Gov. Umo Eno (right) brainstorming with his Deputy, Senator Akon Eyakenyi at the retreat.
By Anietie Akpan
The members of the Akwa Ibom State Executive Council (EXCO), have been warned against complacency and excuses as they work to deliver on the agenda of the Governor Umo Eno led administration.
Governor Eno said this at the Akwa Ibom State Executive Council retreat currently taking place in Lagos, therefore called for synergy, collaboration, loyalty and commitment to recording results.
In a press release from his Media Unit, the Governor said the retreat is meant to further distill the culture of deliverables and deepen respect for boundaries as his administration works to relentlessly drive its vision of economic growth and wellbeing, peace and prosperity for the people of the State.
Declaring open the retreat at the Eko Hotel and Suites, Lagos, Governor Eno said, the retreat is expected to have participants, fully reinvigorated, equipped, refreshed and challenged for the tasks ahead.
“We have assembled a great team of speakers drawn from diverse backgrounds and I know we are going to have a great and exciting time.
“Even though this is essentially an EXCO Retreat, we have, however, brought in all our Delivery Team Members and stakeholders, to reinforce our commitment in ensuring timely delivery of our projects.
A section of EXCO Members at the retreat.
“We were here, last in 2023, shortly after our inauguration, where we had distilled the foundational principles of the Arise Agenda with the then EXCO members.
“It’s good to note that a number of the members of the last EXCO have been reappointed and thus are deeply conversant with our culture of deliverables”.
The Governor who appreciated resource persons, particularly, Tony Blair Institute, for accepting to share their knowledge and expertise, reminded the new EXCO members, that “the fact that you are here, means you completely understand our propelling impulse which essentially is that we are running against time.”
He maintained that time was of essence, “given the number of very audacious projects, we are determined to execute and complete within the next two years of our first term.”
Emphasizing the need for teamwork and unity, Governor Eno maintained that if he were to suggest a theme for the retreat, it would be “Teaming for Greater Success”.
Pastor Eno spoke glowingly on his Arise Agenda, saying that it has been articulated and translated into implementable layers, maintaining that having “taken acute and deep ownership of the vision”, the EXCO members are the agents to relentlessly drive the vision to completion.
Another section of the EXCO Members.
He reminded them that Akwa Ibom people will not tolerate excuses, hence his decision to appoint a renowned technocrat as his Chief Delivery Adviser and Executive Assistant.
Governor Eno used the forum to again clarify that the State Delivery Advisors have their responsibilities clearly spelt out, which is to supervise some of the major projects billed for completion within the next 24 months.
“They have the institutional memory and knowledge of these projects, and we have simply asked them to complete what they had started and deliver them to specifications and on time.
“The Honourable Commissioners have new projects that we are initiating and are expected to follow-through on those projects to completion”, he said.
The retreat, expected to last four days had on the first day, Tuulia Pitkanem, a senior adviser in the Tony Blair Institute, and a former Chief of Staff to the Prime Minister of Finland, who spoke on ways of translating the Governor’s address into policy interventions.
Others who spoke on Day One, include Mr Emem Bob who spoke on the Budget Presentation and Fiscal Outlook, as well as Government Communication and Reputation Management presented by Mr. Aniekan Umanah.
