Newsfront Online …Telling the Public as it is
It no more news that Rt. Hon. Barr. Onofiok Akpan Luke is the speaker of the Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly. Yes, who is he? Onofiok is a great grandchild of “one of the disciples of Jesus Christ- saint Luke” So, he is what he is now, not by chance but at the fullness of time.
Going by his previous experience of legislative business, Onofiok has what it takes to be the speaker of the Akwa Ibom House of Assembly (AKHA). That is, majority of the members drawn from the twenty five state constituencies to represent the interest of the people of the thirty one local government areas unanimously had chosen him as their speaker and leader of all legislative affairs in the House especially on matters of interest for the state and her people not only for Nsit Ubium his state constituency and indeed, his local government of origin but for the entire state.
Consequently, the choice of Rt. Hon Onofiok Luke is not new and never out of place to make members and non-members to make an issue out of the exercise by way of what a one-time Vice Chancellor of the University of Calabar, Professor Ayandele described the defunct Cross River State, which Akwa Ibom was part of as ‘an atomistic society always at war with itself’. In short, the members of the sixth Assembly had accepted Rt. Hon Onofiok Luke as their speaker with alacrity.
This therefore means that majority of the honourable members had echoed “yes” to proclaim Onofiok as their speaker in this era which is and was meant to be so. Before now, it could not be so because it was not yet time. Now that his ascension to greatness is at the fullness of time, there should be no bickering in and outside the House. It is Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly and not Amateur nor Kiddies nor Comedy House where business could be done differently from what obtains in other statutory Houses of Assembly across the globe afterall, the issue that led to the circumstance that saw Onofiok on the speaker’s seat was not caused by him which could have given the people cause for alarm and wrangling in the honourable House. The issue at stake calls for no claim nor counter claims’ being that what led to his emergence was a divine moment when the forgotten stone was needed to be made as a corner stone and the right thing was done at the right time.
Consequent upon this, no group or society has right to counter what had been constitutionally done in order not to distract the attention of the members elected to speak for the people and not for the people to speak for them. Moreso, the speaking speaker should be allowed to speak, manage and lead the House well.
In amateur dramatics, twenty or more speakers could be recognized at a time through ‘points of order’ or ‘information’ even when an incumbent is or was jailed, confirmed dead, sacked by a court of law, docked and discharged in any civil or criminal offence because nobody is above the law and in the event of any of such, the member and his cohort must work to ensure that he or she gets back to his or her former position which is never permanent in any legislative setting. If such in every normal setting had ever happened nobody would be able to separate the lawful from unlawful, the dead from the living and the good from the bad.
Akwa-Abasi Ibom State is blessed for every Akwa Ibomite not for a single individual, group or society. People should not try to create precedence or cause confusion and also remember that the last civil war started from the fracas and confusion in the then Western House of Assembly. That was that by then and should not be allowed to resurface anywhere in the country in this era.
Onofiok Akpan Luke, the Speaker of AKHA is an Akwa Ibomite and Akwa Ibom House of Assembly belongs to every Akwa Ibomite and not an individual, group or party property to make it a right for Mr. so so or so so group by way of any political manipulation through zoning or what have you and make themselves demigods while others remain as mug wimp.
Long live Rt. Hon. Onofiok Luke
Long live Akwa Ibom State
Long live AKHA.
