Eno explains his move from PDP to APC

Akwa Ibom State Governor, Umo Eno, sees himself as a political leader. He left the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the All Progressives Congress (APC) before many of his colleagues who later followed him.

Eno shared his views in an interview with TVC on Friday. He talked about the backlash he faced after leaving the PDP and why he made that choice.

The governor said he made this decision out of necessity. He believes there is nothing wrong with joining a party that can provide funds for the state.

"You can’t be hungry all the time. Why don’t you reject it? The man has done well. Funds are coming. Allocations are coming. And we’re able to have funds to get to work for our people. And so I had to. It was a decision well thought out," he said.

Eno also mentioned that the presence of Senate President Godswill Akpabio, who is also from Akwa Ibom, influenced his choice. He felt that being in different parties could lead to conflicts over political control in the state.

"The Senate president is from Akwa Ibom. I don’t see how we would have maintained the peace trajectory we are talking about with me in another party and the Senate president in another party. The soul of the state is what everybody will be fighting for," he said.

When discussing his departure from the PDP, Eno said he sensed that the party would not support his re-election. Many dismissed his concerns as premature.

"I did not see through how the way my party then, the PDP, was going, who will endorse my form for a second term. And people said no, it’s too early to judge. But it’s one of the instincts of leadership, your ability to see the future where others can’t see," he said.

Eno pointed out that his prediction has come true. Many governors who were elected under the PDP have also switched to the APC.

"Today, you can see who is going to endorse these forms. On which platform will I have run? Almost every serving governor, even second-term governors, have now left the party. Then you expect a first-term governor… So why did they leave? The same people who said I was too quick, I shouldn’t have done that, almost all of them have left. Some of them are with me now in the APC," he said.

The governor considers himself a pioneer among his peers who joined the ruling party later.

"I said to them, I came like John the Baptist to prepare the way for you," he said.

Eno emphasized that true leadership is judged over time. He believes recent political events have proved him right.

"A leader’s judgement call must be such that over time, people will know if you’re truly a leader or not. What has happened today in this country should vindicate some of us.

"And people should be able to be humble enough to say we’re sorry, we were wrong, you were right. But human character, sometimes it’s difficult to apologise," he said.

He challenged critics to think about how many of the governors who criticized his defection still remain in the PDP.

"The truth is glaring. Who is staying? Who among those governors are there now?" he said.

The governor said peace is his top priority. He believes no price is too high to keep Akwa Ibom stable.

"For me, you must know the trajectory you want to take your people. First, there is no price I cannot pay for peace in this state. No price. Because we only know when trouble starts. We don’t know how it’s going to end," he said.

Eno warned that unresolved issues could lead to bigger problems, comparing it to unrest seen in other parts of the country.

"Check everything that has happened in this country, all the trouble. Sometimes those troubles were imported. People brought them, but now they can’t control those things.

"It’s like a case of a man who stands and throws a stone into a market square. You don’t know who the stone is going to hit," he said.

He believes unity in the state makes it harder for outside forces to create chaos. He gave an example of his good working relationship with Akpabio.

"If you don’t have support from within, the external forces will not gain too much access. Between me and the Senate president, we’re good. I go to him, I check things with him.

"There’s never been a tension. He’s in Abuja doing his work; I’m in Uyo doing my work. Anything he can see up there that will favour the state, he brings it to the table, and anything I can see down here, I put it on the table too," he said.

On his relationship with past governors, Eno said he respects all his predecessors, even when they criticize him.

"Give respect to these people. They’ve been here. He’s been a governor. I give respect to all past governors, all of them, without an exception. Nobody can say I’ve ever insulted one of them. If they say things I don’t like, I simply move away," he said.

The governor compared his way of dealing with criticism to a child who quietly goes to their room after being scolded by a parent. He sees his calmness as a result of his upbringing, not a political move.

"Like a young child whose daddy was spanked, and you go and cry in the bedroom. You don’t stay there to reply your dad. This is about culture. It’s about upbringing. It’s about your ability to manage situations," he said.