Secrets Reporters Senate President Godswill Akpabio has reignited memories of his long-running political rift with former Governor Udom Emmanuel, using a recent ward address to draw a veiled contrast between humble titles that quickly give way to worldly ambitions. Speaking to All Progressives Congress (APC) party members at his Ukana West Two Ward in Essien Udim Local Government Area during activities marking the party’s primaries, Akpabio targeted what he described as the tendency of some leaders to rapidly shed modest religious titles. “There are times there are people called deacon; when they come as Deacons, in less than three months, they change from Deacons to Mister and before you know it, they will go and collect chieftaincy title and then from there they change to something else,” Akpabio said. Political observers widely interpreted the remark as a pointed reference to his successor, Deacon Udom Emmanuel, who entered office in 2015 bearing the church title of Deacon from the Qua Iboe Church. The comment revives echoes of a bitter nine-year feud that defined Akwa Ibom politics between 2015 and 2024. Akpabio had personally handpicked Emmanuel, then a Zenith Bank executive and Secretary to the State Government as his successor in 2015, overriding significant opposition within the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). The relationship soured shortly after Emmanuel assumed office. Akpabio publicly accused his successor’s administration of neglecting his Ikot Ekpene Senatorial District and failing the people. In 2018, Akpabio defected to the APC and launched scathing attacks, describing Emmanuel’s emergence as “a mistake that must be corrected in 2019” and apologising to the people for “imposing” him. Tensions escalated as Emmanuel allegedly moved against Akpabio’s loyalists in government, sacking key allies including then-Secretary to the State Government Etekamba Umoren and Commissioner Udo Ekpenyong, both from Akpabio’s senatorial district. Despite Emmanuel’s re-election in 2019, the cold war persisted until early 2025, when the two leaders publicly reconciled. The peace process was mediated by current Governor Pastor Umo Eno and President Bola Tinubu during a high-level meeting at Aso Villa in Abuja in February 2025. Akpabio’s latest comments come as the APC consolidates its structure in Akwa Ibom ahead of the 2027 general elections. The Senate President recently emerged as the unopposed APC consensus candidate for the Akwa Ibom North-West Senatorial District during primaries held in his ward. Governor Umo Eno, who defected from the PDP to the APC along with a significant bloc of supporters, has also secured the party’s governorship ticket. Akpabio has consistently praised Eno’s leadership and consistency of character, a narrative that stands in sharp contrast to the “Deacon to Mister” trajectory he alluded to in his speech. The Senate President has repeatedly framed the current political arrangement under Eno as one of unity and genuine service, even as he subtly references past disappointments with his own successor. Despite the public reconciliation in 2025, analysts note that old rivalries in Akwa Ibom politics often simmer beneath the surface, especially as major electoral cycles approach. Akpabio’s remarks, delivered in the heat of party primaries, suggest that while handshakes have been exchanged, certain political memories remain vivid.
.. Senate President Akpabio Revives Old Feud With Successor Udom Emmanuel, Says He Came As A Deacon and Became A Mister After Three Months first appeared on Secret Reporters.
