Media Post International

Hon. Moses Essien to be Inducted Fellow Institute of Corporate Leadership and Mentorship

The Member Representing Ibiono Ibom State Constituency in the Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly, Hon. Moses Essien, will on Thursday, November 13, 2025, be inducted as a Fellow of the Institute of Corporate Leadership and Mentorship (ICLM).

In a goodwill message endorsed by the International President, Prince Godwin Asanga, and Secretary, Engr. Enefiok Usungurua, the Ibiono Ibom Youth for Democracy and Development (IBIYODED) described the investiture as a testament to Hon. Essien’s visionary and inspiring leadership, as well as his exceptional mentorship role, evident in his formation and sustenance of IBIYODED as a frontline platform for nurturing youths in democratic leadership and sustainable economic development.

The youth body noted that the recognition by the Institute further affirms Hon. Essien’s selfless service and leadership commitment as a distinguished Rotarian, whose guiding philosophy of “Service Above Self” continues to define his engagements in governance and community development.

According to the group, the Fellowship equally underscores Hon. Essien’s enviable capacity and effective representation in the Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly, particularly his unprecedented empowerment initiatives that have delivered tangible dividends of democracy to the people of Ibiono Ibom.

The group also commended the Institute of Corporate Leadership and Mentorship for rewarding excellence and for its commitment to promoting corporate leadership and structured mentorship through its specialized curriculum and recognition programmes.

They expressed confidence that the Fellowship would further inspire Hon. Essien to sustain his legacy of service, integrity, and visionary leadership.

WHO IS AFRAID OF SENATOR GODSWILL AKPABIO?
By Idorenyin Aquaisua
It is noticed that shortly after the Senate on March 12, 2024, invoked its relevant standing rules to suspend Senator Abdul Ningi for three months for making a baseless claim that the 2024 budget was padded with N3 trillion, the spate of orchestrated attack on the person of the President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio, has intensified.
On a cursory look, it could appear as both those spoiling for ‘war’ against Akpabio and their allies calling for his head were patriotic entities who are genuinely concerned about preserving key democratic values to promote the wellbeing of the nation. But, a more critical evaluation of the situation and the facts in contention would rather indicate that the reasons for the volatile attack are more political than rational. Accordingly, the calls and demands made by these contending interests are somewhat misguided, spiteful, needless and absurd.
Whether it is to discuss Ningi’s defense on the floor of the Senate that he was misquoted or the inherent iambic details of the discordant 2024 budget padding lyrics, and the attendant demand by Ningi’s Party, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, that Senator Akpabio should resign to allow for investigation of his engagements in the 2024 Budget making process, etc., the central issue in the narrative is the claim that the 2024 budget was padded to the tune of over 3.7 trillion naira.
Thus, it is pertinent to ask: what was the value of President Tinubu’s budget proposal to the National Assembly? How much did the National Assembly passed as the 2024 budget and why?
Records have shown that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu personally presented the 2024 Appropriation Bill to the Joint Session of the National Assembly on Wednesday, November 29, 2023. In his speech before presenting the budget proposal, President Tinubu declared: ‘an aggregate expenditure of 27.5 trillion naira is proposed for the federal government in 2024, of which non-debt recurrent expenditure is 9.92trillion naira while debt service is projected to be 8.25 trillion naira and capital expenditure is 8.7 trillion Naira”
And, following the conclusion of legislative assignments on the Budget by the various Standing Committees of both the Senate and House of Representatives, the Chairman of the Senate Appropriation Committee, Senator Adeola Olamilekan while presenting the harmonized report at plenary explained that in consideration of genuine requests for additional funding for underfunded items in the budget of ministries, departments and Agencies (MDAs) of the federal government the budget has increased by 1.2trillion naira: from 27.5 trillion naira to 28.7 trillion naira.
Satisfied with the process, the National Assembly, at plenary passed the 2024 Budget of 28.7 trillion naira and same was assented to by President Tinubu on Monday, January 1, 2024.
Facts available publicly further indicate that the claim that 3.7 trillion naira in the 2024 budget is not attached to cost items is both factually incorrect and a misleading perspective to the budget padding narrative.
It is established that the ‘contested’ 3.7trillion naira is the budget for the Judiciary, National Assembly, INEC, TETFUND, North East Development Commission (NEDC), Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) and Government Owned Enterprise (GOE). And, customarily, as evidenced in previous years budgets, the breakdown of the budget details of these agencies are not captured in the budget document because they are statutory agencies of government whose budgets are on the first line charge.
Is it not ridiculous that a ranking Senator in the mould of Senator Ningi, could not properly understand this reality, and inexcusable that he could not correctly delineate these facts?
It goes without the saying that budget padding is a highly objectionable and consequential national economic malady that should neither be supported nor dignified with sectional sentiments by individuals or blind partisan affinity by any political party.
Thus, genuine calls for thorough investigation of the alleged budget padding saga should be properly examined and, where there are merits, conducted by relevant statutory agencies meticulously, publicly and transparently to strengthen public confidence in the legislature.
Also, if the intent is to deepen democratic engagements and actions, those aggrieved by the Senate’s suspension of Senator Ningi could challenge the constitutionality of the senate’s action at the appropriate court rather than resort to misleading comments and inciting activities ostensibly designed to advance sectional agenda and achieve selfish political goals.
For many proverbial reasons, the call for Akpabio’s resignation by the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, is a boring display of showy opposition politics at a time that constructive synergy is highly demanded to address the besetting hash economic challenges facing the country.
If there is any meat in the budget padding narrative, the failure by the PDP, as a major opposition party, to reprimand its members who are serving as chairmen and members of the various standing committees and sub-committees of both the Senate and the House of Representatives that scrutinized the budget is an objectionable demonstration of the endemic political hypocrisy that has undermined functional democracy in Nigeria and by extension meaningful national economic development.
More so, since legislative assignment on preparing a national budget is a whole lot of structured engagements and processes by various committees and sub-committees including harmonization of reports and the concurrence by both the House of Representatives and the Senate, it becomes curious to ask why other Senators, The Speaker and Members of the House of Representatives should be absorbed of blame if there is anything like budget padding as alleged?
Why single out Senator Akpabio for crucifixion?
Are the cocktails behind the alleged budget padding agenda on a sectional political vendetta or a battle of political attrition or what?
Who is afraid of Distinguished Senator Godswill Akpabio as the President of the Senate of the Federal Republic of Nigeria?
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Senator Akpan pays N3.1m Scholarship to 84 undergraduates

