July 20, (THEWILL) – The Akwa Ibom State Gubernatorial candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) for the 2023 election, Pastor Umo Eno, has vowed to quit his governorship race and renounce his calling as a pastor, if the West African Examination Council (WAEC) attests to the fact that he forged his certificate.
THEWILL reports that Eno, a former commissioner of lands and Water Resources and anointed successor of Governor Udom Emmmauel, is standing trial over alleged certificate forgery and falsification of birth certificate, as well as parading forged Voter Registration Card.
This followed a suit filed by one of the governorship aspirants, Mr Akan Okon, asking the federal high court, Uyo, Akwa Ibom state, to disqualify Umo Eno as he was cleared in error by the party’s screening committee during the primary, which held in Portharcourt, Rivers State.
Speaking on Tuesday at the Citizens Square, Uyo, during an event powered by the Pure Umo Royalty Eno Group, Eno was quoted as saying: “anything you see on social media about my WAEC certificate is a mere distraction. If WAEC says that I, Umo Bassey Eno, have forged my certificate in 1981, or 1983 and it is proven, I will not only quit being a gubernatorial candidate, I’ll quit being a Pastor.
“Let people rant all they want to rant, but let them also know that it is emboldening me and empowering me to go on.
“Everything they do is not going to distract me, what they are doing is the fuel needed to move me to the next level. There is no other commitment anyone would give than that which I have said today; my pastoral calling is not less important to me than serving the people of Akwa Ibom state.”
According to the embattled pastor, his strict parental upbringing would never have permitted him to forge his certificate, adding that there was nothing wrong in re-sitting an exam to make up for papers I had “failed to make previously.”
He charged the youths who attended the event not to be afraid of failure, but be resilient enough to pick themselves up and move on.
“In 1981, 41 years ago, I never planned to be the governor of Akwa Ibom state, I was barely 17 years old and knowing the kind of parents I had, I would never have thought of forging, it never crossed my mind, it was not even in the lexicon at the time.
“There is nothing wrong in trying an exam under the circumstances I grew up in and then you go to take the exam again and pass the same subject.
“There is nothing wrong in failure, what is wrong is staying down. There is something good about falling and rising, that is the story every young person must learn from me; that you can fall, but you do not stay down, you grow and move on”, he maintained.
The PDP flag bearer in Akwa Ibom state encouraged the youths at the event to inquire what developmental plans the people seeking to lead them would bring to the table if given the opportunity to serve in any capacity.
He urged them to choose someone who will champion job creation, eradicate unemployment and lead the state to prosperity.
Pastor Umo Eno lauded Governor Udom Emmanuel’s administration for opening the three gateways; air, land and sea, to expand the economy of Akwa Ibom State.
He also said that the people of the state need to build their own economy, create jobs for the young people and put them to work so that they could enjoy the numerous facilities created by the Udom Emmanuel administration.
According to him Akwa Ibom needs a man who will create jobs and such a man must show how he has created jobs in the past, confidently stating that he has contributed to the economy of the state more than any other person in the gubernatorial race.
He also promised to create jobs in the private sector for over 10,000 Akwa Ibom people who are willing to work hard in his first year as the governor of the state.
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