Akwa Ibom Governor Faces Scrutiny Over Assembly Rehabilitation, Tourism Projects

Akwa Ibom's Assembly Complex has remained locked for nine months with little visible work, even as the state pushes ahead with tourism-related projects carrying a combined N248.83 billion budget. For nine months, the Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly Complex has remained mostly idle after lawmakers and staff vacated the premises for a rehabilitation project that has had little progress despite billions of naira allocated. But a few metres away, construction workers are busy on three hospitality projects that the state government is funding with a combined budgetary provision of N248.83 billion. The contrasting scenes were observed by PREMIUM TIMES on 7 August during a visit to the assembly complex and the adjoining Ibom International Hotel, International Convention Centre and At the assembly complex, there was no construction activity. The mobile crane and concrete mixer that PREMIUM TIMES saw during an earlier visit in June were still on the premises, but no workers were operating them. Keep up with the latest headlines on WhatsApp | LinkedIn The complex remains substantially in the same condition as reported by PREMIUM TIMES in June, when the newspaper found scant evidence of substantial work more than seven months after the lawmakers vacated the premises. The contrast is conspicuous because the assembly rehabilitation is not an abandoned project for which no money has been budgeted. Budget documents reviewed by PREMIUM TIMES show that the state government provided N2.95 billion for the project in its revised 2025 budget and a further N12.52 billion in the 2026 budget , bringing the total allocation for the rehabilitation and remodelling of the complex to N15.47 billion. Nine months, little visible progress Governor Umo Eno first publicly expressed concern about the condition of the assembly complex on 1 July 2024 during a visit, promising to ensure its rehabilitation. The rehabilitation eventually moved from promise to implementation after over a year. In a circular dated 24 October 2025, the Clerk of the House, NsikakAbasi Orok, directed lawmakers, staff, and other occupants to vacate the complex ahead of the commencement of rehabilitation on 27 October. Before the relocation, representatives of the contractor met with members of the House Services Committee to discuss the project. According to reports of that meeting reviewed by PREMIUM TIMES, the contractor's representative, Ochemba Lee, described the project as a comprehensive overhaul and said the contractor had already been mobilised and equipment deployed to the site. He gave a six-month completion timeline - that deadline expired in April 2026. Yet, over three months after the deadline, the work remains unfinished, and the lawmakers continue to conduct plenary sessions at the Government House. PREMIUM TIMES' latest visit found the section of the complex where the roof had been removed still exposed to the elements. The walls of the roofless section are now showing effects of exposure to the vagaries of weather. The football field within the assembly premises, which should ordinarily form part of the environment of a functioning legislature, was being used for a football match by some youth when our reporter visited the place. PREMIUM TIMES has also observed in recent weeks that the field is increasingly being used for football training and matches. Security personnel were present within the premises, but no construction workers were seen. When PREMIUM TIMES asked one of the security personnel whether any construction work had taken place between the newspaper's June visit and 7 August, he responded in Pidgin English: "Roads weh don spoil finish across the state, dem never even fix them, na House of Assembly them wan complete? Them no do any single work for here o. Everything here na status quo ante bullum." This newspaper could not independently verify the security official's account, but a close inspection of the premises and the assembly structures revealed no add