Victor Attah

{{Infobox officeholder

|name = Victor Bassey Attah

|image =

|office1 = 2nd Governor of Akwa Ibom State

|term_start1 = 29 May 1999

|term_end1 = 29 May 2007

|deputy1 = {{unbulleted list|

Chris Ekpenyong {{small|(1999–2005)}}
Michael Udofia {{small|(2005–2007)}}

}}

|predecessor1 = John Ebiye

|successor1 = Godswill Akpabio

|birth_date = {{Birth date and age|df=yes|1938|11|20}}

|birth_place = Okop Ndua Erong, Asutan Ekpe, Ibesikpo Asutan LGA, Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria

|death_date =

|party =

}}

Obong Victor Bassey Attah {{Audio|Ig-Obong Victor Bassey Attah.ogg|listen|help=no}} (born 20 November 1938) is a Nigerian politician who served as the Governor of Akwa Ibom State from 29 May 1999 to 29 May 2007.{{cite web | last=Ukpong | first=Cletus | title=Akwa Ibom governor visits ex-governor Attah | website=Premium Times Nigeria | date=2023-06-03 | url=https://www.premiumtimesng.com/regional/south-south-regional/602323-akwa-ibom-governor-visits-ex-governor-attah.html | access-date=2023-06-04}} He was a member of the Board of Trustees of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Background

Attah was born on 20 November 1938.

He completed post-primary education in 1956. He gained a degree from Leeds College of Art and a postgraduate diploma in Building Science from Liverpool University in 1965. He won the scholarship to study at Columbia University in New York, where he obtained an MA in Advanced Architectural Design and Planning. He also attended the Kennedy Graduate School of Governance at Harvard University. After completing his education, he practised as an architect in the Caribbean, New York City, and Nigeria. He served as the national president of the Nigerian Institute of Architects.{{Cite web|date=2020-01-14|title=Obong Attah: Ex gov who dared the anti-graft agency|url=https://www.vanguardngr.com/2020/01/obong-attah-ex-gov-who-dared-the-anti-graft-agency/|access-date=2020-10-06|website=Vanguard News|language=en-US}}

Governor of Akwa Ibom

He was part of the Peoples Democratic Movement led by Shehu Musa Yar'Adua in the aborted Sani Abacha transition program together with politicians such as Atiku Abubakar, Abdullahi Aliyu Sumaila, Magaji Abdullahi, Chuba Okadigbo and Sunday Afolabi. Attah was elected governor of Akwa Ibom in 1999 on the Akwa Ibom PDP platform, and was re-elected in 2003. He was elected Chairman of the Nigerian Governors' Forum in 2003.{{cite web

|url=http://allafrica.com/stories/200408070044.html

|title=Governor Obong Victor Attah: Akwa Ibom and Nigeria at Heart

|date=7 August 2004

|publisher=Government of Akwa Ibom State

|access-date=5 December 2009}}

In 2001, Attah travelled to the United States with as many as 21 people in search of foreign investors. This visit and others produced tangible results.{{cite web

|url = http://www.sunnewsonline.com/webpages/opinion/2008/oct/29/opinion-29-10-2008-002.htm

|title = The North & oil: Nyako's useful intervention

|author = Ejiro Imireh

|date = 29 October 2008

|publisher = Daily Sun

|access-date = 5 December 2009

|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100616074829/http://www.sunnewsonline.com/webpages/opinion/2008/oct/29/opinion-29-10-2008-002.htm

|archive-date = 16 June 2010

|url-status = dead

|df = dmy-all

}}

He promised to improve telecoms, power supply, and air transport infrastructure, and to replicate Silicon Valley in Uyo.{{cite web

|url = http://www.compassnews.net/Ng/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=34251:obong-victor-attah-a-visionary-statesman-at-71&catid=46:sunday-compass&Itemid=698

|title = Obong Victor Attah – A visionary statesman at 71

|date = 22 November 2009

|publisher = Nigerian Compass

|access-date = 5 December 2009

}}{{Dead link|date=July 2018 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}

He planned to build an airport in Uyo before he left office in 2007.{{cite web

|url = http://www.sunnewsonline.com/webpages/columnists/brokentongues/amaze-feb16.htm

|title = Aboard Slok Air's inaugural flight

|author = Amaze Obi

|date = 16 February 2004

|publisher = Daily Sun

|access-date = 5 December 2009

|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20060409194505/http://www.sunnewsonline.com/webpages/columnists/brokentongues/amaze-feb16.htm

|archive-date = 9 April 2006

|url-status = dead

|df = dmy-all

}}

He laid the foundation for the establishment of the Akwa Ibom State University of Technology.{{cite web

|url = http://www.weeklyinsightng.com/tribute.html

|title = Obong Victor Attah, A Visionary Statesman at 71

|publisher = weekly Insight

|author = Udeme Nana

|access-date = 5 December 2009

|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120301123523/http://www.weeklyinsightng.com/tribute.html

|archive-date = 1 March 2012

|url-status = dead

|df = dmy-all

}}

Attah ran for the presidential nomination of the Peoples Democratic Party in 2007, but later withdrew.{{cite web

|url=http://www.pioneerng.com/article.php?title=Aide_Denies_Former_Governor_Attah%E2%80%99s_Senate_Ambition&id=2218

|title=Aide Denies Former Governor Attah's Senate Ambition

|author=Dominic Akpan

|date=22 February 2009

|publisher=The Pioneer

|access-date=5 December 2009}}

Later career

Attah retired from politics after losing the PDP candidacy for presidency in 2007. He spent time with his wife, Alison, who is suffering from type 2 diabetes.

In March 2008, Attah joined ExecutiveAction, a consultancy that helps firms manage problems in difficult business environments.{{cite web

|url=http://www.allbusiness.com/government/government-bodies-offices-heads-state/7301292-1.html

|publisher=ExecutiveAction

|title=Former Nigerian Governor Victor Attah Joins ExecutiveAction – "The Problem Solving Company".

|date=4 March 2008

|access-date=5 December 2009}}

Honour

On 24 November 2018, in a public statement, Governor Udom Emmanuel of Akwa Ibom State, renamed Akwa Ibom International Airport to Victor Attah International Airport. The airport was named after the former governor to honour him as its founder during his tenure from 1999 to 2007.{{Cite web|date=2018-11-25|title=Akwa Ibom names airport after ex-Governor Victor Attah|url=https://www.premiumtimesng.com/regional/south-south-regional/297451-akwa-ibom-names-airport-after-ex-governor-victor-attah.html|access-date=2020-10-06|language=en-GB}}