Lagos — "There is a tide in the affairs of men which, taken at the flood, leads on to fortune; omitted, all the voyage of their life is bound in shallows and in miseries." (William Shakespeare).

Chief Godswill Obot Akpabio was elected governor of Awka Ibom, two and a half years ago, and this has led to very good fortune for the entire state. Akpabio has become a metaphor for missionary passion, administrative excellence and people-centred leadership. Nnamdi Azikiwe University , Awka, Anambra State, seems to agree and will thus crown Akpabio with an honorary Doctor of Public Administration and Strategy degree tomorrow. Born on December 9, 1962, to Chief Obot Akpabio and Madam Lucy Obot Akpabio (nee Inyang Eto) of Ukana Ikot Ntuen in Essien Udim Local Government Area, Akpabio lost his father early in life and was raised by his mother, who painstakingly inculcated in him the values of hardwork, discipline and honesty. Primary education at Methodist Primary School, Ukana and secondary education at the prestigious Federal Government College (FGC), Port Harcourt, Rivers State, earned him the West African School Certificate/General Certificate of Education at Ordinary and Advanced Levels. He proceeded to the University of Calabar, where he obtained a Bachelor of Law (LL.B) degree. After a year at the Nigerian Law School, he was called to the Nigerian bar. "Destiny prepared Akpabio for leadership from early childhood. At FGC, Port Harcourt, a microcosm of the Nigerian society with students from all over Nigeria, he was appointed the General Senior Prefect.

At the University of Calabar (a federal university with true federal character in its student population), his charisma endeared him to the students and he was elected the Speaker of the Students' Parliament," said the Commissioner for Information, Aniekan Umanah. Akpabio worked briefly as a teacher and was an associate partner with Paul Usoro and Co., Lagos, a leading law firm in the country. His experience as a teacher exposed him to the educational crises in our society and his legal practice gave him insight into the need for justice administration in Nigeria. By 2002, Akpabio had served as the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of EMIS Telecoms Limited, a leading privately-owned fixed wireless company in Lagos. He helped in developing the current crop of management in the telecom industry. He was elected the National Publicity Secretary of the Association of Telecom Companies in Nigeria (ATCOM) while he was still the Company Secretary of EMIS Telecoms.

In 2002, Akpabio was appointed the Commissioner for Petroleum and Natural Resources in Akwa Ibom State. He left his stamp of efficiency in this ministry as an astute administrator and was subsequently re-deployed to the Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs and then to the Ministry of Lands and Housing, Uyo. In the Ministry of Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, he supervised the 31 Local Government Councils and traditional institutions across Akwa Ibom State. His invaluable conflict management skills came to the fore and by always upholding truth in all he did, he earned the respect of local government administrators and traditional rulers. As a commissioner, Chief Akpabio related with people on the basis of their character and not where they came from. Completely detribalized, he is imbued with a passion for excellence and driven by a sense of mission and purpose. All these attributes, coupled with his charisma put him in a vantage position and led to his landslide victory in the April 14, 2007 Governorship election".

The Italians have a proverb which states that "the right man comes at the right season." Akwa Ibom is endowed with tremendous natural and human resources. The right man was sought to fulfil the promises which define the state as the " Land of Promise " and to give a sense of fulfilment to the people. Within two and a half years of the most eventful administration in the state's history, the entire state has become one big construction site. In his first year in office, he commissioned more than 250 projects, and is currently commissioning more than 557 projects. More than 480 villages have benefited from electrification projects and have been linked to the national grid. More than 140 rural communities now have mini water works. 400 brand new taxis and 40 brand new 'City Bus Scheme' buses enable citizens too travel in comfort, safety and style - the hallmark of the new, improved Akwa Ibom. One of the most revolutionary steps of this youthful governor is his intervention and development of federal infrastructure.

So far, his administration has spent about N81 billion on the tarring/rehabilitation of over 200km of federal roads (including three roads in the University of Uyo, a federal institution and the premises of the Nigerian Television Authority, Uyo). Through his administration's financial assistance, University of Uyo 's 28 academic courses have been accredited by the National Universities Commission (NUC). His government has built a Dialysis Treatment Centre at University of Uyo Teaching Hospital (a federal institution) and equipped it with 17 dialysis machines and is building a paediatric ward at the same hospital. Academic activities commenced in the Akwa Ibom State University in September 2009. The university will offer courses designed to meet the needs of a developing country like Nigeria, including courses in Ocean Science and Technology, not offered in any other Nigerian university. Perhaps, the most widely-acclaimed and celebrated policy of this lawyer and gentleman is his free, compulsory, qualitative education program from primary to senior secondary school levels. The government has abolished all kinds of fees and is paying subventions to secondary school principals at the rate of N300 a student per term and to primary school headmasters at N100 a pupil per term. This costs the government N7 billion annually, but Akpabio believes that no price is too high to pay for educating the next generation. His determination to fight militancy with education is thus instructive. In developing the road network, 168 urban roads are under construction across the state. An international airport with maintenance facilities will commence operations on November 26, 2009. A one-stop hospitality complex, the Tropicana Entertainment Centre, with a mini-Disneyland, galleria, shopping mall, international convention centre, 16 storey five-star hotel complex with 250 rooms and a cinema hall is being constructed in Uyo.

The Akpabio administration is also building a digitalised modern library and four new general hospitals. The Independent Power Plant (IPP) at Ikot Abasi (a project initiated by the past administration) has been completed, and a 20-year-contract has been signed with Nigerian Gas Company to supply gas for uninterrupted electric power. No sector of the economy has escaped this government's patriotic attention. Akpabio has countless feathers to his cap. He is the recipient of over 30 chieftaincy titles from all over Nigeria. These include the Iberedem Ibibio, Nta Nta Offiong Annang, Atta of Eket and the Unwana Oron, to mention a few. Like a city set on a hill, Godswill's ingenuity and patriotism have received acclaim from far and near. He holds the highest national honour of Niger Republic, the "Gold Humanitarian Services Award," conferred on him by the country's Ambassador to Nigeria, His Excellency Alhaji Moussa Ibrahim. The ambassador also acknowledged the 'Digital Governor's, giant strides in development, at the Forum of Ambassadors in Nigeria . Akpabio has been honoured as the "2008 Most Outstanding Governor in Nigeria (South South)". The organisers said the award was in appreciation of his developmental strides and described the free education program as unprecedented in the region.

His Excellency also bagged the "Nehemiah Award" of the African Church of Nigeria . The Church described the massive infrastructural development of Akwa Ibom State as "unequalled in the country." He was earlier honoured as the "Youth Ambassador of Nigeria " by the National Youth Council of Nigeria. Other recent awards include - "Governor of the Year, South-South", by City People Magazine; "Best Governor in Infrastructure 2009", Encomium Magazine; "Best Governor South South", Encomium Magazine and the "Excellency Recognition Award As Best Governor South South", from Global Excellence Magazine. Prior to his emergence as governor, the Africa Independent Television/Raypower FM in the South South Region honoured him with the "Excellence in Governance Award" in 2005. These, however, are just a few of his many honours. Today we salute an adorable homeboy, lawyer, gentleman, statesman, astute administrator and inspiring leader who has overcome tremendous challenges to lead and empower his people and has opened doors wide for them to enter the Land of Promise . Congratulations to the Digital Governor.

- Ike is a public affairs analyst.