Sen. Ekong Sampson: Having Eyes on What Matters Most for Constituents

0
65

Sen. Ekong Sampson: Having Eyes on What Matters Most for Constituents

By Paulinus Nnah

The stretch of October 18, 19, 21, and 23, 2024 presented very busy schedules for the home office of the Senator representing Akwa Ibom South Senatorial District in the National Assembly, Distinguished Senator Ekong Sampson.

By God’s grace, yours truly had just played significant media coverage roles in the holistic organization of the Capacity Building and Sensitization in Mining Business on Friday, October 18, and Training and Advocacy for Youths and Women in Mining tune-up programmes on Saturday, October 19 put up in Eket for the Senator’s teeming constituents.

On Monday, October 21, I was a participant in yet another of Senator Sampson’s crucial instruction programme, the Training of Youths and Women in ICT and Effective Media Communication in Akwa Ibom South Senatorial District that was held at Watbridge Hotels in Uyo. At the climax of the event, I got wind of a project site inspection to be conducted by Senator Ekong Sampson’s Constituency Projects Assessment and Implementation Committee, where I was to take up my usual news capturing act.

On Wednesday afternoon of October 23, led by the Committee Chairman, Engr. Uwem Akpan, and accompanied by the Secretary, Engr. Ekaette Inyang, and Member, Barr. Anne Eyo, we set out for the host community in Ekeya community, Okobo LGA, one among the twelve LGAs that constitute Senator Sampson’s Eket Senatorial District.

With the near-zero vehicular traffic situation and well-tarred route that we took, the trip was everything smooth and normal. Soon we were approaching the point where Ufok Esuk road was bisected by a yawning gully, the root cause said to be an inexpertly constructed drainage system which was supposed to control erosion and channel water from one side of the road into an abyssal ravine on the other side.

The din of bulldozer and loader in full operational gear greeted our ears as we arrived the project site, and we climbed down to the jubilant mood written all over the faces of the people of the community. A chieftain in the community, Chief (Hon.) Efefiong Antigha, was foremost among the elated community members who could not hide their excitement over what they termed as the Senator’s political will to restore the socio-economic life of the people that had been terribly hampered by the gully erosion attack for over two decades now!

Chief Antigha, an erstwhile Member representing Okobo State Constituency in the Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly (2011-2015) recalled how the entire community was devastated by the gully erosion, while taking time to eulogise Senator Sampson “for being the one who has chosen to listen to the long-time cry of the people of Okobo, and for collaborating with the relevant government agency to bring a permanent solution to the erosion menace in this community and the adjoining ones.”

Stepping aside to take comments and share the people’s plights with the common folks regarding what life has been like over the years for market women, farmers and school children who must have been forced to take very long routes as emergency detour to and from their destinations since the devastation in the area, one could easily feel into their grateful hearts toward Senator Ekong Sampson for taking a bold step to restoring their lost hope.

From this, my appreciative mind was taken to Senator Ekong Sampson’s various value-driven Bills and projects meant to spread across the Dictrict’s three federal constituencies of Eket, Ikot Abasi and Oron, viz: Bills for legal backing for the establishment of Federal University of Technology in Ikot Abasi, to establish Federal Medical Centre in Akwa Ibom South, to establish Federal University of Medical Sciences in Eket, and also to establish the Maritime University in Oron; including his provision of electric power in Okon, Eket LGA.

For me, it only takes a representative who has his eyes on critical Bills and projects that matter most in the life of his constituents for such a parliamentarian to go for them, just as the Distinguished Senator Ekong Sampson has moved in to tackle Ekeya erosion gully situation for good, added to his sponsorship of aforementioned Bills and carrying out of the above said projects.

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here