By Joe Iniodu
Ralph Waldo Emerson, in one of his cerebral extrapolations noted, “if you can write a better book than your neighbour, preach
a better sermon or make a better mouse trap, even if you live in the woods, the world would make a beaten path to your door” This postulation owing to its verifiable validity has been widely paraphrased and cast into many study modules. An instance is one which notes that the world makes way for anybody who knows where he is going.
It is in this vein that the world of industrialization is making way for the Udom administration which five point agenda appear well articulated and condensed to deliver the dividends of democracy. The history of the small industrial hub emerging at Ekom-Iman and housing the pencil and toothpick factory share the traits of Waldo Emerson’s thesis.
Mr. David Udoh, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Dekan Industries Limited is a retired principal who has always had a knack for business. Upon disengagement from the school system, he ventured into full time business; first as an Exxon/Mobil contractor; from where he veered into manufacturing. Mr. Udoh, a creative entrepreneur refused to toe the path of our stereotype business that has always revolved around building hotels and fuel stations. He said while a contractor with the oil giant, he always went to Aba and Onitsha to buy some items for supply and had often wondered why some of those simple items could not be produced in Akwa Ibom State.
It was that line of thinking that spurred this visionary business mogul to consider manufacturing. To translate his dream, Mr. Udoh acquired a large expanse of land at Ekom-Iman, built pockets of massive structures to meet the concept of an industrial estate, considered different lines of manufacturing and acquired the relevant machines and equipment to prosecute the production of different lines of considered items. The items include PVC pipes and other types of piping materials; paper bags, plastic buckets, plastic rubbers, plastic tanks, cloth hangers etc.
The scripture and even insightful teachings hold the view that it is only the deep that calls to the deep. It is why people of equivalent passion and vision find it easy to bond, cross-pollinate ideas and collaborate to translate ideas into substance. The AKEES mandate as articulated by Governor Udom Emmanuel saw its co-ordinator, Elder Ufot Ebong keenly studying the economic landscape of Akwa Ibom to identify areas that can provide rewarding economic engagements to some of our teeming youths within a short time while tarrying for the explosion of opportunities that would sequel the well-conceived industrialization programme of the Udom administration. This consideration led to the identification of 22 vegetables, many with life spans not exceeding between 70 to 90 days before harvest. And so with sincerity as the watchword, providence found cause to bring about collaborators that share the vision of the administration.
Chief David Udoh’s association with Elder Uffot Ebong is a masterstroke in the art of providence. Both vertically challenged, they seem to make up for the deficiency with prodigious intellects. You cannot depart the presence of any of the two persons without admitting that you had an encounter with a genius. They are intelligent, foresighted and far-sighted, profound, courageous and tenacious. They are result driven and only see hurdles as stepping stones. Upon discovery that they share similar attributes, both struck a relationship to which Akwa Ibom as a State and its people are already beneficiaries. Thanks to the genius of Governor Udom Emmanuel who knows how to harness human and material resources for the good of the majority.
The Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Dekan Industries Limited has for long had the dream of reclining within the corner of Ekom-Iman industrial hub where Dekan Industries is located to watch the in and out traffic of people especially of Akwa Ibom extraction being part of the industrial conglomerate. This people-oriented business mindset led him into assessing his capacity in providing the needed infrastructure. He did his best by providing the structures huge generating sets and the numerous equipment for different products. But for Mr. David to power the generators for operations for one day, he requires N1.4 Million. With this, the dream nosedived into a dead end. Meeting with Elder Ufot Ebong marked the resuscitation of that dream. The dream is therefore now rich in hope and optimism.
Mr. David Udoh, a patriotic Akwa Ibom son must have been very excited with the key thrust of the Udom administration which is industrialization. But the excitement may also have been tapered off by his perception and that of the public of government as an institution of doubtful sincerity. When he therefore met with Elder Uffot Ebong, a government agent, whom he escorted him through the hub and shared his dreams, he knew that this is a dream come true. Elder Ebong, a workaholic Senior Special Assistant to Governor Emmanuel on Technical Matters and Due Process upon inspection of the industrial hub saw the feasibility of Mr. Udoh’s dream and its potential as part of the industrialization vision. Today, the rest is history as two cottage industries facilitated by AKEES are already operating within the Ekom-Iman industrial hub alongside the ones established by Mr. Udoh. It is the budding of a new Trans Amadi or Ogba Industrial Layout.
The two cottage manufacturing lines that have joined the ranks are pencil and toothpick. The items may not strike many as big breaks in the industrial frontiers, but one must not despise the days of little beginnings especially when one is cognizant of the fact that the items are still being imported into the country with the attendant depletion of foreign exchange. It is therefore certainly a head start in the face of a monolithic economy where a minister recently announced that it would take two years to establish a toothpick factory whereas the conception and delivery of AKEES toothpick factory is a feat achieved in four months. The same with pencil which many may see as a relegated item whereas it is still being imported from China despite the existence of five pencil factories in Nigeria. Its continuous importation underscores a deficit in supply. The AKEES pencil factory is the first pencil factory in Nigeria that is using the paper technology whereas the others use the wood technology. The advantage of the paper technology is that it is environmental friendly.
The AKEES Toothpick and Pencil Factory which is already a busy hub can produce 20,000 pencils with its three lines within 8 hours while the toothpick using its basic raw material of bamboo can do 15,000kg with each line delivering 5,000kg. The factory currently has a workforce of 67 personnel with 99% of them being Akwa Ibom indigenes. The increasing demand for the items especially pencil has necessitated the need for increased workforce that could adopt the shift culture. According to the General Manager, Mr. Bassey Friday Moses, management is considering an increase in the workforce to about 210 personnel to be divided into three shifts. This is to enable the factory meet up with the deluge of demands for its items. Suffice it to say that the workers earn appreciable wages.
Sunday Ime Edet, Usoro Anietie Tom and Matthew Michael who hitherto belonged to the burgeoning tribe of idle youths are today gainfully engaged. They work in the AKEES Toothpick and Pencil Factory. According to them, they now earn a living and can take responsibility as well as plan for their future. The administrative manager, a young lady was more audacious as she stated that she used to run around as a politician with the ambition of becoming a personnel assistant, asserting that with her current job which gives her an assured and stable future, he had since perished such thought. She said that with the AKEES Toothpick and Pencil Factory up and running, she can grow a career with it and not plunge herself into the uncertain and uncharted waters of politics. In fact she boasted that she has a better future than any personal assistant.
The emerging cottage industry hub of Ekom-Iman is, however, beset with a few challenges. The proprietor of the industrial settlement, Mr. David Udoh who expressed satisfaction with the seriousness government has demonstrated in the delivery of the toothpick and pencil factory within 4 months appealed to her to provide a dedicated line to the hub for a 24/7 power supply to boost the operations of the hub. He said that to run all the machines at full blast and have all the production lines active and fully operational cost that is impossible to access. The managing director of Dekan Industries Limited also implored Akwa Ibom State Government to encourage its agencies to use Dekan pipes which he asserted are of international standards.
Between 1979-1983, there was a concerted effort to industrialize the then Cross River State by the Clement Isong administration. Many industries sprang up like Champion Breweries, Qua Steel Mill, Sunshine Batteries, Quality Ceramics, Peacock Paint etc. But politics interjected governance and reversed all the gains of those efforts. Ofcourse, the people were the worse for it.
Today, another opportunity beckons through God’s infinite mercy. Would we let it pass us by again? If we had consolidated on the gains of industrialization from the 80s, imagine where we would have been today. Let us support this administration to secure our future and that of our children. That is the debt we all owe posterity.
Joe Iniodu is a public affairs analyst