Chief Godswill Obot Akpabio, CON (born 19 December 1962), is a Nigerian lawyer and
politician who is a Senator of the Federal Republic of
Nigeria and the
Senate's Minority Leader. He was also Governor of Akwa Ibom State of Nigeria from May 29, 2007 to May 29, 2015.
Godswill Akpabio is the son of
Chief Obot Akpabio and Madam Lucy Obot Akpabio (née Inyangetor) of Ukana, Ikot
Ntuen in Essien Udim Local
Government Area. He was born on 9 December 1962. He lost his father early
in life and was raised by his mother, who inculcated in him the values of hard
work, discipline and honesty.
Education
He was educated at Methodist Primary School, Ukana, Essien Udim LGA, Akwa Ibom State; the prestigious Federal
Government College, Port Harcourt, Rivers State; and the University of Calabar, Cross River State, where he obtained a Degree
in Law.
While at the Federal Government College, Port Harcourt, he was appointed the General
Senior Prefect. In the University of Calabar,
his charisma endeared him to the students and he was elected the Speaker of
the Students’ Parliament.
Family and personal life
Godswill Akpabio’s grandfather, Okuku Udo Akpabio, was the 1st
Warrant Chief in Ikot Ekpene province.
His uncle, Dr. I. U. Akpabio, was the Minister of Education/Internal Affairs in
the then Eastern Nigeria.
Justice Nsima Akpabio, his cousin, was a senator in the Second Nigerian
Republic.
He is a Christian of
the Catholic faith. Godswill is married
to Ekaette Unoma Akpabio, the founder of Family Life Enhancement Initiative
(FLEI), a non-governmental
organization providing a platform for redirecting the focus of
development efforts on the family as a strategy for achieving the Millennium
Development Goals (MDGs).
Akpabio and his wife have four daughters and a son. Also a son
from another woman, Glenn Udosen.
Career and employment
Akpabio had a brief stint as a teacher and as an associate partner with
Paul Usoro and Co., a leading law firm in Nigeria.
He also worked with EMIS Telecoms Limited, a pioneer fixed wireless
telecommunications company in Lagos, Nigeria.
In 2002, he rose
to the position of the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of the company. In
this position, he helped in shaping the future of the burgeoning telecoms industry. He had earlier served
as the National Publicity Secretary of the Association of Telecommunication
Companies in Nigeria, (ATCOM), while a director of EMIS.
Appointments and politics
In 2002, he was appointed Honourable Commissioner for Petroleum
and Natural Resources in Akwa Ibom State. Between 2002 and 2006, he
served as a Commissioner in three key ministries: Petroleum and Natural
Resources, Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, as well as Lands and
Housing.
In 2006, he aspired for the governorship of Akwa Ibom State in a hotly
contested primary election and
defeated 57 other aspirants to emerge the candidate of the People’s
Democratic Party (PDP). His campaign with the slogan, “let
God’s will be done” received mass support and was elected Governor in 2007. He
was re-elected for a second term in office as Governor of Akwa Ibom State in 2011.
In 2013, he was elected Chairman of the newly formed PDP Governors Forum.
In 2015, he contested and won the Senate seat of the Akwa Ibom North West (Ikot Ekpene)
Senatorial District to represent the district in the Senate of the Federal
Republic of Nigeria. Running under the platform of the People’s Democratic
Party (PDP), he polled 422,009 of the 439,449 to defeat Chief Inibehe Okorie of
the All Progressive
Congress (APC) who recorded 15, 152 votes to be declared
elected by the Independent
National Electoral Commission (INEC).
He was nominated for the position of the Senate Minority
Leader by the South-South caucus of the People's
Democratic Party (PDP), ratified by the caucus of the PDP in
the Senate and announced by the Senate President as Senate Minority
Leader on 28 July 2015. The PDP lost the majority to the All Progressives
Congress (APC), in the 2015 general elections.
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