected Governors (Posted: April 24, 2010)

By Aniekan Umanah
Hon. Commissioner, Akwa Ibom State Ministry of Information & Social Re-Orientation

A new poll result released last week in Lagos by BrandHEALTH, a major research agency in Nigeria, has declared the Governor of Lagos State, Mr Babatunde Raji Fashola and the Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Chief Godswill Obot Akpabio as the two most respected Governors in Nigeria because of the developmental strides that they have recorded in their respective States. According to BrandHEALTH, while Governor Fashola was rated highly because of his efforts in poverty alleviation, youth empowerment and rebranding Lagos into a mega city, Governor Akpabio�s rating on the other hand soared in the area of road construction, free education scheme and infrastructural development.

The report said 72 % of the respondents believed Governor Akpabio has fulfilled his election promises. "The 72% who said the governor has fulfilled his promises to the people based their decisions on the number of projects the government has completed, massive infrastructural development, provision of good roads and free education in the state among other things," the report said.

To further probe on what Governor Akpabio stood for in the minds of the people, the report said the respondents were asked to describe him in one sentence. "One fifth called him a promise keeper, 17% called him the man of the people. 14% each called him a man with a clear vision about the problem of the state," the report said.

The organizers of the poll said the aim of the report was to keep abreast with the mood and swing of the stakeholders, adding that the indicators were expected to give clues about the public perception of the Governors across the country.

The poll which was conducted in February 2010, reportedly asked respondents to mention the Governor they respect most of the 36 Governors in Nigeria. "The reason was to determine a competitive positioning of our Governors.

"The summation of the scores indicate that the most respected governor in Nigeria is Raji Fashola with 176 points, followed by governor Akpabio with 96 points. Other governors that were rated through at low levels are Rotimi Amaechi (67 points), Adams Oshiomole (41point) and Peter Obi (31points). Others are Governors Ibrahim Idris of Kogi State, Murtala Nyako of Adamawa State and Theodore Orji of Abia State," it concluded.