Akwa Ibom gov clears air on ‘happy hour’ policy

Governor Umo Eno of Akwa Ibom State has clarified that his “Happy Hour” remark was misunderstood, stressing that it was never about the government sponsoring drinking sessions for civil servants.

Speaking on Arise Television on Friday, Eno explained what he meant by the phrase.

“I think it was taken completely out of context. Happy hour is, I believe, that if you work hard, you must find time occasionally to relax. Like today, I’ve been working since Sunday back-to-back till Friday.

“And I said today, I just want to relax. I want to go to the Arise Park, spend time, and look at what’s going on. That, for me, is my happy hour. That, for me, is my happy hour. Just time to refresh, to relax. And it wasn’t really meant to be time to go get drunk.”

The governor noted that celebration could take different forms and was not tied to alcohol. He dismissed claims that the state was funding such activities.

“Every time you have an achievement and you celebrate, that’s happy hour. You have happy hour in church. You have happy hour everywhere.”

When asked about reports that his administration allegedly spent N18 billion on happy hour, Eno expressed shock.

What kind of happy hour is that? I don’t know. I don’t have such subhead in my budget.”

He, however, agreed with the host who teased him as the “happy governor.”

“I am happy. And we all seem to be a happy state. We are happy people,” he said.

Eno’s clarification comes months after his “happy hour” campaign pledge sparked widespread debate during the 2023 governorship election.

The controversy resurfaced following online claims that his administration had budgeted billions for the initiative; allegations the governor has now firmly denied, insisting that no such subhead exists in Akwa Ibom’s financial records.