"Udom needs to protect his legacies”
- Dr. Ime S. Ekpo

Without any sentiment, as a royal father who is expected to be totally apolitical, I openly declare the administration of Mr. Udom Gabriel Emmanuel as God-given to Akwa Ibom State. Also, as a public commentator on issues of public interest, I have no hiding place when I feel mandated to execute my royal or, rather, social responsibilities that would be of general benefits to the people of the state. I have just discovered that although, Chief Godswill Akabio claimed to have transformed Akwa Ibom State, infrastructural, to attract foreign investors, the biggest gift he ever made to the people of Akwa Ibom was his choice of Mr. Gabriel Udom Emmanuel, as his successor. Initially, Udom's choice was received with mix feelings, which precipitated divisions among various political houses in the state. Akpabio received curses and abuses for making Udom his successor. But today, the narrative has changed. The state, through Udom, has moved from a civil service status to an industrialized level. Good road networks are everywhere of the state. Adequate social infrastructures are being put in place to agree with the principle or the manifestos of the preceding administrations.

Uyo, the capital city of the state wears a supermodern look with series of 21st century architectural outlook. Governor Udom ensures that his developmental initiatives are properly followed up to their logical end. In the educational sector, Udom has insured the future of the children of the state; in economic empowerment. Udom's administration has generated various job opportunities for our youth teeming population; in employment, Governor Udom has engaged the youth in various skills acquisition programmes to make them economically relevant; in industrialization, the Governor has established over 17 industries in the state with expartriates brought in from other industrialized nations of the world; and on security, Governor Udom has succeeded to flush out all brands of criminalities-kidnapping, assasination, robbery-in the state. This is probably, what Chief Akpabio had foreseen when he made the choice as his own successor. Also, projects that were initiated by the preceeding administrations have been completed, some redesigned before completion. Most astonishing are the beautiful road projects his administration has put in place. The Ibom Air initiative, the first state-owned commercial aircraft, which is second to none in Africa, attracts the ever-flowing interest of tourism investors. Of the various achievements Governor Udom has made, the supermodern road network with fantastic drainage brings to mind the need for proper waste management and control initiative so that the beautiful gutters don't get filled up with waste and lock up the gutters, hence, causing overflow of water current and erosion menace.

The survey I have personally taken over the years has shown that sachet water bags or waste has caused the most disturbing menace to the environment, and has oftentimes constituted total blockage to the water channel that enhances free flow of water. I
suggest the government should establish a proper waste control and management agency to act as an organ of the government, or task force, to enact any punitive measure for anybody or organization that violates the waste management and control law in the state. The state government should discourage sachet water production by empowering the pure water producing companies to divert their production initiative to bottled water, which has a controllable disposal system than the sachet water. Disposed bottled water container is more accessible for use than the sachet water waste which constitutes environmental hazards to infrastructures and facilities, thereby diminishing the beauty of the structures put down by the administration. Recycling system for disposed sachet water bags is more cost intensive than the bottled water, which container can be picked anywhere and used to store kerosene, oil or anything. Alternatively, I personally call on His Excellency, to provide a reliable disposal system for already used pure water sachet at strategic locations of the state with functional monitoring team to oversee the enactment so that the beautiful projects of his government may not be rubbished by the lawless elements in the society, thereby destroying the legacies of his divine-driven administration.

DR. IME S. EKPO IS THE VILLAGEHEAD AND CLANHEAD-ELECT OF
OTORO-UBO CLAN IN IKOT EKPENE LGA, AKWA IBOM STATE.

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