Speaker of the Akwa Ibom House of Assembly, Udeme Otong, on Tuesday, announced the appointment of Mr Emmanuel Ebong, a former editor of The Pioneer newspaper’s agriculture desk, as his spokesperson.
Ebong’s appointment is contained in a press release signed by the Speaker, Udeme Otong, and made available to our correspondent.
Other appointments made by the Speaker include Emmanuel Idio, chief of staff; Nnamso Inyang, special assistant, General Duties; Umo Robinson, special assistant, Public Affairs; Samuel Edet, director of protocol; and Monday Isaac, personal assistant.
Otong’s appointment of Mr Emmanuel Ebong has brought to an end the dispute he (Otong) earlier had with the leadership of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Akwa Ibom State Council, over the appointment of his press secretary.
The NUJ, led by Amos Etuk, had directed journalists in Akwa Ibom to boycott the activities of the Assembly to protest against Mr Otong’s appointment of a non-journalist, Nkereuwem Udom, as his press secretary.
Mr Udom is a politician and former councilor at the Ibesikpo-Asutan Local Government Area of Akwa Ibom State, where he was the leader of the legislative branch.
He had claimed the position of the speaker’s spokesperson in his Facebook profile and was issuing public statements on behalf of the speaker, even when he was yet to get a formal appointment.
The press secretary to the speaker is the head of the Assembly’s press corps, which consists of reporters from various media houses in the state.
The position is traditionally reserved for a practicing journalist.
“I am conversant with the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and other laws, I have not seen, I have not read where the speaker should seek approval of anybody before appointing personal aides,” Mr Udom told PREMIUM TIMES in June, at the beginning of the dispute.
“The appointment of personal aides is at the discretion of the holder of the office, except and otherwise stated by the Constitution of Nigeria,” he added.
The speaker, Mr Otong, in his statement, also announced Mr Udom as his personal secretary.
‘Strengthened lines’
The NUJ, on 19 July, before the speaker constituted his team of personal aides, had directed journalists to resume their coverage of the Assembly’s activities, after a meeting between the leadership of the union and the speaker and other principal members of the Assembly.
“The lines were strengthened to the satisfaction of both institutions,” the NUJ said of their meeting with the Assembly leadership, in a 19 July statement signed by the NUJ chairperson, Amos Etuk, and the secretary, Dominic Akpan.
