By Egufe Yafugborhi & Chioma Onuegbu

UYO – GOVERNOR Umo Eno of Akwa Ibom State has described Christmas as a season of joy and goodwill and called on the citizens to continue to live in peace and unity.

Eno who made the call in his 2023 Christmas message on Monday, appreciated the people for the prayers and support they have extended to his administration since he assumed office seven months ago.

His words: “This is a season of joy and goodwill. It is a day to celebrate hope, that, in the birth of our Lord and Saviour, our future and salvation to mankind are assured. I call on our people to continue to live in peace and unity and eschew tendencies that seek to divide us.

“As I have been saying: Politics is long gone. It’s now time for governance. We should bury and throw into the trash can, the cards of hatred, of whipping non-existence schisms and of demonizing our leaders and symbols of authority.

” From Ibibio to Annang lands, to Oro Nation, to Obolo, we are united and shaped by the language of love and unity. We are homogenous. Therefore, let no one throw a poisonous substance into our otherwise calm waters of unity and kindred spirit.

“We will continue to flow with the waves of love and amity. And as you celebrate this day, please remember to reach out to those who may have fallen on the rough patches of life.

“Don’t just give hand-outs, give them a hand to get up and let us together ARISE and work to extend the frontiers of the Golden Era of our collective growth, development and progress”

Governor Eno use the opportunity to thank all those who expressed heart-warming and wonderful compliments to his administration for bringing Christmas cheers to workers in the state government employ through the payment of additional one month salary, making it 13 months affectionately dubbed
“Eno-Mber”.

He reassured that government will continue to pay special attention to workers and also create the enabling environment for Small and Medium Scale Enterprises, (SMEs) which is the engine of growth, in any economy to thrive.

“We will continue to tackle those critically important kitchen-table issues, which affect families. We will continue to pay down gratuities to our retired workers.

“This speech is not one to reel-off my Scorecard; in my New Year Day Broadcast to you my dear people, I will present what we have collectively achieved together in the last seven months, and what we hope to achieve in the New Year”, Gov Eno said.