
28/02/2025
Akwa Ibom seeks presidential intervention on erosion, deep seaport
Akwa Ibom Governor Umo Eno on Friday led a delegation of stakeholders to meet with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu at the State House, Abuja for intervention in addressing the state’s ecological challenges and advancing the Ibom Deep Seaport project.
Eno highlighted the urgency of tackling severe gully erosion threatening critical infrastructure in the state, including the Government House.
“We have so much ecological issues in Akwa Ibom—gully erosions are almost consuming even the Government House.
“We embarked on a very ambitious programme to reclaim the ecological gully erosion site and turn it into a resort. Now we have what we call the Arise Resort, which I have just invited His Excellency, Mr President, to commission. We have also asked him to help us intervene,” he said.
The Governor also appealed for federal support in developing the Ibom Deep Seaport, emphasizing its strategic importance to the state, region, and nation.
“No state government can alone build a deep seaport. We need the federal government’s support, and so we have made a request to the President to help us intervene so that Akwa Ibom will have a deep seaport.
“With a depth of 17.2 meters, it is about the deepest in the country. We are already constructing a road into the seaport and providing other infrastructure, but we need the federal government to come on board,” Eno said.
The delegation, which included political leaders across party lines, traditional rulers, religious leaders, youth, and women representatives, also used the visit to express gratitude to the President for his support of Akwa Ibom indigenes in federal positions.
“Part of our visit was to thank Mr. President for standing by our son, Distinguished Senator Godswill Akpabio, as Senate President, and for appointing our sons and daughters into the federal government, principal among them being the Honourable Minister of State for Petroleum (Gas),” Eno said.
He also commended Tinubu’s economic policies, acknowledging the initial challenges but noting signs of recovery.
“When the President took over, the economy was actually down, but we have begun to see signs of recovery. We need to encourage him to continue on the path of reforms. When you encourage leaders, they do more”, he said.
The Governor emphasized the unity among Akwa Ibom leaders, stating that political differences had not hindered their collective pursuit of the state’s development.
“Today, you saw most of our past leaders—Distinguished Senator Godswill Akpabio, His Excellency Deacon Udom Emmanuel, myself, and others—working together to ensure the sustainable growth of Akwa Ibom State,” he noted.
As a mark of solidarity and appreciation, the state’s traditional rulers conferred on President Tinubu the highest chieftaincy title in the land, Otuekong, meaning “Commander-in-Chief.”
“The traditional rulers took the opportunity to honour the President with the highest title in our land, Otuekong, to show that we stand with him, we will support him in the onerous task of administering leadership in the country,” Eno said.