By UduakAbàsi Ikpat
Democracy thrives not merely on the ritual of elections, but on the daily conduct of those entrusted with power. True leadership, in its purest form, is measured by accountability, transparency, and a willingness to remain answerable to the people at all times. In Akwa Ibom State, recent events within the last 72 hours have once again brought these democratic ideals into sharp focus, revealing an administration that understands governance as a sacred trust rather than a personal privilege.
Democracy, when stripped of its ceremonial robes, is a demanding enterprise. It asks questions that make leaders uncomfortable and insists on answers that cannot be hidden behind protocol. In this demanding space, the conduct of Gov Umo Eno offers a useful study in how power can be exercised without arrogance and authority deployed without distance from the people. There is a quiet confidence that comes with leaders who do not fear public scrutiny. They open the doors, turn on the lights, and invite the people to look around them. This posture is not accidental, it is born of an understanding that legitimacy in a democracy is sustained not by force of office, but by the force of truth and performance.
Accountability, in this sense, is not as a mere favour done to citizens. It is a debt owed to them. When governance is placed under public examination, it elevates both the ruler and the ruled, creating a shared responsibility for progress and their failures alike.
It is within this moral framework that the recent ministerial engagements must be understood as directed by Governor Umo Eno to his cabinet members. Rather than retreating into silence or an isolated selective communication, the government chose exposure. As policies, projects, and projections will be laid bare, not as means of propaganda, but working documents open to scrutinization. This culture of openness signals a departure from governance as mystery. It replaces whispers with explanations and rumours with records. In doing so, Governor Eno is able to restore a measure of dignity to public discourse, reminding citizens that governance is their business, and not an exclusive club for the elites alone.
The value of such engagements lies not only in what is said, but in what is equally implied. As the state government submits itself to public review. It is one that we can believe that it can defend its choices with facts, not excuses. And also send a clear message to those in public office that performance is the only acceptable language. Beyond the immediate conversations, the broader implication is the institutionalisation of accountability. When openness becomes routine, it ceases to be an event and evolves into a culture. This is how democratic habits are formed and sustained over time.
Yet democracy is not sustained by procedures alone. It must also carry a human face. Power that cannot feel is power that eventually loses its moral compass. This is where leadership must descend from policy rooms to the emotional terrain of shared sacrifice. That too the governor had showcased prominently as his marked the Armed Forces Remembrance Day.
In acknowledging sacrifice and the public service of our gallant fallen heroes, governance as a whole momentarily pauses its calculations and confronts the human cost of national survival. It is in these moments that leadership reveals whether it understands duty beyond statistics. The response went beyond solemn words. And moved into deliberate actions designed to restore dignity and stability to those left behind.
This shift from symbolic gestures to structured empowerment reflected by Governor Eno to the widowed wives and families from Akwa Ibom State axis of the fallen heroes of Nigeria’s military is an example of social responsibility.
Such actions also speak volume of the governor to the larger issue of social cohesion. A society that honours sacrifice with justice strengthens its moral fabric. It reassures her citizens that service will not be rewarded with abandonment and that the state forever remembers its own.
From this point, it’s not also forgotten that in Akwa Ibom State under the governor’s visionary leadership, it’s significant that governance naturally returns to the soil of everyday life, where democracy is most tangibly experienced. The grassroots, it is where policies either breathe or suffocate the people. It is where distance between leader and citizen must be made shortest.
The ongoing focus on strengthening local governance by Governor Umo Eno through the construction of local government chairmen’s lodges has reflected an appreciation of this reality. When local authority is inevitably present, accessible, and grounded, communities respond with trust and cooperation. And development then becomes a shared enterprise rather than an imposed agenda that’s sometimes unreality.
Although, these ongoing projects by the state government in the local government areas are often misunderstood as mere structures. In truth, they are symbols of presence and commitment. They say to the people that governance has not forgotten them, that power has not relocated permanently to distant centres.
Consistency is the quiet virtue of credibility. When promises are followed by action, cynicism loses its footing. Over time, trust replaces suspicion, and governance regains its moral weight. Equally important is the principle of balance. Development that favours some while neglecting others eventually fractures unity. But a deliberate spread of projects across the state does send a corrective signal that progress is not a privilege reserved for a few.
However, with all these taken together, these actions reveal a pattern rather than isolated gestures. Transparency, empathy, grassroots presence, and human development form a coherent governance philosophy. Each element reinforces the other, creating balance. And the balance is the difference between noise and progress.
It is what separates performative governance from purposeful leadership then allows policies to speak through outcomes rather than announcements.
In the last 72 hours, what has been on display in Akwa Ibom State indeed is not haste, but intent. The steady rhythm of a government aware of its responsibilities and conscious of its place in history. There is no rush to impress, but only a determination to deliver credibly.
As Governor Umo Eno’s leadership does not in whichever way claim perfection. Instead, it invites assessment, correction, and improvement. This openness to evaluation is itself a democratic virtue, one often missing in public life. The true test of democracy is not the absence of criticism, but the willingness to confront it honestly as showcased by the governor. When leaders listen, governance evolves. When they refuse, it decays steadily.
As citizens in Akwa Ibom observe these recent developments, they are invited to look beyond the headlines and examine the underlying principles. What matters is not the moment, but the direction it does confirms. In x-raying these achievements, one sees an administration seeking to align power with purpose. The emphasis is not on dominance, but on duty, not on spectacle, but on substance alone.
Akwa Ibom in these last 72 hours with Governor Umo Eno at the helm of affairs as Chief Executive has offered more than a record of laudable achievements. It has also offered a strong reaffirmation of what is possible when power remembers who it serves and why it actually exists.
