AKWA IBOM State Governor, Chief Godswill Akpabio has assured that his administration would partner with the Federal Government towards the realization of the Ibaka Deep Sea Port project in Mbo Local Government Area of the state.

He said his administration would provide the necessary infrastructure for the smooth take off of the project.

Governor Akpabio who spoke in Abuja when he handed over the certificate of occupancy for the 5,129 hectares of land and the master plan of the project to the managing director of the Nigerian Ports Authority, NPA, Alhaji Omar Suleiman, said the presentation of the certificate was a giant step towards the building of a second functional sea port in Nigeria.

Akpabio noted that the water depth in Ibaka which stood at about 17 metres without dredging has given Nigeria an opportunity to take advantage of the water depth to build a viable sea port that could compete with any other international sea port around the world.

The governor said: “From the history in the archives of the NPA, it is clear that this is not the first time the Federal Government has realized the inherent potential in Ibaka as a deep sea port, but successive administrations had not taken advantage of this potential.”

While commending President Goodluck Jonathan for his initiative towards the project, Akpabio cautioned that there could be a revolution if the issue of youth unemployment is not seriously tackled. He added: “One of the greatest problems we would have in this country would be an implosion if we don’t take the right economic steps because of the millions of graduates who are churned out yearly. A time would come when there would be an internal revolution if we don’t take the right steps now. Part of what we should do is what we are doing now.”

Responding on behalf of the Federal Government, the Managing Director of NPA, Alhaji Omar Suleiman, who described Chief Akpabio as “Infrastructure Governor” said the Federal Government was glad to partner with Akwa Ibom State government in Ibaka. He noted that the natural advantage of Ibaka and the excellent road network in Akwa Ibom State would provide the needed impetus for the project.