By Emmanuel Ndon
In Akwa Ibom State, people are living life in a whole new, different way. The food security scheme – an initiative of Governor Umo Eno and intervention program of the Akwa Ibom State Bulk Purchase Agency, enable vulnerable individuals to have essential staple foodstuffs for their families.
This reminds one of the past, good old school days where meal tickets provided passage to the refectories. Some meal tickets could serve two or more weeks /days depending on the particular institution.
The depressing economy, coupled with incessant kidnappings, high cost in fares occasioned by the removal of fuel subsidy, has caused food shortage, forcing prices upward.
Affording a square meal, has become increasingly difficult for average households in the country. but someone is lighting up the hearts of men in Akwa Ibom State with glittering stories of love and hope.
In a little less than one year, Governor Umo Eno is not only restoring hope but winning the hearts of the people through fulfilled promises.
Every passing day, one achievement or the other is ticking the box for the governor’s ARISE Agenda which he campaigned with in 2023.
Even though it’s a long list, the ease with which these deeds get done, the needs they meet, and the eventual ecstasy it radiates from beneficiaries provokes a reel-out and continuous mention. The pastor does not only exhibit the attributes of his calling but comes as a man with a mission, well prepared to change the fortunes of the state.
Within his first one month in office – and I would like to put it as the first time he touched the money of the state – the first thing on his mind was to set a large chunk – about N2 billion, to kick start payment of outstanding pension and other entitlements to workers.
This in itself is by no means a mean achievement, particularly, when you discover that the backlog of these arrears traversed three administrations and over a decade. For a man or woman who has put in his best years (say 35 in service or 60 by age), to leave the service without his due reward for as long as ten years and more, could better be imagined. As it stands today, over N15 billion has been committed to that effect along with regular payment of salaries to all civil servants in the state.
As a pastor, Governor Umo Eno is leading according to the dictates of the scriptures. When the Bible says “the labourer deserves his wages”, he knows what it means. Like I mentioned in a piece elsewhere where I joined voices in commendation of the Governor, when he released the third tranche of the pension arrears, I drew the attention of the people to a common axiom held by eighteenth-century American which noted that “national prosperity and political happiness were directly related to the moral character of a nation’s civil rulers, and this found expression in the authority of the scriptures that ‘when the righteous is in authority, the people rejoice’ (Proverbs 2:9). Governor Umo Eno is true to type.
Only last week, he again demonstrated his commitment to his sacred duty and service to humanity by flagging off the free food voucher programme for the vulnerable and needy at Itam market, in Itu Local Government Area. This singular act represents a moral response to the biting economic hardship in the country.
Interestingly, matters relating to the “poor” and “needy”, are very sensitive because its implications and applications are both spiritual and temporal. It is spiritual because it relates to a person’s spirit and founded on deeper religious values.
Likewise, it is secular because the government has a larger responsibility concerning the welfare of citizens. Thus, Jesus Christ directed us to the stark reality and admonished on how best to deal with it; “For there will never cease to be poor in the land; that is why I am commanding you to open wide your hand to your brother and to the poor and needy in your land.” (Deuteronomy 15:11; c.f. Matt.26:10).
The governor’s gesture concerning the bulk purchase agency law (BPA) of which the food voucher is just a small part, is intended to cater for the immediate and long term needs in his drive towards food sufficiency and security. In the first instance, the food vouchers programme will enable poorest of the poor (needy) to obtain free food while the poor can purchase food at affordable prices (subsidized by government). So at whatever level, everyone can eat, because of its availability and affordability.
The governor himself had emphasized on the long term solution urging everyone to return to the farm, and added yet another impetus in the form of a N1.5 billion interest-free loan for traders in the state.
These bold steps can only add up to the purposeful leadership that puts the people first. But there are lots more to come while some are already happening.
TO BE CONTINUED
Emmanuel Ndon is the Founder / BoT Chairman, Bo Enọ, and Transition Secretary, Itu Local Government
