Gov Umo Eno of Akwa Ibom is just three months into his four-year term. But one of his first major policy moves is threatening his possible second term in 2027.
Mr Eno said his decision to redistribute land at the state’s Ibom Industrial Park has put him at odds with the elites in the oil-rich state. Some political actors have vowed to ensure he does not win a second term.
“I know some of us, the elites have land there and have been calling me. Some have even threatened. But I have just heard the word of God. They are only men,” Mr Eno said on August 19 during a prayer meeting at his office in Uyo, the capital.
Mr Eno served as commissioner for lands in the immediate administration of Udom Emmanuel. His office said the new administration plans to create fashion and shoe factories at the park.
Previous plans failed for years because after getting land allocation at the site, a “few privileged persons” refused to develop the plots as intended, the government said.
Reversing that is setting up an early political battle for Mr Eno.
“Some have threatened, telling me you don’t start a government like this, and you won’t get a second term. Fine, let’s just work first and let the people decide whether they will give us a second term or not. I think that is the way to go. I will not live in fear,” he said.
“We will do the right thing. You can’t get land, leave it undeveloped while some people are looking for lands to develop businesses and we can’t find any. It is not right please.”
The governor said the park has now been partitioned into 150 plots of between 4,000 and 5,000 square meters each. It will have a fashion hub and innovation and incubation centres.
Undeveloped park
The sprawling park spans four communities, stretching across Mbak Itam 3, Ikot Ebom, Ekit Itam 3, and Ikot Ekwere in Itu local government area, which lies next to the state capital, Uyo.
It was established by former Gov Victor Attah who was in office between 1999 and 2003.
Idoreyin James, a member of Mbak Itam 3 village council, told Pluboard that the government at the time paid paltry sums as compensation to locals for the land.
Years after, only few firms operate there, including construction firm Julius Berger, Dangote Cement and several major transport companies.
Parts of the property now have residential homes, a market and a mosque.
Last week, the government deployed bulldozers in the area and demolished unapproved structures, taking down market stalls and houses.
More demolitions were carried out on Wednesday evening. One man whose house was removed told Pluboard those affected received no notice ahead of the exercise. The man, who gave only his first name as Sagir, said non-natives bought land from community chiefs.
The village head of Mbak Itam 3, Dominic Etim, told Pluboard the plots were rented not sold. He also denied that the demolition was done without notice.
The state commissioner for information, Ini Ememobong, did not respond to requests for comments. The lands commissioner, Iniobong Ekong, could not be reached as his known phone contact was unavailable.
The leader of the demolished market, Ibrahim Yamma, alleged that plots were leased to them by a former member of the House of Representatives, Emmanuel Obot.
Mr Yamma said he had documents backing the transfers. According to him, the demolished market was a mini-hub for goods from the northern part of the country.
“We first rented it for two years which had expired and we renewed it for another two years. We renewed it not up to three months before the demolition,” Mr Yamma said.
Mr Obot denied the allegation.
“If government wants to take the land, somebody said you sold it, how did I sell the land that I bought? If that is the policy of the government that they are taking land. I don’t have business with anybody. I did not lease any land. That is an industrial area,” Mr Obot told Pluboard.
Early fight for second term
Gov Eno did not give names of those he said threatened him.
Like other elected officeholders, Nigerian governors typically seek two full terms in office. Mr Eno’s predecessors since 1999 – Mr Attah, Godswill Akpabio, and Udom Emmanuel served for two terms.
Mr Eno has not said he plans to stay beyond 2027. But last month, his predecessor, Mr Emmanuel, solicited support for his “political son” to have two terms.
Mr Emmanuel handpicked Mr Eno as his preferred successor and mobilized support to get him in office.
Akwa Ibom has Nigeria’s third largest sub-national economy after Lagos and Rivers, according to the non-profit group, BudgIT. However, the state has some of the highest levels of poverty and unemployment in the country, according to the National Bureau of Statistics.
Mr Eno, who has a background in the hospitality industry, says he wants to create more jobs. The land title revocation at the industrial park is aimed at reallocating property to investors to build companies that can create jobs and wealth, he said.
He said he would not back down on the project but would allow those who still intend to develop the park to retain land ownership.
“There is an Industrial Park here. For over 10 years, people just acquired the lands and didn’t do anything. It doesn’t make sense at all. It is either they tell us what they want to do, give us the timeline, and then we monitor it or we will reclaim those lands and use it for the purpose for which it was meant for in the original master plan,” he told reporters last week.
On Thursday, while flagging off the construction of Tabernacle Road in the capital, he asked his environment and internal security commissioners to relocate a company that had disturbed residents there to the park.
“If you owned land there before, the land has been revoked but you can have it back if you really have a project. You must show us the project. We must appraise the project. It is called Industrial Park. It has been empty for too long but we are determined to put it to use,” Mr Eno said.
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