The war of words in the social media between Akwa Ibom governor’s aide and a senior journalist in the state over the controversy generated during the inauguration of Uyo-Ikot Ekpene Federal Highway has gone awry, Straightnews has gathered
After the inauguration of the highway by Nigerian Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, Mr. Udo Silas who was a Senior Special Assistant to ex-governor Godswill Akpabio called out governor Udom Emmanuel for what he called ”blatant and malicious lie that he met the Uyo-Ikot Ekpene Road at 20 percent completion.’’
Emmanuel was the Secretary to Akwa Ibom State Government during that administration.
But, Special Assistant on Media to Governor Emmanuel, Mr. Aniefiok Macaulay responded ”Reading through a post by one Udo Silas on the above subject matter, it was easy to discern how mentally low he was in penning down those vitriolic inanities.’’
Though both journalists are from Onna Local Government Area, the homestead of Governor Emmanuel, the war of words has zeroed into publication of private chats on Whatsapp between the duo.
Silas fires
Silas wrote ”The reason for this piece is two-fold. Firstly, to call out Udom Emmanuel for the blatant and malicious lie that he met the Uyo-Ikot Ekpene Road at 20 percent completion; secondly, Udom Emmanuel’s ingratitude and continued disdain for a man whom God used to bring him from obscurity to statehood.
For no matter how you spin the God or destiny tale, there would never have been a Udom Emmanuel as governor without Godswill Obot Akpabio.
”An unknown banker, not even at the zenith of his profession, brought forward by divine accident through the instrumentality of Akpabio, should at least know when to stop the vile of ingratitude that has eaten his intestines since that day in August, 2018, when Akpabio chose another path.
”Some of us may not be aware the extent of the battle Akpabio fought to make Udom Governor. Even when he was rejected by Akpabio’s kitchen cabinet as unsellable, Akpabio remained defiant, tasking his close childhood friend with the responsibility of fact checking the feedback.
”I remember how this friend crisscrossed the length and breadth of Akwa Ibom, day and night, dragging Udom by the tail, from one top politician to the other in this same Akwa Ibom. Believe it or not, it was the representation of this close friend that finally sealed the Udom governorship. So God decreed. But he used Akpabio. That is the irrefutable truth or is it not?
”Now, when a man deploys a single-minded purpose to move a person from a mere spec to the colors of a spectacle, that man deserves some gratitude no matter the differences. Telling lies against that man and doing everything to cause hatred for him is surely beneath the spiritual law of forgiveness we have been called on by the Almighty.
”But in Udom we see the bilateral relationship between ingratitude and forgiveness. When you live in religious precepts coined for the public, you suffer gross deficit in understanding spiritual laws like forgiveness. Forgiveness is not easy because it is a spiritual call and not a religious swansong.
”Now, lets rewind a little to see Udom’s lie on the Uyo-Ikot Ekpene Road. Charles Udoh, the then commissioner for Information and Strategy, had in an interaction reported by the media, in August 2018 alleged that Akpabio left the road at 42 percent completion. So when exactly did 42 percent become 20 percent? Why was it necessary to remove a whopping 22 percent from the completion statement? Isn’t this deliberate distortion borne out of sheer wickedness and the will to be petty?
”But pettiness is ingrained in the psychology of the Akwa Ibom government. Pettiness would stand in the way even when her action is to be commended. And that is because pettiness represents the sum of aggregates imbued in her leadership.’’
According to him, ”So congratulations to you Udom Emmanuel for finally completing the Uyo-Ikot Ekpene Road. But learn to move on.
”Akpabio has since moved on. He sleeps well. He is not a saint. He is human. He made mistakes like us all. You were definitely one of his mistakes.
”But he has since found forgiveness for himself and for you. I pray The Almighty elevate you, Udom Emmanuel to the spiritual realm of understanding forgiveness. Once again, please accept my hearty congratulations on completing the Uyo-Ikot ekpene road.”
Macaulay disproves
In firing back, Aniefiok Macaulay under the title: THAT RIDICULOUS MENDACIOUS BY UDO SILAS ON UYO-IKOT EKPENE ROAD wrote ”Reading through a post by one Udo Silas on the above subject matter, it was easy to discern how mentally low he was in penning down those vitriolic inanities. I am rejoining his post not to castigate him but to call him out with irrefutable facts about the construction of Uyo- Ikot Ekpene, whose contract award was signed on 19th December 2011.’’
”Though Silas, in his smallness of mind claimed that Mr. Udom Emmanuel, Governor of Akwa Ibom State was brought from obscurity to be governor against the wishes of the kitchen cabinet of Governor Godswill Akpabio, as he then was, I think Silas requires a good dictionary for a real meaning of obscurity.
”For a fact, a man who at the zenith of his career sat on many offshore Boards of his bank and was Executive Director cum Financial Controller of Zenith Bank cannot by any stretch of imagination be said to have been in an obscure position in his preferred career.
”Perhaps Udo Silas knows that even in journalism that he would not make the list of first 100 first class journalists in Nigeria.
”It is therefore undoubtedly that man who was rescued from obscurity laden with abject poverty and decorated with a title of Senior Special Assistant, having earlier mismanaged and ran aground a weekly regional paper whose print run was less than 1000 copies, would likely see every other person from his limited worldview.
”Regardless, Udo Silas failed woefully in his acerbic pontification to interrogate the governor on facts and figures to justify his morally deficit claims that the governor blatantly lied about the 20% work done on the road when he took over the mantle of leadership in 2015.
”This appalling failure on his part could be attributed to his ignorance on the reality on ground at the time, particularly in respect to the construction of the road in question.
”In all fairness to Udo Silas, as an indigene of Onna local government area, he may not have been familiar with the project, since it does not lie on his frequent route to Port Harcourt.
”It is on record that few months to the end of Akpabio’s tenure, Udo Silas as SSA to the governor completely derelict his duties and absconded to Port Harcourt.
”In some instances including the purported commissioning of road project in question, Udo Silas’ absence was conspicuously noticeable that the former governor, told his incoming successor, “if you must succeed, don’t work with someone like Udo Silas. He started well but along the line, veered off. He left his duty post and is now in Port Harcourt looking for contracts.” What a testimony from one’s boss…’’
Irked by the Macaulay’s rebuttal, Silas, a one-time General Manager of Akwa Ibom State Newspaper Corporation, Uyo, wrote in his Facebook Timeline ”…It’s so easy for you to allow hunger determine the darkness in your soul. I forgive your insults. You describe me as one udo silas. Take a look at this chat between you and I. Check the date. You referred to me here as your Oga. The year was 2015 I believe.
”You went ahead to have a litany of complaints in your conversation with me. I call on the world to measure my blatant and malicious lie that he met the Uyo-Ikot Ekpene Road at 20 percent completion responses to your complaints as a measure of my temperament and understanding of people like you, even way back as 2015.
”Please, don’t ever let the need to impress your bosses and perhaps survive , make you abuse or disrespect people like us that guided and showed you love. You can refute me factually without being insolent. I would not have bothered responding to you. Just needed to make the world see the foolery of your assumed bravery. In any case, please know in my heart that you are forgiven. Cheers bro’’
