Akwa Ibom oil communities of Eket and Esit Eket local government areas under Ekid ethnic nationality have denied alleged opposition to development projects in their communities from both the state and federal governments.
The explanation, according to the leaders led by a former minister of Lands, Housing and Urban Development, stemmed from the recent allegation by Governor Umo Eno that Ekid people were poised to block the ongoing Lagos -Calabar Coastal Highway from passing through the disputed Stubbs Creek Forest Reserve.
Under the aegis of the Ekid People’s Union (EPU), the apex socio-cultural organisation of Eket/Esit Eket ethnic nationality led by the president-general, Dr Samuel Udonsak, had issued a caveat emptor, barring the federal and state governments, or their agents from encroaching on the reserve without adequate compensation.
.Clarifying Ekid’s position on the matter, Chief Essien, a former House of Representatives member for Eket federal constituency and a Board of Trustees (BoT) chairman of the EPU, said the position of his people was being misconstrued by the state government.
Their position was contained a letter to the governor entitled “An Open Appeal For Reason, Justice And The Future Of Stubbs Creek Forest Reserve” signed by Chief Essien, and the BoT secretary, Prince Sam Itama, and made available to journalists in Uyo, the state capital, the group urged the governor to jettison his hardline position and toe the line of negotiations for peace.
The EPU leaders expressed deep concern about the Governor’s outburst against the people of Ekid, recalling that “the remarks made during the commissioning of a health facility at Nduo Eduo area of Eket LGA, against the Ekid people and the leadership of the EPU, were deeply hurtful and troubling.”
“We have resisted the temptation to respond with anger or recrimination. Instead, we have reflected deeply and chosen to believe that the governor’s outburst may have been caused by the pressures of office, the exigencies of governance, and the heavy burden that leadership places on those who carry it.
“Regrettably, since that day, some political supporters and praise-singers have gone further to expatiate on those remarks and embellishing them and adding more salt to an already open wound. What may have been a momentary lapse has been weaponised into a sustained narrative that portrays Ekid people as enemies of progress.
“As the Board of Trustees of the Ekid People’s Union, we owe a solemn duty to intervene at this point. That duty is owed not only to Ekid people but also to the peace, stability, and future of Akwa Ibom State.
“We must clear the misconceptions that have been generated, restate the genuine concerns of Ekid people with clarity and restraint, and create room for an amicable, lawful, and dignified resolution of the issues surrounding the Stubbs Creek Forest Reserve.
“The declaration of Ekid people as “terrorists” under the guise that they are resisting the routing of a proposed coastal or super highway through the Stubbs Creek Forest Reserve did not entirely surprise us. Sadly, such language has become a recurring feature whenever Ekid people raise questions about the Stubbs Creek.
“Yet, each time it happens, it deepens mistrust and hardens positions. It is painful that a people who have consistently acted within the bounds of the law are now being criminalised for asserting their rights.
“These are the same Ekid people who received Pastor Umo Eno into their land, accommodated him, and lived with him for over 35 years. These are the people among whom he built his business and established his roots. These are the people who embraced him as their son and supported him overwhelmingly to emerge as Governor of Akwa Ibom State.
“Ekid people neither terrorised him nor disrupted his businesses. That such people would now be labelled terrorists because they insist that their ancestral land should not be appropriated indiscriminately, without due process, consultation, or compensation, is a painful irony that history will not easily forget,” the EPU leaders stressed.