The immediate past Senator representing Akwa Ibom North East Senatorial District of Akwa Ibom State, Senator Bassey Albert Akpan has disbursed N3.1 million for 84 remaining of the 481 beneficiaries of his scholarship scheme for undergraduate students in tertiary institutions.

Speaking through the Head of the Scholarship Management Team, Dr Unyime Okon, Senator Akpan disclosed that the N3,1million is for the payment of second-semester’s tuition fees and stipend for the beneficiaries covering the 2021/2022 academic session.

He noted that about 70 per cent of the benefiting students are from the Medicine and Surgery of the Faculty of Basic Medical Studies, Pharmacy, and Faculty of Engineering of the University of Uyo while others are from the University of Calabar; Federal University of Technology, Owerri; University of Nigeria, Nsukka; Akwa Ibom State University and Akwa Ibom State Polytechnic, Ikot Osurua.

“It will interest you to know that 47 of the 84 current beneficiaries are expected to graduate by the end of the current semester, with the remaining 37 students to complete their respective programme by the end of the 2022/2023 academic session,” he stated.

The Senator Bassey Albert scholarship scheme launched in January 2016 to assist indigent students to achieve their educational aspirations in the universities and other tertiary institutions in the country has so far disbursed over N150 million.

According to Dr Okon, a total of 41 beneficiaries have graduated with first-class honours and over 300 with second-class upper-division honours in different fields of endeavour.

OBA PETITIONS CJN ON THREATS TO LIVES
* Requests Disbandment or Relocation of Tribunal to Abuja.
Senator Bassey Akpan, the governorship candidate of the Young Progressives Party (YPP) in the last election, has petitioned the Chief Justice of Nigeria and the President of the Court of Appeal, to relocate the Governorship Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Uyo to Abuja, following threats to his life, those of lawyers as well as his witnesses.
Senator Akpan, popularly known as OBA is before the tribunal as a petitioner in EPT/ AKW/GOV/01/2023, between him & Anor. V. INEC & 2 Ors., and 4th Respondent in Mr Akanimo A. Udofia & Anor. V. INEC & 4 Ors.
In the petition, a copy of which was also sent to the Chairman of the tribunal sitting in Uyo, OBA’s lead counsel, Ahmed Raji SAN, said the request for relocation was compelled by a number of “unsavoury life-threatening” experiences which his client, the lawyers and witnesses have gone through, particularly after the proceedings of 20th June 2023.
The petitioner said: “It is very clear to us that our lives are no longer safe in Akwa Ibom State. This has completely eroded the possibility of having a just, safe and fair trial in Uyo”. He also suggested that the tribunal should be disbanded.
He specifically blamed the June 20, 2023 attack by a combined team of police and army on Umo Eno, the current Governor of Akwa Ibom State, who is a party the Petitions above.
He recalled to their Lordships that initially, the petitioner had tried persuading Mr Daniel Akpan (a staff of the University of Uyo) to testify “but he repeatedly declined, on the ground that his life was under threat by some unknown persons, who claimed he ought not to have certified the academic records of Eno Umo Bassey-the Governor Akwa Ibom State. The life threats were so much, that he had to move his family from Uyo”.
“On this premise, the Petitioners were compelled to have sub poena served on him. He was invited to testify in Court and give evidence.