By Okechukwu Nnodim
A
former Governor of Akwa Ibom State, Senator Godswill Akpabio, was on Tuesday
afternoon flown out of Nigeria to receive medical attention abroad.
It
was learnt that the senator, in company with about five of his aides, left the
Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja aboard a regular private jet that
he usually travels with.
Sources
at the airport told our correspondent that Akpabio and his team arrived at the
General Aviation Terminal, local wing, of the airport around 12.40pm.
It
was learnt that the former governor was conveyed to his aircraft by a tarmac
bus and was fit physically when sighted at the airport.
An
official of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, who saw the senator
while he was about to board his aircraft, said, “He (Akpabio) was at the GAT
local wing of the airport and one of the tarmac buses was used to convey him to
his aircraft. He left around 20 minutes to 1pm.
“The
flight conveying him on the trip taxied to the international terminal from
where it took off. The former governor travelled with his own private flight
and had about five persons who accompanied him on the trip. He looked
physically okay, although some of the men with him said he might receive
medical attention abroad due to the car crash he was involved in on Monday.”
Akpabio,
who is currently the Minority Leader of the Senate, was involved in a car
accident on his way to the airport to catch an international flight on Monday.
His
car ran into a convoy of some United State’s embassy officials while trying to
beat the traffic light.
It
was learnt that the occupants of the vehicles in the convoy of the US embassy
and Akpabio’s driver did not sustain any injury but the senator suffered some
injuries in the chest region.
It
was gathered that the accident occurred around 7.25am near the Bolingo Hotel,
along Abuja Airport Road, in the Central Business District of the FCT, and
Akpabio was immediately rushed to the National Hospital, Abuja for an intensive
care.
Akpabio,
it was learnt, was travelling outside the country on Monday to visit his wife
and children when the accident happened.
The
US Embassy also confirmed that the convoy of the former governor collided with
a suburban jeep belonging to the mission.
The
Senior Information Specialist in the embassy, Sani Mohammed, stated that local
authorities had commenced investigation into the accident.
The
Head, Media Relations and Strategy, Federal Road Safety Corps, Bisi Kazeem,
said seven adult males were involved in the crash, adding that three of them
including Akpabio sustained injuries and were taken to the hospital.
Culled from PUNCH
Another reason why Akwa Ibomites nurses abroad should be taken seriously and encouraged in their endeavours. Fancy him landing on a hospital ward abroad and guess who might have to attend to him - an Akwa Ibomite nurse. And yet they say, Akwa Ibomites in the diaspora are not of value. Akwa Ibom 'think again'!
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