Akwa Ibom enters Guinness Book of Records
From Inem Akpan-Nsoh Uyo

The Guinness Book of World Records was yesterday broken in Akwa Ibom State as 9,300 choristers converged on Uyo Township Stadium to sing at the Annual Carol Night.





Addressing the choristers at the colourful ceremony, the state governor, Chief Godswill Akpabio, said the feat was more of a spiritual declaration of peace in the Niger Delta than breaking of the Guinness Book of World Records. The event was beamed live on both NTA and AIT.

The governor said for the mere fact that the choristers were drawn from the 31 council areas of the state showed that the state was more united and could achieve even greater things than that.

He said: "I want our people to take home the lesson that no force can withstand the collective momentum of the state whenever it goes to God in prayers."

Chief Akpabio called for more support for his administration and that of the President, as such would help leap the state and the country to greater heights.

While congratulating the choristers and the organisers for putting up a beautiful event, he said if the 9,300 choristers could think of what to do for the state and have conviction of greatness, more could be achieved.

The Director of Protocol to the governor, Mr. Aniekpeno Mkpang, who initiated the record-beaking event, said that by making the attempt, the state government identified with the global awareness effort of the people of Guinness World Records and sought to use it to reposition the state as a destination and put it to positive global reckoning.

According to him, with the large number of choristers that sang at the Uyo Stadium, the state had broken the December 3, 2004 Guinness World Records, where 7,014 carol singers sang at the Bob Jones University, North Carolina, USA.

The successful performance, as adjudicated by Alexander Forces and conducted by Mr. Joseph Akpan, Mkpang said, had caused the state to be enlisted in the year 2010 Guinness Book of World Records.

In his exhortation at the world event, the Catholic Bishop of Uyo Diocese, Dr. Joseph Ekuwem, called for continued team spirit in order to lift the state to greater glory.

The ceremony was attended by eminent personalities in the state and outside, including the Minister of Niger Delta Ministries, Obong Uffot Ekaette.


http://odili.net/news/source/2008/dec/28/12.html