By Bassey Nkponam
ORON
The Akwa Ibom governor has restated his commitment to keep Akwa Ibom State as one indivisible whole with a call on royal fathers to cooperate with the state government to institute peace and unity as expected of the traditional institution.
Pastor Umo Eno bared his mind, Sunday, at the thanksgiving service in honour of the paramount ruler of Udung Uko and chairman, Supreme Council of Akwa Ibom Traditional Rulers, Odidem Bassey Etim Edet, at the Global Evangelical and Missionary Church of All Nations, Oron.
Ascribing the custody of all power to God and right to apportion to men as He wishes, Eno commended Edet for acknowledging God’s hand in his being as well as need for grace to accomplish the onerous task placed on his shoulder as he congratulated the royal father and joined him to celebrate the goodness and favours of God through his life’s journey.
He said his attendance at the event underscored the importance he accords the traditional institution in the state, enjoining the royal fathers to uphold their honour and use their offices to maintain the peace and unity of the state, rather than drag the image of the revered institution to disrepute by allowing themselves to be fronted as agents of divisiveness.
“We, the politicians, should be the one making trouble while you settle and unite us. But if you are the ones making the trouble, who will reconcile you? I see a reverse thing here and so I would like to appeal to our fathers; please, in the name of God Almighty to let peace reign. Whatever the problem is, we can sit down and address them.
“The state is one. Every Akwa Ibom man, whether Oron, Annang or Ibibio, we are one. Who are you going to fight? Probably you are married to an Ibibio woman or you are married to an Annang man or you have grandchildren there. We have come very far. We must not allow the politicians to divide this state along ethnic lines”, the governor admonished.
He explained that though his administration had no hand in the lingering discontent in the traditional institution, he was determined to solve them as part of his efforts to harmonize all fabrics of the state, stressing the need for the cooperation of all concerned parties.
“This particular problem, I didn’t create it. We must understand that it is the traditional rulers that created this problem. I am here to work with you to ensure that we have an amicable solution, but we won’t do it by confrontation.”
The celebrator, Edet, expressed gratitude to God for his life, family, community, the state and for his appointment as the pioneer chairman of Akwa Ibom State Supreme Council of Traditional Rulers while also appreciating Governor Eno and his entourage, president-general of Supreme Council of Traditional Rulers, Ntenyin Solomon Etuk, and all his entourage of paramount rulers, friends and well wishers for joining him at the event.
He appealed to members of the traditional institution to come together to build the state and embrace peaceful means of resolving issues rather than affront that tends to undermined government.
Ministering on the topic, The Four Expressions and the Power of Thanksgiving, the presiding bishop of the church, Bishop Kaiso Okpo, listed the four expressions as thank you, I’m sorry, please, and God bless you; saying that a grateful person must have the four major expressions on their lips as the quartet portray peace, love and gratitude and should be habitually cultivated by Christians.
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