19/04/2022
Our Excellency’s speech during the
Calabar Heritage Award event, yesterday.
I am greatly privileged and honored to be receive this noble award.
Although I am the one receiving this award today, I would like to dedicate it to every person working hard to ensure we have good governance and leadership in our great State.
This award is for you.
Please keep up the good work because only through good governance and leadership will we see our state prosper and realise its full potential.
Cross River State is a great State with a lot of potentials.
As I humbly receive this award, let me urge each and everyone of you to continue playing your part in making a difference to the people of this State especially our children.
So let me tell you a story about a little girl called Arit as I conclude.
Arit lives with her grandmother and goes to one of the public schools in Calabar.
Because of her grandmother’s lack of financial resources, Arit did not have her own books or a school bag.
The books she used were ones handed down to her by other students.
When our UK based Calabar Forum and my foundation, the Coco-Bassey Foundation decided to distribute books, schoolbags, uniforms and Scholarships across the state, this little girl, Arit was one of the beneficiaries.
For the first time in her life, she had her own brand new uniform, books, and a school bag.
She was so overjoyed that she rang me to thank me.
This is a story that shows how we can all, together, play our part and bring out the much-needed change in people’s lives.
Mother Teresa once said, “you can do what I cannot do, I can do what you cannot do, but together we can do great things.”
Let’s continue to work together to do great things in Cross River State.
Please join me in my “Ahead campaign” as I seek to become the next Governor of our dear State in 2023.
Thank you very much and thank you once again for this noble award.