Governor Emmanuel loses aide

A Special Assistant on projects to Governor Udom Emmanuel, Uwemedimo Umanah, is dead.

Mr Umanah passed away at about 5:15 p.m. on 29 January, at the University of Uyo Teaching Hospital, Uyo, according to a statement issued on Monday on behalf of his family by the Village Head of Abak Town, Ifiok Umanah.

The statement said the deceased was “cut in his prime”.

The campaign team of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in Akwa Ibom State, Umo Eno, has suspended its activities for two day to honour to the late Umanah who had been involved in the campaign.

“With heavy heart amidst torrent of tears overflowing our eyes, following the sudden and unfortunate death of a strong team member, Dr Uwemedimo Umanah, the PDP/Umo Eno Campaign Council has postponed all earlier scheduled campaign events for 30/01/2023 and 31/01/2023.

“This is to honour the deceased who gave his all to the Umo Eno project right from the beginning of the project to his very end yesterday,” the campaign said in a statement from its Secretary General, Enobong Uwah.

The campaign, which condoled with the family of the deceased, described the late Umanah as an indefatigable development scholar and media personality.

Last Facebook post

On 25 January, at 10:10 a.m., the governor’s aide posted what appeared to be his last message on Facebook.

“Akwa Ibom, Behold Your Governor!” Mr Umanah said on the social media site.

“Get this statement internalised: PUE (Pastor Umo Eno) will be your Governor-elect in the next two months; and the fifth democratically-elected Governor of Akwa Ibom State in 4 months (May 29, 2023)”.

He passed away four days later.

Moving eulogy

In a moving eulogy, the Director General, Akwa Ibom State Broadcasting Corporation, Anietie Ukpe, said “the wound left behind by the passage of the late Dr Uwemedimo John Umanah may leave behind tissues too deep for the passage of time to heal”.

He said the deceased was his brother-in-law, friend, mentee, confidant and younger brother.

“As the president of the students association of his faculty, in his baccalaureate days, he (Umanah) pulled me several times out of my comfort zone because of his charisma and the love I had for him. He had me address the students on several occasions, and even had me attend their send forth party one late evening, somewhere out of town. ‘Pastor,’ he told me thereafter, ‘When you left, the students said I should have prevailed on you to stay for the all-night party. I told them that was not possible. That you would never agree to that, and that you only came because of me.” He was right. I only showed up because I could not say ‘No’ to him,” wrote Mr Ukpe, who is a pastor.

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Continuing, Mr Ukpe wrote: “He became a permanent feature in my life after he left the university. “Pastor, why don’t you go for a master’s degree?” he asked me one day in my office. I looked at him quizzically. From experience, he only asked questions like that when he had answers. He continued, “I will get you the form and after you fill it, you will be admitted.”

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“He got me the form. He went out of his way to ensure that my alma mater sent the transcript of my first degree to the school. When I was admitted, he came to break the news to me and was even happier than I was. That was Dr. Umanah! He would gladly offer to take Panadol if that would ease your headache.”