IN the next couple of days, Governor Godswill  Obot Akpabio will be receiving the garlands of honour as the Silverbird Governor of the Year.

his award comes barely a week after the uncommon transformer was awarded the City People Governor of the year at its 15th edition which held at the Tafawa Balewa Square, Lagos, a development that further lends credence to the redefinition of governance which Akpabio has brought to bear in the state and the nation as a whole.

His ascension to the seat of power in the state could be said to be a great blessing to the state, with several achievements already recorded in the areas of education, health, agriculture, infrastructure and so on, making second to none in the entire South-South region, if not Nigeria.

For instance, Akwa Ibom State now has a standard airport which the Governor is already working on its Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul, MRO; an electronic library and the Tropicana Entertainment Centre, a great source of tourist attraction, among others, due to the Governor’s passion to the transformation of the state.

Apart from these, Governor Akpabio’s achievements in the aspects of road construction have been enormous.

According to the Commissioner of Information and Communication, Mr Aniekan Umanah: “The state government has completed over 250 federal and state roads spanning 950 kilometers”, highlighting the Governor’s dedication to turning the state into a fair haven for investors.

Also of great importance is the Governor’s insightful leadership in bringing about tremendous changes to the human development sector of the state, with his unbridled commitment to education as exemplified in his free compulsory education programme for primary and secondary school students and a sound empowerment programme for youths and women.

As a testimony to Chief Akpabio’s strides in human development, the nobel laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka, recently commended him, citing the training of Akwa Ibom youths in specialised field of aviation and the compulsory free education programme to children of primary and secondary school age.

Ever since his first term in office, Governor Akpabio’s efforts have not been bereft of recognitions and commendations; so Prof Soyinka has only joined a league of people and institutions such as the Central Bank of Nigeria, that have indicated Akwa Ibom’s model of governance as a standard for other states to follow. The state was selected as the best state in the country for 2011 for its strides in women empowerment.

Having achieved all these feats with his transformation team comprising commissioners, special advisers, special assistants and so on,  many people would expect a bit of complacency.

However, Chief Akpabio, who has never been known to rest on his oars when the development of the state is at stake, has continued to reiterate his passion to maintain the momentum of development, especially with the government’s aim of turning the state to an industrialised state and the economy hub in the gulf of guinea. The industrialisation agenda is very keen on the governor’s mind in this second term in office.

Although he gave everyone a jolt when he dissolved his cabinet, he later showed that such step was in the interest of the state.

While swearing in the 20 new commissioners and special advisers recently, he established why his transformation agenda has been successful so far, and that is, there is zero tolerance for corruption.

Akpabio, unlike many politicians, would not forget the promise he made to his people while seeking their votes and it would suffice why his people call him the Promise Keeper and if the momentum of development is really maintained in the state, Akwa Ibom will in no time become a cynosure of all eyes in the country.

Mr. IBIPOBONG UDOM, a commemtator on national issues,  wrote  from Abuja