The governor of Akwa Ibom State, Umo Eno, has expressed sadness over the growing rate of Sexual and Gender-based Violence (SGBV) in the state.
He described the 1,349 cases recorded in the state as alarming and ordered the concerned authorities to mitigate the scourge through the administration of stiffer penalties as deterrence.
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Governor Eno, who presided over the State Executive Council (SEC) meeting on Wednesday night at Government House, Uyo, the state capital, was miffed when the director in charge of the SGBV Department of the Ministry of Justice presented a report indicating that “between 2021 and date, 1,349 cases had been prosecuted, with many convictions secured.”
To effectively curb the menace, the governor, therefore, read riot act to the committee to wield the big stick against the perpetrators, assuring of his administration’s support and legal backing “to do more in the extermination of the anomaly.”
The governor charged all the SEC members to “ensure that all the projects and programmes under your supervision are people-centric from conception to execution,” and advised that project monitoring should be ramped up to ensure quick completion.
Other issues during the SEC summit, included the ministerial review of projects and programmes by heads of Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) on the state of projects and programmes within their jurisdiction.
Reeling out the scorecard of his ministry, the commissioner for works and fire service, Prof. Eno Ibanga, explained that his ministry has expended N112 billion on road infrastructure alone, since the current administration took over the reins in May 2023.
The breakdown of the figures, according to him, indicated expenditure of N78.77 billion on 39 new road projects, while N30 billion, including the N12 billion recently released by the state government, had been sunk into old projects abandoned by the immediate past administration.
Also, the commissioner for agriculture and rural development, Mrs. Offiong Offor, presented the status update on the food sufficiency and security plan of the administration, informing that “the enhanced cassava cuttings are to be deployed to significantly increase the output of cassava.”
She also highlighted the strategy for increased coca and rice production, explaining that the Ibom Model Farm (IBM), is on course with the land preparation activities.
Also, the Ministry of Culture and Tourism presented the tourism blueprint, specifically providing hints on the proposed development of tourism hubs at Ikot Abasi, Itu, and Oron LGAs.