EKET, AKWA IBOM STATE— Amidst the background of a drawn-out and violent common crisis in between the Ekid and Ibeno ethnic groups, the Proprietor of Heritage Polytechnic, Mr Emmanuel Ekott, has actually lauded his students for keeping an “island of peace” within the institution.
Speaking on Saturday, April 18, 2026, during the polytechnic’s combined 17th admission and 15th convocation ceremonies, Ekott applauded the student body for declining to allow tribal departments to interrupt their academic pursuit, despite the billions of naira in residential or commercial property damage and death recorded in the neighbouring host communities.
Addressing a diverse audience of graduands and new intakes, Ekott emphasised that the polytechnic’s gates function as a filter versus ethnic labels.
He challenged the students of Ibeno and Ekid extraction to prioritise their shared identity as scholars over ancestral grievances.
“When you stroll through our gates, you leave tribal labels. Knowledge knows no ethnic boundaries. The laws of physics and the principles of mathematics do not compare Ekid and Ibeno,” Ekott specified.
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A Review of the Status Quo
In a bold departure from conventional diplomatic rhetoric, Ekott criticised the current position of neighborhood elders and leaders, describing their positions as outdated and harmful to the area’s image.
He argued that the stagnancy triggered by the conflict is a poor tradition to bequeath to the youth.
“These positions belong to a past we must consciously leave,” he mentioned, keeping in mind that the courtroom is not the only location where common peace can be brokered.
He worried that no meaningful development has ever emerged from “the womb of discord.”
Require a Genuine Peace Dialogue
The Heritage Polytechnic boss made an enthusiastic appeal to standard rulers and politicians in both the Eket and Ibeno City Government Locations to assemble a genuine dialogue.
He suggested that the students’ durability is evidence that the younger generation is prepared for reconciliation.
Beyond the peace advocacy, the combined event marked a substantial milestone for the private institution, which continues to offer technical and occupation education to the South-South area.
By successfully hosting the 17th admission and 15th convocation amidst external unrest, the polytechnic demonstrated its logistical stability and dedication to continuous academic cycles.
The declaration, launched by the organization’s press system, concluded with a call to invest in the future of the youth rather than sustaining the “sorrow and stagnancy” of the past.
As the brand-new matriculants take their oaths, the university community remains an enthusiastic blueprint for the more comprehensive peace preferred by the people of Akwa Ibom State.