•Deputy Governor Peter Akpe of Bayelsa State
Bayelsa State deputy governor, Dr Peter Akpe, has narrated how his father was determined to send him to school despite lacking the financial means to do so.
He said the hardship nearly disrupted his education, recalling how his father once spent more than five hours begging relatives for school fees of N110, reports Daily Trust.
Speaking on Sunday during a special thanksgiving service held in his honour at the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) regional headquarters along Sani Abacha Expressway in Yenagoa, the state capital, Akpe, who is also a regional pastor in the church, said relatives sometimes supported the family with 20 or 30, which helped him complete his education.
Akpe was sworn in as deputy governor in February following the death of the late Deputy Governor, Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo.
Sharing his journey from poverty to public office, Akpe said his life’s experience mirrors the biblical account of Jacob in Genesis 32.
Chief Press Secretary to Governor Douye Diri, Mr Daniel Alabrah, in a statement after the service, quoted Akpe as saying that his father remained determined to educate him despite the severe hardship the family faced.
Akpe revealed that the family lived in a zinc house at the waterfront and that some of his siblings had to forgo schooling for one year because of financial constraints.
“I know some of you have heard my story a little bit. The pressure was so much, but my dad was determined to send me to school. It took over five hours to go and beg relatives for school fees of 110 years ago. Sometimes they would support you with maybe 20 or 30.
“My dad had to borrow before he paid my school fees. There was a time they brought him to the centre of the community and tied him up over unpaid debts until there was intervention.
“When we met the Lord some years ago, God started helping us. It was not as smooth as you see it now,” he said in an emotion-laden voice.
The deputy governor said his current position was proof of God’s faithfulness and an opportunity to reflect on how far God had brought him.
