“Don’t Make Anyone Governor Just Because He’s Always Kneeling When Talking to You” – Akpabio Tells Second-Term Governors

Senate President Godswill Akpabio has advised outgoing governors to resist the temptation of choosing submissive loyalists as their successors, warning that such decisions, often based on flattery or show of loyalty, could lead to future regrets and betrayal.

Speaking on Saturday, May 31, at the commissioning of the first 30-kilometre section of the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway in Lekki, Lagos, Akpabio specifically addressed second-term governors, urging them to prioritize vision, competence, and preparedness in their succession plans.

“Don’t go hiding in your heart that this boy is very subservient; he is always kneeling when he is talking to me, his wife is always rolling on the floor, I think I should make this one the governor,” Akpabio said. “If you do that, you are giving power to somebody who is not prepared for governance and they will disappoint you. This is where betrayals normally start.”

His remarks speak directly to Nigeria’s enduring political culture of godfatherism, where outgoing leaders often anoint successors based on loyalty rather than capability. While some former governors have succeeded in maintaining influence through handpicked allies, many of these arrangements have soured, leading to political feuds once protégés assert their independence.

Akpabio, a former Akwa Ibom State governor, warned that patronage-based choices often produce weak leadership. He praised President Bola Tinubu as an example of a leader with both “sight and vision,” encouraging governors in the All Progressives Congress (APC) to emulate such standards when handing over power.

The event was attended by several top officials and dignitaries, including President Tinubu, Nobel Laureate Wole Soyinka, Finance Minister Wale Edun, Works Minister Dave Umahi, and second-term governors such as Hope Uzodimma of Imo, Dapo Abiodun of Ogun, and Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos.