For a former governor of Akwa Ibom State, Godswill Akpabio, it is time to give an account of his eight-year stewardship in the oil-rich state.
Interestingly, the former
governor-turned senator is doing that at the Abuja office of the Economic and
Financial Crimes Commission.
The anti-graft agency played
host to Akpabio last Friday and Saturday. His invitation by the EFCC was among
the most prominent issues on social media at the weekend
However, beyond this sudden
romance with the EFCC, the former governor has rolled out a social media
campaign that aims at seeking sympathy from the online community.
Akpabio, the Minority Leader
of the Senate, spent some time on Twitter on Sunday struggling to convince both
his admirers as well as his critics that he left Akwa Ibom a better place after
his tenure.
Responding to tweets on his
visit to the EFCC, Akpabio wondered why the majority of his critics, who had
never been to Akwa Ibom, suddenly became experts in analysing developments in
the state.
He urged his critics to
visit the state before writing petition against him.
“Those who have never been
to our state have suddenly become experts in analysing our state. When next
someone tells you to write a petition against us, make sure you, at least,
visit Akwa Ibom before you do so,” he tweeted.
While the former governor
did not dwell much on his achievements and tenure in office in the state, he
relied on the claims of his supporters to make his points. For hours on Sunday,
he was retweeting posts by those who claimed he had transformed his state.
Faith Zeal, Franklyn Isong,
Precious Sunday, Olatunde Bakare, Jonathan Ubochi, Michael Bode and Festus
Louis were but a few of social media users whose posts Akpabio retweeted.
However, the discussion
avoided the several billions of naira the senator reportedly misappropriated.
Akpabio, a former Chairman,
Nigeria Governors’ Forum, had earlier taken to the social media platform to
deny report of his arrest by the EFCC.
Soon after the Internet was
awash with the reports of his visit to the commission, he tweeted, “Akpabio was
never arrested. He simply obliged an invitation by the EFCC to answer some
questions.
“Those who are playing
politics with the decision of Akpabio to honour the EFCC invitation must be
acting a known script.
“I have nothing to hide. As
a law abiding citizen, it is my duty to submit myself to the law for scrutiny
at all times.”
As if seeking the
cooperation of the online community, Akpabio has increased his social media
activity, tweeting or retweeting consistently.
On leaving the EFCC on
Saturday, he posted, “I have just left the EFCC after such explanation. Let the
rule of law prevail. I am ready to answer every question till the end.”
Meanwhile, as Akpabio
tweeted trying to defending himself, Governor Nasir el-Rufai was on major
social media channels seeking the support of Kaduna State residents to continue
his urban renewal programme.
El-Rufai described Kaduna as
a gloried local government headquarters, saying the government has an
obligation to make it more habitable.
“The Kaduna Geographic
Information System will computerise land records, starting with the Kaduna,
Zaria and Kafanchan metropolitan areas. This will create a reliable system that
enables landowners to have official title documents. We will give our people
certificates of occupancy for their plots of land to improve the security of
their landholdings.
“Kaduna, Zaria and Kafanchan
are no more than glorified local government headquarters. This administration
is developing a master plan to transform these cities into modern urban centres
with every conceivable facility, such as improved transportation, traffic
management, leisure, shopping facilities, recreational and neighbourhood
centres. This process will involve the creation of thousands of jobs in several
sectors,” he posted on Facebook.
The governor, in recent
time, has had a fair share of social media backlash over the demolition of
residential houses in some parts of the state. Yet, he has continued to seek
the understanding of the residents for his programmes, promising that the
people and the state will be better for it.
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