Eno declares Friday work-free day as Tinubu visits Akwa Ibom
- Governor Umo Eno has declared Friday, November 6, 2026 a work-free day in Akwa Ibom.
- The day is to let residents and civil servants welcome President Bola Tinubu during his visit.
- Tinubu is expected to commission airport, road and resort projects and attend a 2027 support rally.
Akwa Ibom Governor Umo Eno has declared Friday, November 6, 2026 a work-free day in the state, so that residents, especially civil servants, can come out to welcome President Bola Tinubu.
The governor announced this on Thursday after inspecting projects lined up for the president to commission, according to Channels TV.
Tinubu is expected to commission the International Terminal Building at Victor Attah International Airport, the Aviation Village, an Airport Hospital, the ARISE Palm Resort, the 14.5-kilometre Nsit Atai–Okobo Road, the Ring Road 3 Extension and a Security and Command Centre.
For ordinary residents, the visit means many offices and schools may be shut on Friday, and roads around the airport and Uyo may be busy with convoys and crowds. Civil servants should confirm with their offices whether they are expected at the reception.
What the governor said
Eno said the visit would let the state show off projects his administration has built, and described it as timely for Akwa Ibom's development.
He thanked the president for making resources available to state governments, saying the support had helped fund projects in the state.
He also said a rally would be held during the visit in support of Tinubu's 2027 re-election bid.
“We urge all Akwa Ibomites to come out en masse to give the President an overwhelming reception,” Eno said, speaking on behalf of the government and people of the state and naming Senate President Godswill Akpabio as their leader.
He asked residents to show the state's tradition of hospitality.
What happens next
According to ThisDay, the visit will be Tinubu's third to Akwa Ibom. He first came in November 2014 as an opposition leader to receive defectors into the APC, and returned in 2023 for a presidential campaign rally.
The newspaper also reported that Akwa Ibom people will be listening for the president's word on federal support for the state's proposed deep sea port, a project the state has already spent money on preliminary work for.
Friday's programme is expected to run from the airport through the project sites to the rally ground.
