Wait at polling unit until results are announced – Umana’s running mate, Engr. Ben Ukpong

Engr. Benedict Ukpong, a former president of Akwa Ibom Community in Abuja, is the running mate to the APC governorship candidate in Akwa Ibom State, Mr. Umana Okon Umana. Ukpong, a civil engineering graduate of the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, holds a Master’s degree in Water Resources and Environmental Engineering from Ahmadu Bello University, and a Master of Business Administration from Olabisi Onabanjo University (formerly Ogun State University), Ago-Iwoye. He has more than 28 years of work experience in the Engineering profession and retired as a deputy director of the Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA), Abuja. In this interview with journalists in Uyo, Ukpong spoke on a wide range of political issues in Akwa Ibom and why he believe APC will win the elections in the state.

What kind of person is Umana Okon Umana?

He is deep. He is deep, intellectually. He is deep in his love for Akwa Ibom State. He is deep in his love for unemployed youths and the less privileged people in Akwa Ibom State. He is deep in his passion to ensure that Akwa Ibom state belongs to Akwa Ibom people, not just a few individuals. 

How is the campaign, so far?

We thank God for all that He has done for APC. Our outings in different parts of the state have been very successful; it has become a mass movement. Wherever we go, you can feel the enthusiasm among the crowd of people who come out voluntarily to receive us.  The people know that Umana Okon Umana has genuine love for them that is why they are yearning for the gospel of change. You saw what happened when we went to Abak, Ikot Ekpene, Mkpat Enin, Oron and other local government areas. From what is going on, it’s obvious everybody wants to be part of the change that is coming. I want to use this medium to thank God for the guidance and protection because our own campaign is entrusted into God’s hand. God is the foundation of this project. Ours is just like the story of David and Goliath. We are the David. It is God that is fighting for us, with the people of Akwa Ibom behind us and Umana Okon Umana as the chief commander.  So with that, we are very confident that Akwa Ibom people will get to the promise land. 

What comparative advantage does Akwa Ibom State have over other states in Nigeria and what do you think is fundamentally wrong in Akwa Ibom?

First, it is the natural location of the State. Akwa Ibom State has access to the Atlantic Ocean through the coastline local government areas. From several studies it has been proven that Ibaka area of the Atlantic Ocean has one of the longest depths, and that makes it a possibility for big ships to sail in and out of Akwa Ibom State. So in my own perspective, that segment of the Atlantic Ocean is a natural place for a deep seaport. You know some people (Godswill Akpabio and his administration) have been playing politics with that, but I want to assure you that the Umana administration will ensure that, that seaport will be developed at Ibaka in Oro nation where it has been planned all along. When you travel to Europe you can see how other nations develop their coastlines to attract tourists. What is now required is genuine and sincere leadership that will transform the state to the level it is supposed to be, and this is what Umana Okon Umana is going to provide for this state and for the people. 

Sir, are you saying that the main problem with Akwa Ibom state is leadership?

If you have the right leadership everything will fall into places. If you look at the resources that come to this state, in eight years of the past administration of Obong Victor Attah, it is reported that he had about N400billion for those eight years, and now more than N400billion is what the state has been receiving yearly. And the current Minister of Finance, Dr. Okonjo-Iweala has told the whole world that the development in Akwa Ibom State is not up to 10 percent of the amount of money received (from the federation account) so far by the state. And the Akpabio administration has not refuted this claim by the minister of finance. So, where is the remaining 90 percent of the money that has accrued to Akwa Ibom State?

Your kinsmen in Oro have been agitating to produce a governor in Akwa Ibom State. What is their reaction to your nomination as running mate to the APC governorship candidate?  

We all know that in Akwa Ibom State no single ethnic group can make it without others. Oro can’t produce a governor without the support of Ibibio, Annang and everyone. The Oro people were shortchanged in the other platform (PDP), and the All Progressives Congress has offered Oro the deputy governorship position. So you can see that where you wanted a particular thing in another platform and somehow you were denied it and another platform said ‘gentlemen, please we have this for you’.  If you don’t get what you want, you have to like what you get. An average Oro person now sees this ticket, Umana-Ukpong ticket, as the best that can happened to them under this circumstance. There is hope for the Oro people at the end of the tunnel with this ticket and they are very excited for it. You know that PDP has absolutely nothing to offer Oro people. Oro had produced Speakers of the State House of Assembly in the past, but look at PDP offering Oro the position of the deputy chief whip in the House of Assembly, and they are not even certain that the position is for Oro. I am not the official mouth piece for the Oro people, I am just their son. But from the feedback we are getting from the people, and from the excitement they are showing, the Oro people are ready to make sure that they are not left out and they are determined to do that through their votes. And like I keep saying, it’s not about Engr. Ben Ukpong; it is about the Oro nation. I see myself as a symbol of the integration of the Oro people who have been marginalised for so long.

If voted into power, what will APC government do to bring Akwa Ibom people back together as one united family?

APC government will ensure real change, positive change, in almost all facets of human endeavours in the state. If political positions are equitably distributed unlike what has happened in the present administration, if all the segments of the state are properly taken care of by way of political appointments, if the infrastructure are developed in such a way that the quality of projects that are done in a particular section of the state is similar to the quality of projects in other parts of the state. You know I am a civil engineer. What I mean here is that if you have first class contractors working in the state, you should have such first class contractors spread evenly on projects in different parts of the state. Same should apply to middle class contractors working in the state. So at the end we could have qualitative developments that are evenly distributed. APC government will change all that. APC government will make sure that the youth are gainfully employed. In terms of civil service, there will be fairness in the distribution of available positions. There are allegations, that in one instance, a particular local government area had more than two hundred and fifty people employed in a commission that is supposed to take care of all the local government areas in this state, while all the five local government areas of Oro combined together had barely one hundred and twenty people employed in the commission. When you look at such ratio there is no way people can be happy. The people are only bottling up their anger and they are waiting to explode by voting for APC.  Umana Okon Umana is ready to unite the people of Akwa Ibom State by making sure that there is fairness and justice. The incoming government of Umana Okon Umana under APC will make sure that bursary is increased from five thousand naira to fifty thousand naira. There is one funny thing about high ranking civil servants, for instance when a permanent secretary that is supposed to go on retirement is made to stay on simply because the one that should come in is considered not to be from the right part of the state. Such practice does not give room for unity in the state. I can list many more examples, but the one that is most important is where the resources (money) of this state is circulated around one particular family and few individuals, while others in the state are turned into beggars. You can see that with such in place, there cannot be unity in the state. I can assure you of that Umana Okon Umana will do things differently; he will ensure that everybody in the state is treated fairly. 

This is one question everyone is asking, how will APC protect the people’s vote? 

It is not APC protecting votes; from what we have found out in the field Akwa Ibom people are ready and are waiting for change, a change that is going to take place all over the country. Well, on February 14 they will look at the truth and vote. And on February 28 they will also look at the truth and they will vote APC. Now, when that is done, there is no army in this world and there is no force in this world that is greater than the forces of the truth. I want to call on Akwa Ibom people when they cast their votes they should wait and see their results at the polling units, they should follow up to the ward collation centre, from there they should move to the local government collation centre and up to the state coalition centre, and ensure that their votes count. The security agencies are paid with our money. INEC is being paid with our money and we believe that they are there to do their job transparently and impartially. All that we need to do is to discharge our civic responsibility, and make sure that we are the ones to protect our votes. We are calling on all APC supporters in Akwa Ibom state and the whole country to be patient; they should not allow anything to distract them from casting their votes and waiting until the result is announced.