Hon. Uduak Eyo Akiba, is a former Chief Whip of the Cross River State House of Assembly. She represented Calabar Municipality State constituency for two consecutive terms. Her son is currently embroiled in an armed robbery incident.
The new anti crime security task force, “Operation Akpakwu” that Governor Ayade launched is reported to have engaged six robbery suspects in Calabar recently. Some of the robbers were reportedly killed in the encounter while others were arrested including Hon. Uduak Akiba’s son. The public is raising alarm that the former Chief Whip is making moves to get her son off the hook without allowing thorough investigation by the Police.
But let me take our minds a little backward. In the nine years that CrossRiverWatch has been reporting Cross River State, and in my brief interaction with Hon. Akiba, she fits into the perfect definition of a “thug”. I am not using that word abusively. I am using it advisedly, if you check the dictionary meaning.
It will be recalled that, early in her first tenure as member of the State House of Assembly, Hon. Uduak Akiba was reported in the media to have publicly engaged in a brawl, onboard a Calabar bound flight from Abuja, with fellow lawmaker, Dr. Pauline Ekuri, whom she once served as Personal Assistant, over issues of seniority and respect.
In 2013, again Hon. Uduak Akiba, lost her cool, assaulted and slapped a Police Corporal, Irene Ani, who was on duty at the State House of Assembly, for preventing Hon. Akiba’s son from accessing the Assembly car park with a chartered cab. This same son that is now allegedly involved in robbery.
Corporal Irene was under directive from the leadership of the House of Assembly not to allow any other car to park at the car park. When Akiba’s son arrived in a cab and insisted on driving in, the Police stopped him, he alighted from the cab called the mum on the phone. The mum came down and flared up, asking who gave Corporal Irene such directive.
“When the Police woman tried to explain the directive, Hon. Akiba punched and slapped her several times on the face and dragged her by the neck, warning the Officer to respect her as a senior legislator who has the same rights and privileges like any of her colleagues.
“The law maker’s irrational and violent behaviour attracted attention of other Policemen and staffers. Many other legislative officers were unhappy and felt embarrassed by the lawmaker’s attitude”. An eye witness told CrossRiverWatch in 2013.
Matter-of-factly, for writing about her, Hon. Akiba threatened in 2013 to deal with all of us in CrossRiverWatch until we “regret”. She promised she was going to shut down our website and ensure we suffer for “trying to spoil my son’s name and my personal reputation.”
Now is the time for the Police to tell us, after their investigation, whether Hon. Akiba’s son had a name to spoil or not and she must also know, if she hasn’t already, that all our eyes, noses and ears are in this particular robbery matter already and she should allow the Police to do their work and charge those who have been terrorising Calabar to court.
The reality that is dawning on her right now is that, when you continue to defend a child’s wrong doing, when that child becomes an adult, you will also run around to bring that adult out of crime. Maybe that is also because snake no dey born lizard. Like mother, like son. The seed of the apple tree doesn’t fall far from the tree.
Yours sincerely,
Citizen Agba Jalingo.
Agba Jalingo is the Editor-In-Chief of CrossRiverWatch and writes from Lagos State.
NB: Opinions expressed in this article are solely attributable to the author, Agba Jalingo and do not in anyway represent the opinion of CrossRiverWatch or any other organization the author works for/with.
Leave feedback about this