In the spirit of Valentine’s Day gift, an Etinan lawmaker, UduakObong Ekpo-Ufot, has forgone his 90 per cent monthly salary worth N12,000,000 to boost 12 new co-operative societies in the area.
Ekpo-Ufot, the member representing Etinan State Constituency in the Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly, announced this on Wednesday, February 14, 2024 as a Valentine’s Day gift to his constituents.
In a message tagged 12 MILLION VALENTINE ROSES partly reads, “This 2024 Valentine Day, I am delighted to announce the addition of 12 new Co-Operatives to the over 3 million Co-Operatives around the world.
‘‘As take off funding for the Co-Operatives, I will forego 90% of my monthly salary from this month of February 2024 up till February 2026 to fund each of the Co-Op accounts with a total of N12,000,000.00 (or N1,000,000.00 per ward) for the 12 wards that make up Etinan State Constituency.’’
According to him, “This Co-Operative is to offer my teeming & vibrant constituents access to funding for individual & small businesses by operating UFORO IMAN IBOM CO-OPERATIVE SCHEME across the 12 wards and with the support of well-meaning Iman Ibom indigenes, grow capital base of these Co-Operatives to a size of N50,000,000.00 (fifty million naira) over the next 3 years and subsequently obtain a license to operate “UFORO IMAN IBOM Digital Bank.”
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He explained that the Co-operatives would provide financial support to the members with a grant of soft loans at reasonable interest rates in times of need.
‘‘This is to protect the interest of small producers by making available items needed for their production; like raw materials for small producers and manufacturers who find it difficult to sell their product(s) individually, also for small farmers to work jointly and thereby enjoy the benefits of large – scale farming,’’ he said.
“About 8 months ago, with the popular mandate of my constituents, I entered into office and in this period, I have amongst other things realized that my people- the Iman Ibom People, have a basic problem ‘ACCESS TO MONEY’ to process the most profitable & abundant cash crop in my State Constituency- Palm Fruits, which we call EYOP, in our Ibibio dialect.”
The lawmaker restated his resolve to launch the initiatives that will better the lives of Iman-Ibom people, saying, ‘‘the people selected to help chaperon the affairs of the various Co-Operatives are listed on the Etinan State Constituency website. The most important person being the TREASURER- without his/her signature, monies will not leave the respective bank accounts and only financial members of the Co-Ops can borrow up to 2 or 3 times the amount of money they have saved with the Co-operative.’’
Mr Ekpo-Ufot, therefore, called on fellow indigenes of Etinan State Constituency within and outside Nigeria, to come together & support the growth of the various Co-Operatives in their respective wards, stating that the Uforo Iman Ibom Co-Operative Scheme will be operated BY THE PEOPLE, FOR THE PEOPLE!’’
